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7TH CENTURY WONDER

LOCATION : MAHABALIPURAM
DISTANCE : 58 KMS FROM CHENNAI, TN
TOTAL AREA : 8 SQ .KMS
OTHER NAMES : MAMALLAPURAM
LANGUAGE : TAMIL
FAMOUS FOR : PALLAVA CULTURE & ARTS
ELEVATION : 12M ( 39 FT )
FESTIVAL CELEBRATED: DANCE FESTIVAL IN DEC.
CO-ORDINATES : 12036’59” N 80011’58” E
POPULATION : 12,049 UNDER CENSUS 2001
LITERACY RATE : MALE - 82% ,
FEMALE - 52%
About Mahabalipuram in TamilNadu

 Mahabalipuram, also known as

Mamallapuram is a town in Kancheepuram
district in the Indian state of Tamil nadu.

 It is around 60 km south from the city of

Chennai.

 Ancient Indian traders who went to countries of

south East Asia sailed from the sea port of
Mahabalipuram.

 Mahabalipuram can literally mean as the city of

great wrestler as the Mahabalipuram means the
city of mahabali (powerful).

History of Mahabalipuram
The city of Mahabalipuram was developed by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman I in the 7 th
century AD. The Pallava kings ruled Mamallapuram from Kancheepuram (capital of Pallava dynasty
from the 3rd century to 9th century), and used the port to launch trade and diplomatic mission to
Srilanka and Southeast Asia.

By the 7th century it was a port city of south Indian dynasty of the pallavas. It has a group of
sanctuaries, which was carved out of rock along the coramandel coast in the 7th and 8th centuries.
They are rathas (temples in the form of chariots), mandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open air reliefs
such as the famous ‘descent of the Ganges’, and the shore temple, with thousands of sculptures to the
glory of Shiva.

The group of monuments at Mahabalipuram has been classified as a UNESCO world heritage site. It
has an average elevation of 12 m (39 feet). The modern city of Mahabalipuram was established by the
British Raj in 1827.

Megalithic burial urns, cairn circles and jars with burials dating to the very dawn of the Christian era
have been discovered near Mamallapuram. The sangam age poem perumpanarruppatai relates the rule
of king thondaimanllam thiraiyar at Kancheepuram of the thondai nadu port nirpeyyaru which
scholars identify with the present day Mamallapuram.
Chinese coins and roman coins of Theodosius I in
the 4th century have been found at
Mamallapuram revealing the port as an active hub
of global trade in the late classical period. Two
Pallava coins bearing legends read as srihari and
srinidhi have been found at Mamallapuram.

The temples of Mamallapuram, portraying

events described in the Mahabharata, were built
largely during the reigns of Narasimhavarman and
his successor Rajasimhavarman and showcase the
movement from rock-cut architecture to
structural building. The mandapa or pavilions and
the rathas or shrines shaped as temple chariots are
hewn from the granite rock face, while the
famed Shore Temple, erected half a century
later, is built from dressed stone. What makes
Mamallapuram so culturally resonant are the
influences it absorbs and disseminates. The
Shore Temple includes many bas reliefs, including one 100 ft. long and 45 ft. high, carved out of
granite.

All but one of the rathas from the first phase of Pallava architecture are modeled on the Buddhist
viharas or monasteries and chaitya halls with several cells arranged around a courtyard. Art historian
Percy Brown, in fact, traces the possible roots of the Pallava Mandapa to the similar rock-cut caves of
Ajanta Caves and Ellora Caves. Referring to Narasimhavarman's victory in AD 642 over the
Chalukyan king Pulakesin II, Brown says the Pallava king may have brought the sculptors and
artisans back to Kanchi and Mamallapuram as 'spoils of war'.

The fact that different shrines were dedicated to different deities is evidence of an increased
sectarianism at the time of their construction. A bas-relief on a sculpted cliff has an image of Shiva
and a shrine dedicated to Vishnu, indicating the growing importance of these Sangam period deities
and a weakening of the roles of Vedic gods such as Indra and Soma.

Temples In Mahabalipuram
There are total 11 excavated temples in Mahabalipuram, called Mandapas, two open air bas reliefs,
out of which one is incomplete. They are the unique contribution of the Pallavas to Indian Art.

