CENTER FOR ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY

Sarai Thanesar is a mid-17th-century Mughal sarai or rest house located in Kalyan Nagar, Thanesar in Kurukshetra district of Haryana, adjoining the tomb of Sheikh Chilli. Built as part of the larger tomb–madrasa complex, the structure is constructed of lakhori bricks, rubble masonry, and lime mortar. The sarai has an asymmetrical layout, with rooms along the east, west, and north sides—those on the east and west covered by pointed barrel vaults, and those on the north by domical vaults—and a single gateway on the east. The monument is protected and well maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (Chandigarh Circle) and is presently used as a public garden.

Thrikkaviyoor Mahadeva, Kaviyoor, Kerala

Thumpamon, Baroque Architecture, Kerala

Tirukkambadi, Baroque Architecture, Kerala

Sembiyan Mahadevi rebuilt the Tirukkotisvara temple at Tirukkodikaval in stone during her son Uttama Chola's reign (971 – 988 CE). An earlier temple in brick existed at least from the days of Ko-Ilango Muttaraiyar. Sembiyan Mahadevi got all twenty-six old inscriptions to be re-inscribed and the earliest one belongs to the days of Nandipottaraiyar (III) of the Pallava dynasty. The temple is a single-storeyed structure with a bulbous crowning cupola (sikhara). There are nine divinity niche (devakoshtha) figures in typical Sembiyan Mahadevi fashion. References: M.W. Meister and M.A. Dhaky, 1963, pp.184-185, S.R. Balasubrahmanyam, 1971, pp. 174-176.

Tirumalai Nayakar Mahal Shed, Madurai