Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram / UNESCO World Heritage Site

The group of monuments at Mahabalipuram is a religious monuments and collection of 7th and 8th century CE. It is a UNESCO world heritage site. The site has 40 ancient monuments and Hindu temples, including one of the largest open-air rock reliefs in the world. These monuments were built during the Pallava dynasty, known as the Seven Pagodas. They are also called the Mamallapuram temples or Mahabalipuram temples in contemporary literature. The site restored after 1960 and has been managed by the Archaeological Survey of India. These monuments are a fusion of religion, culture, and legend relating to the Hindu religious pantheon. There are expressions through rock or inside boulders on a grand scale, integrating nature and sculpture. These monuments are categorized into five groups. The Raths temple in southern Mahabalipuram are carved in the shape of chariots. Their artists used naturally occurring blocks of diorite and granite. The best known are the five monolithic structures projecting above the beach, known as the Five Raths or the Pandava Raths, named as Dharmaraja Raths, Bhima Raths, Nakula Sahadeva Raths, Arjuna, and Draupadi Raths. Although the symbolism and grouping of the temples have led to these popular names, they are neither true Raths nor dedicated to the Pandavas. These temples are dedicated to deities and concepts of the Shaivi, Shiva, Vaishnavi, Vishnu, and Shakti, Durga, traditions of Hinduism. Mandappa is a Sanskrit term for a typically square vestibule, pillared hall, or pavilion. It was a space for people to gather socially. Mandapass also referred to rock-cut cave temples or shrines and is built on the same concept. Some of the standing temples are Varaha Cave Temple, Kottikal Cave Temple, Dharmaraja Cave Temple, Ramanuja Cave Temple, Koneri Mandappa, Aturanachanda Cave Temple, Adivaraha Cave Temple, Mahishasur Mardini Cave Temple, Pancharpandava Mandapam. The Mamallapuram cave temples are incomplete, which has made them a significant source of information about how cave monuments were excavated and built in 7th century. Reliefs are carved on rocks or boulders. These include the wall of the Krishna Mandap, where a superstructure was added in front of the relief. The best-known rock relief in Mahabalipuram is the Descent of the Ganges, is considered one of the largest bus relief works in the world. The relief, consisting of Hindu mythology, is carved on 27-meter-long and 9-meter-high boulders. The structural, also known as freestanding temples at Mamallapuram, have been built with cut stones as building blocks, rather than carved into a rock. These temples, like other monuments in Mamallapuram, were dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu, and Durga. The highlighting structural temples that are still standing are Shore Temple, Ulaktanaswara Temple, and Mukundanaya Nara Temple. Surviving examples fewer in number and representing a different state, style, and sophistication than the other monuments, are some of best examples of early medieval Hindu temple architecture. After a roughly 40-year delay, a master plan to beautify Mahabalipuram was implemented in 2003. The Union Ministry of Tourism and Culture is financing the multi-crore rupee integrated development of Mamallapuram project. The Archaeological Survey of India has laid the and a path from behind the Shore Temple to the five raths and the conservation of more