Pancha ratha :
Of the nine monolithic temples found in Mahabalipuram, the most important are Five Rathas
known after the famous five Pandava brothers of the Mahabharata fame. These monuments are
carved out a single rock with choice of all known forms of plan and elevations. They are carved over
a common mounted plinth which is north-south oriented with a slight slope. Each has a different
layout, such as square, rectangular, or apsidal plans. The largest measures 42 by 35 feet, and the
tallest is 40 feet high.

The structural design and elevation are with towers or domes with single (ekathala) to triple
(trithala) towers, which present a unique exhibiton of south indian Dravidian architecture. The
chiseling done by the stone sculptors are occasional along joints between the stones. The walls are
arranged and sequentially partitioned. The projections and recesses in these walls give the appearance
of a set of shallow pilasters. The niches created in the walls are of rectangular shape and have carved
sculptures of gods, demi-gods and the kings. The skirting around the images are of wild aquatic
animals with “foliated tails and open jaws. The wall pilasters have curved brackets, and columns on
the porch provide support to an overhanging eave; arch windows occasionally carved with images are
located above them. The mouldings culminate in
parapets. The carvings above the eave overhangs are
decorated roof forms in miniature size, which are seen
in rows all around each of the structure.

Shore temple :
Though monolithic sculpturing is done both cut-in and cut-out is continued even during later
periods (Atiranachanda cave, Pidarirathas and Tiger-cave), the structural architecture was introduced
on a grand scale by PallavaRajasimha (AD 700-28), culminating in erection of the world famous
Shore temple. The Shore temple is a complex of three temples, viz, Rajasimhesvara (a small
tritalavimana facing west), the Kshatriyasimhesvara (the larger east facing vimana) and Nripatisimha
Pallava Vishnugriha (an east facing, oblong, flat-roofed mandapa shrine) housing the reclining
Vishnu. These shrines are enclosed by two prakara walls with openings constructed in later times.
Cave temple
The inner surface of prakara walls once contained panel sculptures which are worn out now.
The notable cave temples here are the Varaha mandapa, Mahisamardini mandapa,
Paramesvara Mahavaraha Vishnugriha (Adivaraha cave). These are in the Mamalla style while the
Adiranchanda caves temples belong to the
Mahendra period.

The caves here were once plastered and

painted as indicated by the remains. After
Rajasimha, there is lull in the architectural activity of
the place, save a few additions during late-Pallava
and Chola times. The grandiose Vijayanagara
phase here is represented by the Raja Gopurams
and the Sthala Sayana temple, juxtaposed to the
carved boulder of Arjuna's penance.

Varaha cave
The mandapa in the front has two lion- pillars and two pilasters, and
beyond this in the centre, the cell is guarded by two dwarapalas.
There are four panels on the walls of front mandapa representing
Varaha raising goddess earth from the ocean. (Bhuvaraha panel),
Gajalakshmi seated on lotus and bathed by elephants, Durga with
four arms and Trivikrama overcoming the demon king Bali. The
delineation and modelling of the figures are remarkable.

Mahishamardini

the cave has a front mandapa with a triple cell with four pillars and two pilasters. On
either side of this mandapa two large panels one representing Seshasayi Vishnu and
other Mahishamardhini. The central cell is intended for a Siva Linga; on the wall
behind is the representation of Somaskanda.

Dharmaraja mandapa

The triple celled cave temple with massive pillars belongs to Mahendravarman’s time. The cave
temple contains inscription in Pallavagrantha which gives the name of the temple as atyanthakama
pallavesvara–graham

Koneri Mandapa

An unfinished five celled rock cut temple with four pillars supported by couchant lions and flanked
by pilasters and with a central cell.
 Trimurthi cave

A Triple celled temple with superstructure is believed to

be dedicated to Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, the three
gods of the Hindu pantheon. The entrance of each cell
is flanked by dwarapalas in narrow panels.
Panchapandava mandapa (cave temple)

A large cave temple of which only six lion pillars and

similar pilasters at either end are finished. The brackets
above the capitals of these pillars are decorated with
lions and griffins with human riders. The pillars and
Pilasters with vyala base mounted on square pitha
Kotikal Mandapa is a small primitive rock cut temple of
Mahendra style devoted to Durga. The façade shows
two massive pillars and pilasters at either side end. In
the centre of the back wall a cell has been cut `and is guarded by female door keepers on either side
of the entrance. There is an inscription with 7th century letters- Sri Vamankusa.

