The Antiquities of Orissa v2.c17.s1.197

v2.c17.s1.197

**Markandesvara Temple and Atharanala bridge.** From what has been stated above, it will be seen that the oldest building extant at Puri—the one whose date is unquestionable—is the temple of Alábukeśvara, built by Lalāțendu Keśarī, the builder of the Great Tower of Bhuvaneśvara (A. D. 623-677), and next that of Mārkaņḍeśvara, erected by order of Kuņḍala Keśarī (A. C. 811-829). The latter is a small temple so masked and modernised by repairs, additions and plastering, that it is utterly valueless as a monument of former days. Next to it comes the bridge of Āṭhāraṇālā (A. D. 1038-1050). It is built partly of laterite and partly of sandstone and has a total span of 290 feet, divided into 18 openings, of which the extreme ones are the narrowest and the central one the widest. The structure is very solidly built and its arches being of the horizontal or overlapping kind, and of a very moderate span, from 7 to 16 feet, it has withstood the wear and tear of well nigh a thousand years without assuring any sign of decay. It may yet last for many a century. An engraving of this bridge occurs in Mr. Stirling's articles on Orissa in the *Asiatic Researches* (Vol. xv.), but he attributes it to Kabir Narsing Deo (A. D. 1282-1302). I give the date from the *Temple Annals* as summarised by Babu Bhavanicharana Bandyopadhyaya.