Mahadeva Temple, Itagi

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Mahadeva Temple
Itagi
Ittagi
Village
Mahadeva temple (1112 CE) at Itagi
Mahadeva temple (1112 CE) at Itagi
Mahadeva Temple is located in Karnataka
Mahadeva Temple
Mahadeva Temple
Location in Karnataka, India
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country  India
State Karnataka
District Koppal
Languages
 • Official Kannada
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Vehicle registration 37
Nearest city Kuknur

The Mahadeva Temple is located in the town of Itagi in Yalburga Taluk, in the Koppal District of Karnataka state, India. It is about 7 km (4 mi) from Kuknur and 20 km (12 mi) from Lakkundi.

Mahadeva Temple

Profile of Mahadeva Temple at Itagi (or Ittagi) in the Koppal district, Karnataka
File:Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG
Mahadeva Temple at Itagi (or Ittagi) in the Koppal district, 1112 CE, an example of dravida articulation with a nagara superstructure

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Main articles: Western Chalukya architecture and Western Chalukya temples

The Mahadeva Temple was built based on the general plan of the Amruteshwara Temple at Annigeri (used as the prototype). The Mahadeva Temple has the same architectural components; there is a difference in their articulation.

The Mahadeva Temple at Itagi was built circa 1112 CE by Mahadeva, a commander (dandanayaka) in the army of the Western Chalukya King Vikramaditya VI. Itagi is about 22 miles (35 km) east of Gadag and 40 miles (64 km) west of Hampi. The temple is dedicated to Hindu God Shiva. The well-executed sculptures, finely crafted carvings on walls, pillars and the tower make it a good example of complete Western Chalukyan art which speaks volumes about the taste of the Chalukyan artisans. An inscription dated 1112 CE in the temple calls it "Emperor among Temples" (Devalaya Chakravarti).[1][2][3] Art historian Henry Cousens called this monument the "finest in Kannada country after Halebidu".[2][4] These Western Chalukya monuments, regional variants of existing dravida (South Indian) temples, defined the Karnata dravida tradition.[5] The Mahadeva temple is officially protected as a national monument by the Archaeological Survey of India.[3]

Details

Temple plan

The temple plan consists of a shrine (cella) which is connected to a closed mantapa (hall) by a vestibule (antechamber). The closed mantapa leads to an open pillared mantapa, with the temple as a whole facing the east. Some parts of the temple, such as the cornice and parapet over the outer edge of the roof of the open mantapa are missing.[6] The main temple, the sanctum of which has a linga (symbol of Shiva),[6] is surrounded by thirteen minor shrines, each with its own linga. The temple has two other shrines, dedicated to Murthinarayana and Chandraleshwari, parents of Mahadeva, the Chalukya commander who consecrated the temple.[7]

The closed mantapa has a doorway on each side, with the eastern doorway leading to the open mantapa and the western doorway to the sanctum. The door panels are well wrought and the ceiling of the porches have a ribbed design in them. The decoration of the outer walls follows the same pattern as that of the shrine.[6] The great open mantapa has 64 pillars, 24 of which are full pillars which start from the floor and support the main ceiling. The remaining are half pillars (or "dwarf pillars") which start from the bench (parapet wall) that surrounds the mantapa and support the sloping eaves. The pillars in this hall bear similarities to the porch pillars at the Dodda Basappa Temple at Dambal and the lathe-turned pillars (whose rounded sections are lathe-turned) at the Kasivisvesvara Temple at Lakkundi.[1]

The square ceiling of the open mantapa which are supported by the four central pillars exhibits interesting fretted stonework. The ceiling here has been worked into a decorative arabesque foliage and makaras (mythical beasts) which flow from the mouth of a Kirtimukha (gargoyle or demon face). This type of stonework is considered as high a quality as any.[1] In stark contrast, the interior of the closed mantapa and the sanctum are plain and simple. It is believed that bracket figures that once adorned the outside pillars are now missing. These forward leaning bracket figures (Salabhanjika), which normally represent female forms in various poses (such as dancing or adorning themselves), would have rested on small blocks on the shaft of the pillars (capital), finding support from the underside of the overhanging cornice via a slot in their upper end.[8]

See also

Gallery

  • Kirthimukha at Mahadeva Temple in Itagi.jpg

    Kirtimukha on superstructure of Vimana

  • Ornate pillared mantapa leading to the shrine in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi.jpg

    Mantapa (hall) with lathe turned pillars at the Mahadeva Temple

  • Vesara shrine and superstructure in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Vimana of Mahadeva temple with decorative articulation

  • Mahadeva temple Itagi 5.jpg

    Mahadeva Temple at Itagi (or Ittagi) in the Koppal district, Karnataka

  • Ornate porch entrance with decorative door jamb, lintel and domical ceiling in Mahadeva temple at Itagi.jpg

    Porch entrance with ornate pillars and domical ceiling at Mahadeva Temple, Itagi

  • Old Kannada inscription (1112 CE) honouring the temple as "Emperor among temples"

  • Door panel decoration at Mahadeva Temple in Itagi.jpg

    Doorjamb decoration on porch at Mahadeva Temple

  • A minor shrine on the mantapa inner wall in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Minor shrine inside the closed mantapa of the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Decorative lintel and door jamb with domical ceiling in the lateral entrance to the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Decorative lintel and door jamb with domical ceiling in the lateral entrance to the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Decorative door jamb and lintel over the entrance to the sanctum in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Decorative door jamb and lintel over the entrance to the sanctum in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Lintel relief over entrance to sanctum in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Lintel relief over entrance to sanctum in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Hall pillar pedestal relief in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Hall pillar pedestal relief in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Profile of Vesara tower and shrine in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district 1.JPG

    Profile of Vesara tower and shrine in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

  • Profile of wall relief in the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi in the Koppal district.JPG

    Profile of wall relief in the Mahadeva temple at Itagi

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Cousens (1926), p. 101
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kamath (2001), pp. 117–118
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Quote:"A title it fully deserves, for it is probably the finest temple in Kanarese districts, after Halebidu" (Cousens 1926, p101)
  5. ↑ Hardy (1995), pp. 6–7
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Cousens (1926), p. 100
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Cousens (1926), p. 102

References

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