Tiger cave

The tiger cave is a rock-cut temple complex located in the

hamlet of saluvankuppam near Mahabalipuram in
Chennai. It get s its name from the carvings of tiger
heads on the mouth of a cave which forms a part of the
complex. The tiger cave is considered to be one of the
Mahabalipuram rock-cut temples constructed by the
pallavas in 8th century ad. The temple is maintained by
archealogical survey of india (ASI)

Justification of the site (Mahabalipuram)

The sites at Mamallapuram are each impressive. Taken as a whole, particularly with the mix of
different gods and sects being honored, it is an incredible testament to the way of life seen in that era.
Mahabalipuram holds an important place in the art history of
India. Its temples and sculptures are not only some of the
earliest but also significant in variety and elegance.

The only place in India where all three stages of architecture

namely,

-cave temples

-single stone temples

-structural temples can be seen.

They are wrought on granite, the hardest material a feat accomplished 700 years after Ashoka. Open
air bas reliefs are not found anywhere else in the country except Mahabalipuram.

It is declared a world Heritage monument by UNESCO in 1984, for

- Its descent of the ganges is an unique artistic achievement

- Mamallapuram is the testimony to the Pallava’s civilization of Southeast India.
- Its sculptures are characterized by the softness and suppleness of their modeling.

The influence of its sculptures spread to the East, Cambodia, Java etc. This entire make
Mahabalipuram one stop-shop for temple architecture of
the South.

It is the most important Museum of Temple

architecture, from the most rudimentary Dharmaraja
mandapam to the most sophisticated varaha
mandapam, monoliths of great variety, structural
temples of diverse styles, unique art treasures like the
bas relief of the Great Penance, unusual excavations of
the tiger cave in saluvakuppam, countless piece of art
strewn all over, panels of great elegance, sculptures of
extraordinary beauty and calligraphic but most
intriguing inscriptions.

Site study (Mahabalipuram)

Climatic conditions
Mahabalipuram, being a coastal area experiences a
tropical climate. The weather is usually hot and
humid throughout the year. The minimum
temperature is usually above 16°C. The best time to
visit the place is from October to March.

Summer

The summer starts from March and last till mid May.
The temperature varies from maximum 42°C to
minimum 21°C. Since it is too hot, it is not the best time to visit Mahabalipuram. The nights are
relatively cooler due to its proximity to the sea with humidity levels ranging between 55-65%. 

Monsoon
The monsoon starts form June till September. June to September months is accompanied by very hot
weather and rainfalls making the place becomes very humid and difficult to travel and carrying out
tourist activities. Because of humidity people avoid visiting this place in this season.

Winter

The winter season starts in December and ends in February. During this time of the year, the climate
becomes very pleasant and nights are cool with minimum temperature hovering around 16 o C. This is
when the region is dry and cool. It is the perfect time to enjoy sightseeing and adventure activities.

RAINFALL

Mahabalipuram receives most of its rainfall during the northeast monsoon season, from mid
September to mid December. As Mahabalipuram lies on the coast, it rains a lot here with humidity
level remaining around 90%. The average annual rainfall is around 800 millimeters.

month climate details

Jan Pleasant The climate is extremely pleasant. The temperatures are comfortable making it ideal
for sightseeing, and outings. The sky is mostly blue with a few passing white clouds.

Feb Pleasant The weather gets quite refreshing and enjoyable with pleasant days and cooler nights.
Ideal for sightseeing. The natural panorama of the city becomes alive and cool winds
helps in bringing down the temperature during the day.

Mar Moderately Hot The temperature starts to get warm but is still in the comfortable hot level. The skies
remains clear for most part of the day and the evening breeze cool the climate a bit.

Apr Very Hot Temperature starts to soar making the weather hot and humidity, and might be
beyond the comfort level of most of the tourists. However, nights are comparatively
cooler due to its proximity to the sea. It is not the best time for holidaying.

