Nagara temple architecture was prevalent in north and central india. Also, when this style was developed, the architectural features of nagara and dravida temples could have naturally mingled as unique features of these two styles were still developing. Pdf on jul 1, 2008, shweta vardia and others published building. Jan 21, 2020 member feedback about the four elements of architecture. North indian temple architecture, style of architecture produced throughout northern india and as far south as bijapur district in northern karnataka state, characterized by its distinctive shikhara, a superstructure, tower, or spire above the garbhagriha wombroom, a small sanctuary housing the main image or emblem of the temple deity. This style reduces the height of the individual tiers without reducing their number resulting in a reduction in the height of the temple towers. Now customize the name of a clipboard to store your clips. For example, various substyles of nagara architecture are found vis vis odisha school, solanki school, and khajuraho school etc. It is common in this style to build an entire temple on a stone platform with steps leading up to it. This lesson discusses the structure of the nagara style temples. South india aristocratically boasts the dravida style of architecture amidst the lofty temples and swaying shrines. Khajuraho temples are a pinnacle of the north indian nagara architectural style. The style is sometimes referred to as nagara, a type of temple mentioned in the shilpashastras traditional canons of architecture, but exact correlation of the. So it is hard to find contrasting features between these styles.
Iconography is a branch of art history which studies the images of deities it consists of identification of image based on certain symbols and mythology associated with them. Temple architecture and sculpture hindu, buddhist and jain. Of the different styles of temple architecture in india, the nagara architecture of. The identification of the temple with a mountain is specific and the superstructure is known as a mountain peak for more information and visuals, see michell 69, fig. Temple architecture uttarakhand temple architecture of. Three main style of temple architecture are the nagara or the northern style, the dravida or the southern style and the vesara or mixed. It is common here to build an entire temple on a stone platform with steps leading up to it.
Temple architecture in south india dravida style iasmania. The temples in the northwestern parts of india including gujarat and rajasthan, and in western madhya pradesh are large in numbers. The nagara style of temples were generally built on upraised platforms. Hindu temple architecture as the main form of hindu architecture has many varieties of style. Indian temple architecture evolution, type, design layout. Gs art and culture temple architecture upsc preparation. The dravidian style of temple architecture is the oldest style of architecture. We have presented in brief about the nagar style architecture. What is the difference between dravida and nagar style of. What are the features of temple architecture contrasted with. In the last post we have read nagara temple architecture.
The style of temple architecture that became popular in northern india is known as nagara. Nagara in north india dravida in south india at times, the vesara style of temples as an independent style created through the mixing of nagara and dravida orders. Classic example of the late gupta period temple architecture. It is a nagara temple placed on a high platform accessed by stairs. An architectural style is characterized by the features that make a building or other structure notable and historically identifiable. It literally means wombhouse and is a cave like sanctum. A style may include such elements as form, method of construction, building materials, and regional character. The temple shape may be rectangular, square, starshaped, or octagonal. Temples styles in north india nagara style iasmania civil.
North indian temple architecture architectural style britannica. It is reflected in the multitude details of figured sculpture as well as in the architectural elements. Now in this post, we will discuss south indian temple architecture. This shows how similar architectural developments were incorporated in both religions. In this post, let us see the chalukya architecuture in detail. Nagara is the style of temple architecture which became popular in northern india. In this article, you can read all about the indian temple architecture, its types and points to remember for the ias exam with respect to temple architecture.
Temple architecture is an important part of art and culture syllabus for the civil services exam the shilpashastras or architectural texts written in the early medieval period refer to three major styles of temple architecture in india. Indian temple architecture evolution, type, design. Around this chamber there are often other structures and buildings, in the. While the earlier vijayanagara style was bold, coarse and plane the later ones were ornate, sophisticated and ambitious in scale. In this megaarticle, we shall discuss about the indian temple architecture and sculpture in detail. Jun 26, 2015 a nagara style temple would generally stand on a high platform jagati made of stone bricks, with several mouldings. Percy brown has called vijayanagara art as the supremely passionate flowering of the dravidian style. Member feedback about the four elements of architecture. In the last article, we have seen the broad outline of temple architecture styles in india nagara, dravida and vesara and chola architecture in particular. Pdf nagara and dravida temples aneesh unnikrishnan. Since elfments 19th century, however, japan has incorporated much of western, modern, and postmodern architecture into construction and design, and is today a leader in cuttingedge architectural design and technology. A nagara style temple would generally stand on a high platform jagati made of stone bricks, with several mouldings.
The rulers of yesteryears built some of the intricately carved and exquisite places of worship. Pdf art and architecture of the regional styles 750 ad to c. This classification is based on different architectural styles, employed in the construction of the temples. Accordingly, the vesara style contain elements of both dravida and nagara styles.
In north india it is common for an entire temple to be built on a stone platform with steps leading up to it. Vesara style is basically a fusion of nagara and dravida styles and not very defined. Jul 29, 2017 also, when this style was developed, the architectural features of nagara and dravida temples could have naturally mingled as unique features of these two styles were still developing. Art and architecture of the regional styles 750 ad to c. Indian temple architecture can be broadly divided into two schools.
