Elephanta Caves, Mumbai

Elephanta Caves, originally uploaded by Himanshu Sarpotdar.

The Elephanta Caves are located on Elephanta Island in Mumbai Harbour, about 10 kilometres to the east of Mumbai, India. The island, on an inlet of the Arabian Sea, has a large group of five Hindu caves and a smaller group of two Buddhist caves. The caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987, and maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Ajanta Caves, World Heritage Site

Photo published under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Generic license.

Ajanta Caves, in Maharashtra, India, contain ancient paintings and sculptures of both Buddhist religious art and sculpture.

Cave No. 1 is the first cave, with one of the most elaborate sculptures showing scenes from the life of the Buddha. The cave has a front-court with cells, and a porch, once covered with murals of which many fragments remain now. Each wall of the hall inside is nearly 40 feet (12 m) long and 20 feet (6.1 m) high. There is a shrine on the rear wall to house a seated image of the Buddha. There are four cells on each of the left, rear and the right walls. The walls are covered with paintings, fairly well preserved.

The nearby Cave No. 2 is famous for paintings on its walls, ceilings, and pillars. It has a porch quite different from Cave one. The cave is supported by pillars. The size and ground plan have many things in common with the first cave. The front porch consists of cells.

The caves at Ajanta were abandoned by AD 480 and for the next 1300 years the jungle grew back and the caves were hidden, and unvisited until the spring of 1819 when a British officer in the Madras army entered the steep gorge on the trail of a tiger. Within the tangled undergrowth, he came across the almost hidden entrance to one of the caves. Exploring that first cave, long since inhabited by birds, bats and larger animals, Captain Smith wrote his name in pencil on one of the walls, still faintly visible, it records his name and the date, April 1819.

Sculpture at the Lakshman Temple, Khajuraho

Lakhmana Temple is the oldest and the finest of the Western Group of Temples in Khajuraho. This beautiful Vaishnavite Hindu temple is named after the ruler who built it. There is a horizontal beam over the entrance of the temple showing the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva with Lakshmi, Vishnu’s consort.

There is a nominal entry fee for all visitors to enter the Western Group of temples. All the temples are open from sunrise to sunset. These are the most spectacular and largest of all temple groups.

The other important temples in the Western Group of Temples are:

Kandariya Mahadeo Temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures that are among the greatest masterpieces of Indian art during the reign of Chandela Dynasty of Central India, built between 950 and 1050 A.D.

Devi Jagdamba Temple is dedicated to Goddess of the Universe (Jagdamba), a smaller and much more delicately proportioned temple. It is home to some of the finest sculptures of Khajuraho. The garbha griha has a huge image of Goddess Jagdamba. It has the usual three bands of sculptures, but the third and most uppermost of these houses some of the most sensual sculptures.

Matanageswara Temple is a temple dedicated to Shiva and a huge 8ft Lingam adorns the temple.

Chitragupta Temple is dedicated to the Sun God (Surya) and as such it faces eastward to the rising sun.

Chaunsat Yogini Temple is the only granite temple in the Khajuraho group.

Khajuraho 1701093

Khajuraho temples of india (A world heritage site), originally uploaded by thebrij.

Welcome to Khajuraho Group of Monuments, A World Heritage!

Khajuraho (Hindi: खजुराहो) is a village located in Chhatarpur District, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is 385 miles (620 KM) southeast of Delhi, the capital city of India.

The Khajuraho group of monuments is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

One of the most popular tourist destinations in India, Khajuraho has the largest group of medieval Hindu temples and Jain temples which are famous for their sculpture. The name Khajuraho, "Kharjuravahaka" in olden times, is derived from the word "khajur" that means date palm.

Khajuraho 1701091

Western Group of Monuments, Khajuraho, India, originally uploaded by anubis0409.

Western Group of Monuments, Khajuraho, India

The Taj Mahal photo 16

The Taj Mahal _ 16, originally uploaded by KaushiK™.

Qutub Minar, Delhi - India

Qutub Minar, Delhi - India, originally uploaded by Humayunn N A Peerzaada.

Qutb Minar (Urdu: قطب منار), also spelled Qutub Minar or Qutab Minar is the tallest brick minaret in the world, and an important example of Indo-Islamic Architecture. The tower is in the Qutb complex at Mehrauli in South Delhi, India. The Qutub Minar and its monuments are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.