May Very Hot The climate during this month is very hot and humid. The sky remains clear with
plenty of sunshine and it gets a little too hot for comfort. Due to its proximity to the
sea, nights are relatively cooler than daytime.

Jun Very Hot The month is usually accompanied with hot and humid weather but shower occurs in
mid-June. The sky is mostly clear but monsoons arrive at the end of the month. 

Jul Rainy Hot days with some rainfall, the weather in this month is generally very hot with high
humidity. Temperature might drop in the evenings, but is still not within the
comfortable range.

Aug Rainy Sunny days with occasional rainfall in this month. This is the second wettest month
of the year and it sometimes rains for long periods with blue sky in the breaks.
 Sep Very Hot The place receives most of its rainfall during this month but humidity level is quite
high. Rainfall is not a major cause of inconvenience but plays a positive role in
bringing the temperature down to cooler levels.

Oct Moderately Hot Weather is moderately hot. Light and short showers occur during the mid-October
but it settles down slowly.

Nov Pleasant Relatively pleasant and nice weather during this time. Favorable time to visit
Mahabalipuram as days is pleasant. The sky remains mostly clear with plenty of
passing clouds.

Dec Pleasant Mahabalipuram is very beautiful at this time of the year with cool days and chilly
nights.

Monthly weather averages give the best indication of what the weather is usually like for every month
of the year including figures for temperature, rainfall and sunshine.

month J F M A M J J A S O N D
Max Daytime Temperature (°C)
Min Night-time Temperature (°C)
Hours of Sunshine (Daily)
Hours of Daylight (Daily)
Heat and Humidity Discomfort
Days with some Rainfall
Monthly Rainfall (mm)
UV Index (Maximum)

Sea Temperature (°C) 27 27 28 30 30 30 29 29 29 29 28 27

Transportation

 Nearest Airport: Chennai Airport (58 km).

 Nearest Railway Station: Chengalpattu Railway Station (29 km) and Chennai Railway
station (58 km).
 By Road: Mahabalipuram is well connected through all the major cities and buses are
available daily from Pondicherry, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Chennai to
Mahabalipuram.

Mamallapuram’s small but busy bus stand is on the corner of East Raja and South Madras.
Mamallapuram is well connected with Chennai and Pondicherry, from Chennai its just 50 Kms and
from Pondicherry it’s just 95Kms.

Best and economical option is catching Bus it’s really cheap and easily available. But if you really
want to catch bus then try to get it from station called "Koyambedu" or "Thiruvanmiyur".

These two stations are starting point for buses and from Koyambedu buses going to Pondicherry may
stop at Mamallapuram and AC buses are also available.

From thiruvanmiyur, it’s also a starting stop for buses and it will take around 1 hr from this stop to
reach Mamallapuram, but from Koyambedu it’s all about traffic on the way it may take 2-3 hrs to
reach Mamllapuram.

Landmarks

The most important landmarks in mahabalipuram are

 Thirukadalmallai, the temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It was also built by Pallava King in
order to safeguard the sculptures from the ocean. It is told that after building this temple, the
remaining architecture was preserved and was not corroded by sea.
 Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna's Penance – a giant open-air bas relief
 Varaha Cave Temple – a small rock-cut temple dating back to the 7th century.
 The Shore Temple – a structural temple along the Bay of Bengal with the entrance from the
western side away from the sea. Recent excavations have revealed new structures here.
 Pancha Rathas (Five Chariots) – five monolithic pyramidal structures named after the
Pandavas (Arjuna, Bhima, Yudhishtra, Nakula and Sahadeva) and Draupadi. An interesting
aspect of the rathas is that, despite their sizes they are not assembled – each of these is carved
from one single large piece of stone.
 Light House, built in 1894.

Sea level in Mahabalipuram

The shelf off Mahabalipuram is about 40 km wide and the shelf break occurs around 135m
depth and covered by carbonate-dominated sediments in the outer shelf and sandy silt and silty clay in
the other parts (Vaz, 1996).

The continental shelf of Mahabalipuram has two fold morphological divisions separated by a
terrace at -120 m (Mohapatra et al2002).

