History of Indian and Eastern Architecture v1.c19.s7.6

v1.c19.s7.6

The great temple is dedicated to the worship of Siva, as Brihatîsvara, in the form of an enormous Linga, and everything in the inner courtyard belongs to the Saiva cult. The outer gopuram is of much later date, and probably belongs to the early part of the 16th century, when Vaishnava ideas were more prevalent, and the mythological representations had become mixed; the smaller shrines in the court also belong to later dates. But, as one of the oldest and best preserved examples of Dravidian art, its date is of much archæological interest. Strange to say, however, this date was long obscured by assertions that had no scientific basis. Thanks to Dr. Hultzsch's careful translations of the long inscriptions, in old Tamil, that cover the base of the central shrine, this is no longer doubtful. The inscriptions enumerate the many gifts of gold images, vessels, and ornaments made to the temple by Râjarâja or Ko-Râjakesarivarman, his eldest sister Kundavaiyâr and others, in the 25th, 26th, and 29th years of his reign; and these gifts were presented to "the stone temple of Râjarâjesvara" which, we are told, he "caused to be built at Tanjor."¹ Now Râjarâjadeva Chola, the son of