History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period v2.c46.17

v2.c46.17

In the Paraśurāmeśvara and the later Mukteśvara, along with the twin temples of Gandharāḍi in the Baudh State one sees the earliest type of mediaeval temples of Orissa. The plan of the sanctum consists of a number of recessed corners on each of the four sides formed by intersecting rectangles of various dimensions. The ground-plan thus produced consists of a number of right angles on each of the four facades beginning with three. On each face of each of these facets ornaments, either a chaitya-window or a niche has been placed. Over the perpendicular portion of the walls there is a gradual inclination inwards, which is the beginning of the Śikhara. Generally the beginning of the Śikhara indicates the height of the sanctum in the interior. The spire or Śikhara in all early mediaeval temples is modest and they belong to one particular type all over India. The remains of the Śikhara in the Daśāvatāra temple at Deogaḍh shows the same outline as the Post-Gupta temples at Saṃkargaḍh and Nachna Kuthara, the temples of Durgā and Huchhimalligudi at Aihole, the twin temples at Gandharāḍi and the early Bhuvaneśvara temples of Paraśurāmeśvara and Mukteśvara. Had it not been for the discovery of the inscribed labels under the Nine Planets in the Antarāla of the Paraśurāmeśvara, everyone, arguing from the stand-point of the evolution of the Śikhara, would have come to the conclusion that the Paraśurāmeśvara and the Mukteśvara belong to the same period as the Daśāvatāra temple at Deogaḍh.