THE INNER SHELF in this region is mostly covered with sandy sediments (Selvaraj and
Ram Mohan, 2003). In the near shore zone off Mahabalipuram, the seabed is uneven with rocky
outcrops of granitic boulders with occasional sand patches and it gradually slops down towards east.
There is
Shoal called Tripalurreef which is in the form of submerged rocks. A ridge is noticed southeastern
side of the temple in about 8 -10 m water depth that extends from Southland narrows towards North
and is more than2 km in length and 0.5km in width. At some places the top of ridges gets exposed
during lowest
Tide waves break on them. Shorelines / Sea level changes on the east coast are well studied. Merh,
(1987) has reported that during mid-late Holocene period 2-3 time sea levels fluctuated between2 to 6
m along the both coasts of India.
Banerjee, (2001) has documented sea level fluctuation on the East Coast during last 5000years.

Justification of pancharathas

Mamallapuram plays an important role for being a pride of Dravidian

architecture and the site is also in Chennai. there are many monuments
in Mamallapuram like shore temple, tigercave, varahacave,
Mahishasuramardini cave, pancharathas and etc. the place is very
famous for its sculptural works and carving in stones done in the Pallava
period. The tourists were also visiting the place from all over the world
and as we were near the popular pride of the state we selected
mamallapuram.

The shore temple in the mamallapuram s in very danger already six

pagodas have went in to the sea and only one temple is left. thevaraha
cave is the oldest of all the temple but the visiting time is very less, from
the pancharatha we can visually see the excellent skills of the pallava's.

it is the live example of the carving skills of the pallava's, we can able to see the proportion the
acoustic effect in the rathas over, there was also a rock over there with vertical holes in it showing us
the technique the pallava's used to break the rocks to build these
wonders.

hence from the pancharathas we can bale to get more information’s

about the pallava's and the about their skills.

From the unfinished works in the rathas we can understand that due
to some war reasons they cannot able to finish the works. and there
were also many shops and places for the sculptors to do their statues.
hence the site we selected will also be near for the sculptors. As we
took the pancharatha as the main inspiration for the design we
selected the site opposite to the pancharatha.
five becomes an auspicious number five elements of
nature, the five pandava’s, for great hotels and for
rating five s used to rate as a highest rate. Pallava’s
have also thought odd number as special number they
built 7 pagodas and then 5 rathas. The pallavan king
doesn't kept the pandava's name for the rathas the
number five matches with it so later they would have
been kept by someone else .even the finger are five in
each hand and leg.

Hence we choose pancharatha .and the site is also

away from the sea not like the shore temple to escape
from the tsunami friend visiting the site takes away his friends
along with her. the site is also away from the traffic based city the
roads are rarely used by the vehicles and hence it will be free from
both air pollution and noise pollution.

And the shell museum is also next to it and hence it will be useful
for the visitors to visit both the gallery and also the museum

CASE STUDY
It’s a pleasant morning and we started our journey at the
thiruvanmiyur bus stop. Around 9a.m we reached mamallapuram
pancha rathas. We were the first visitors on that day to the site.We
reached the ticket counter and it was just placed approximately 15m away from the pancha rathas, to
avoid traffic formed in front of the ticket counter. We took the ticket as 10Rs for each. In the entrance
there was a description about the history of the rathas inscribed in a stone. The first was the draupathi
ratha. It is the smallest and simplest ratha, and is formed as a bangla hut and we also saw the
sculptures inside the draupathi ratha. The next was the arjuna ratha and it is placed in a raised
platform. In the space between the two rathas, a
nandhi was placed. It was just behind the two
rathas.

The next ratha was the bhima's ratha and it

was the biggest of all the rathas and it also had
space to come around the ratha like a
pradhakshina patha (circumambular passage or
prakara). It also has different acoustic effects in it.
Seated lions are carved in front of the columns.
There were two columns attached together
which had functional and aesthetical purpose.
The columns are the main support for this structure. The lower part of this structure was not
completed, since the excavators naturally worked from the top down. The temples are unfinished.

Next to that, Dharmaraja ratha is placed. It was the highest of all the rathas. It had many
sculptures and the statue of lord Vishnu. It decorates the eastern corner of south wall. The king
Mamalla sculpture was also there. The king's name is identified by the inscription above his portrait
statue. He grandly occupies the west corner of the south wall. Speculates that this may be a funerary
portrait, since it was placed at the "Yama" position on his monument.

