A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar c21.48

c21.48

The next stage in the development of Chālukyan art is marked by the temples at Pattadakal, about ten miles from Bādāmi. There are ten temples here, four in the Northern style and six in the Southern. The Pāpanātha temple (c. 680) among the former, and Sangameśvar (c. 725) and Virūpāksha (c. 740) among the latter, are the most notable. The temple of Pāpanātha in its plan and elevation alike exhibits shortcomings due to uncertainty regarding the correct relation of the different parts of the temple structure to one another. The temple is 90 feet long and too low for its length, its tower in true Northern style is too small and stunted, and the antarāla too big—almost a supplementary hall. The outer walls carry a close and monotonous repetition of canopied niches representing a shrine. This temple was perhaps one of the first attempts to combine Northern and Southern features in one structure, and was not quite successful.