Barsur, also known as Barsoor or Barasuru, was the capital city of the Chhindaka-Naga Hindu dynasty in south Chhattisgarh and nearby region over 10th to 13th century. They traced part of their origins in Karnataka and Gujarat–Sindh regions, with roots in central India Kosala and Telangana regions. They built many impressive Hindu temples for Shiva, Vishnu and Shakti traditions. Regional folklore state that Barsur was a city of over 100 temples. However, these were destroyed in invasions and Hindu-Muslim wars. Structures of about a dozen notable temples survive, while ruins of many others are found scattered in and around Barsur.
<p>The <b>Chandraditya temple</b> is one of the many important temples found in Barsur. It was built by Chandraditya, and was dedicated to Shiva. A Telugu inscription found here confirms that the temple was completed c. 1061 CE and it calls it Chandradityeshvara. He also excavated a large water tank near the temple.
</p><p>The temple has a Bhumija style architecture, pancharatha in plan, whose sanctum's outside walls are elaborately decorated with artwork of Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Sauraism, and Shaktism. Notable among these are panels with Parvati holding a mini Ganesha in one of her hands, a separate Ganesha, Kartikeya, Surya, several avatars of Vishnu including Narasimha, Brahma, Durga and amorous couples.
</p><p>The artwork is in Telingana style, which corroborated with the Telugu inscription attests to the Telangana/Andhra architecture and artwork cultural influence in Bastar region at least by the 11th century. 
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The extant temple has been restored with modern era wall for preservation. Further, the artwork panels (reliefs) have been haphazardly restored as the original plan was unknown to the team that completed the restoration effort. The pillars inside the mandapa are original, as are the amalaka and other ruins in the field near this temple.
<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ms_Sarah_Welch" title="User:Ms Sarah Welch">Ms Sarah Welch</a>
2022-01-12 11:07:36
<span class="int-own-work" lang="en">Own work</span>