It was just a solid structure with niches and it doesn’t have any garbagriha and the columns
were placed aesthetically and it doesn’t support any structures.
The ratha of the twin brothers nakula and sahadeva was placed opposite to arjuna's ratha and a
big sculpture of elephant and lion was also located next to their ratha .The back wall of the ratha was
semi circular in shape.
We experienced differences in the heat on
the surface of the rock present over there .The
texture of the rock is the reason for the change in
absorption of the heat in rocks. Since the site was
under the control of ASI, the site was under a good
maintenance with plants and without any
garbage’s. The dustbin over there was also made of
stone only. In bus stand also some of the seating
were made of stones, which represent pride of the
monuments present in the place.
There were many shops outside the
pancharatha site, like a road side shops selling
tender coconut, butter milk, caps and cycles were
also given for hire.
Near the ticket giving place there two statues, one was
the statue of the king narasimha pallava and other was statue of
peagan giving a blanket to a peacock.
As we proceed forward we can see many sculptors
making some statues and many shops selling statues, bags
,ornaments and painting etc.,
when we reached the road there were many sculpture shops with very big sculptures for sales
in one side of the road .All the sculptures were kept in the platform in the side of the road and some
statues were kept alone on the opposite side of the road as open without shelter and the climate was
really hot as the time was moving along with the sun.
 Again we went to the place was the statues
were made manually and also with machines. There
was a separate place few distance away from the
pancha ratha, where there was many group of people
doing there sculpturing works in different places.
The whole process was done there. The process
includes breaking, cutting, shaping, carving,
margining, finishing etc., There are two types in
making statues or sculptures. The first one is the
carving from stones. The second one is the making the
statues by using bricks. Usually, the painted statues
were made by this method. In mamallapuram, the
stones which were used for doing sculptures are
stored under the ground.so that there won’t be any damage to the stone in high heat or during the rain.
 
Usually the statues made were packed in a wooden box with lots of hay in them. Diamonds
were also used to make big holes in the stone and water is also poured on it frequently to avoid
diamond from getting heat. If the diamond gets heat it would burst at a point. Not only stone statues,
statues were also made with cement also .The base form of the cement statue was made with iron
wires and brick and mortar. Above it the cement is applies in layers as how we expect the statue to
look like statues are made in different sizes. The large stones are transported with the help of cranes.
Sculptor said that selection of stone is very important for doing a particular statue. Depending upon
on the size of the statue we expect we should select the stones. It takes nearly 10 days for the sculptor
to do app. 1 feet ht of Buddha’s face.
There were many people working in the sculpture doing area both manually and mechanically
statues were made.
There is an aquarium and a shell museum near the place. The shell museum has 40,000 types
of shells and it holds the world record. A single person did this record. There were different types of
shell preserved in a building which was designed in such a way that we feel like if we were under a
sea. The temperature, wall painting everything was like under a sea. Even the tiles were designed like
a wave and the marine organisms were painted on the tiles. It creates an imagination that we were
walking on the under the sea.
They have used different type of glass so that it gives a blurred effect like sea when we see
outside from the inside sea. The reception was at the center and at the ceiling there was an octopus
painted in the wall from the center there were 8 radial lines forming an octagon reception wall which
was made with idea as octopus hands. There was three projection of rectangles from the reception
were the shells were kept.
The lightings were also perfect for both shell displayed and for the rooms also. The lights
were also dim or dull .Two small triangular places for left for the visitors as a seating area. Even the
outside wall has some texture resembling some marine ideas.
 Opposite to the gallery was a building which has shop
and aquarium. The elevation of the building there was an
octopus in the ceiling. As we enter inside the building we can
see the hands of the octopus breaking the walls and have
entered inside the building. It was built as like a real octopus
have broken the wall. There were cracks in the wall and the
bricks were exposed the painting was also look real. Even we
can able to see the rods projected outside the wall. The
aquarium also gave a sea effect with light blue color.
Each fish tank had separate lighting and protection for it.
Around 2:30 to 3:00 pm we returned to the bus stand the sun was
giving his best heat and there was no proper transportation from
the site to the bus stand at that time and the decent hotels were
house full making us to go to a very bad restaurant …
`

And thus our case study was over…