At times, the vesar style of temples as an independent style created through the selective mixing of the nagara and dravida orders is mentioned by some scholars. Sacred space and symbolic form at lakshmana temple, khajuraho. The northern or indoaryan style of architecture covers the. Temples styles in north india nagara style iasmania. Most architecture can be classified as a chronology of styles which change over time reflecting changing fashions, beliefs and religions, or the. The nagara style is characterized by a beehive shaped tower called a shikhara made up of layer upon layer of architectural elements such as kapotas and gavaksas, all topped by a large round cushionlike element called an amalaka.
Temple architecture in south india dravida style four stages of temple architecture had been observed in south india mainly during the pallavas rule, around 6th century ad which are as follows. The nagara style is typically characterised by the architectural wonder, which ideally portrayed the craftsmanship of the artists. Nov 14, 20 this is the name given to an architectural style that evolved in karnataka during the medieval centuries and combined both the nagara and the dravida styles. South india carried on the classical tradition of dravida style as transmitted by the pallava dynasty of rulers to the cholas of gangaikonda cholapuram i. The buildings in the deccan region are hybridized style, which contain both elements from nagara and dravida architectural styles and is known in some ancient texts as the vesara style not all temples of deccan are vesara type. Clipping is a handy way to collect important slides you want to go back to later. What is the difference between dravida and nagara style of architecture. The shilpashastras or architectural texts written in the early medieval period refer to three major styles of temple architecture in india.
The architecture of india is rooted in its history, culture and religion. Ancient indian temples are classified in three broad types. But there is a common factor among the whole of hampis architecture that projects out as the vijayanagara school of architecture. North indian temple architecture architectural style. These temples usually have gopurams, which are large towers over the entrances. Three main style of temple architecture are the nagara or the northern style, the dravida or the southern style and the vesara or mixed style. Temple architecture and sculpture hindu, buddhist and. It is a hybridized style formed by combining features of both dravida and nagara style of temple architecture. Under dravidian architecture, we have also seen the comparison between pallava and chola architecture. Nagara style, from himalaya in the north, to the east and west coasts of india and as far south as the river tungabhadra. Temple architecture of india, cave temples, rock cut temple, structural temple, nagara, dravida, vesara style, pallava, ellora. It consists primarily of hindu temples where the dominating feature is the high gopura or. Kandariya mahadeva temple at khajuraho in madhya pradesh is one of the best expression of nagara temple architecture. Unlike in south india, it doesnt usually have elaborate boundary walls or gateways.
Stage 1 mahendra group marked the beginning of rock cut cave architecture word mandap was used instead temple. Kandariya mahadeo temple at khajuraho is the epitome of temple architecture in central india. Dravidian architecture or the south indian temple style is an architectural idiom in hindu temple architecture that emerged in the southern part of the indian subcontinent or south india and in sri lanka, reaching its final form by the sixteenth century. Chalukyan architecture is a combination of nagara and dravida and hence. The dravidian style is the typical south indian style temple that is usually made from stone. Hindu temple architecture as the main form of hindu architecture has many varieties of style, though the basic nature of the hindu temple remains the same, with the essential feature an inner sanctum, the garbha griha or wombchamber, where the primary murti or the image of a deity is housed in a simple bare cell. However many historian agree that the vesara style originated in the what is today karnataka. From the architecture and imagery, it is known that the temple was built in early 6th century ce. We call it as the dravidian style of temple architecture. The two common characteristics of the dravida style were that the temples of this style had more than four sides in the sanctum and, the tower or vimana of these. Nagara style was developed regionally each region manifesting its own particular qualities. All the three styles emerged from the earlier style known as the panchayatana style of architecture. Most of the art and architectural remains that survive from ancient.
The lakshmana temple is an excellent example of nagara style hindu temple architecture. The main style of hindu temple architecture in india had its modest beginning precisely from the mauryan rule i. Main shrine is built on a rectangular plinth with four subsidiary shrines that are smaller and at the 4 corners. This the first part of the temple architecture sub series. Temple architecture in any part of india has always been patronized by the kings and people ruling there as a way to leave an imprint on the pages of history. The plan is based on a square but the walls are sometimes so. In contrast, dravida towers known separately as vimana are in the form of a stepped pyramid that rises up linearly rather than curved.
Pdf she identifies fractal like qualilties in north indian temples of the nagara style as well as south indian temples of the dravida style find, read and cite all the research you need on. You could say nagara and dravida styles merge into a new stylized form and the term vesara is ge. It took another couple of centuries for various nagara substyles such as khajuraho, kalinga odisha, osiyan and gujarati to fully develop. Further, unlike in south india it does not usually have elaborate boundary walls or gateways. Pdf building science of indian temple architecture researchgate.
What are the features of temple architecture contrasted. Temples styles in north india nagara style ancient indian temples are classified in three broad types. This classification is based on different architectural styles, employed in the. The vesara style is also described in some texts as the central indian temple architecture style or deccan architecture. Temple architecture in india ncert notes pdf download. These style is also called as the deccan style as most of the temples of this temple architecture style are found in deccan region. The temples in uttaranchal were usually made in nagara style of architecture or the. Jul 29, 2017 nagara temple architecture was prevalent in north and central india. Vesara style temple architecture hindu temples in india. Nagara style of architecture, developed during the 5th century, is an emblem of architectural wonder and is scattered through out various regions of the country. Nov 26, 2015 nagara is the style of temple architecture which became popular in northern india.
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