By the 7th century it was a port city of the South Indian dynasty of the Pallavas. It has a group of sanctuaries carved out of rock in the 7th and 8th centuries: rathas (temples in the form of chariots), mandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open-air rock reliefs such as the famous Descent of the Ganges, and the Shore Temple, with thousands of sculptures to the glory of Shiva. The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:SSVJ&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" class="new" title="User:SSVJ (page does not exist)">Sai Sathish Vijayan</a>
CC BY-SA 4.0
<span class="int-own-work" lang="en">Own work</span>