A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar c21.64

c21.64

All the examples of the Mahāmalla group are found in the now deserted seaport town of Māmallapuram (Mahābalipuram) at the mouth of the Palar river, 32 miles south of Madras. A large granite hill 100 feet high, half a mile in length from north to south and a quarter of a mile wide, and a smaller granite outcrop further south, admirably served the purpose of the talented Pallava sculptors. Māmallapuram must have been a busy port with its royal residences, bazaars, warehouses and harbour. All the secular buildings of relatively perishable material have disappeared but the halls and sculptures quarried out of the natural rock with a religious intent have survived. There can be little doubt that Māmallapuram was one of the chief entrepôts of South India and that from it streamed forth strong cultural influences which shaped the art of Hindu colonies in Indonesia and Indo-China.