Ellora Caves

A rock-cut complex in Maharashtra, India, containing Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain temples and monasteries carved between the sixth and tenth centuries.

Rock-cut architecture: Architecture formed by carving structures directly from natural rock rather than assembling separate building materials. Ellora’s shrines and monasteries were excavated from a basalt escarpment.
Kailasa Temple: A monumental Hindu temple at Ellora, carved downward from a single rock mass. This vast excavation is Ellora’s best-known architectural achievement.
Rashtrakuta dynasty: A Deccan dynasty that ruled large parts of India from the eighth to tenth centuries. Rashtrakuta rulers are associated with the commissioning of the Kailasa Temple.
UNESCO World Heritage Site: A place recognized under the World Heritage Convention for cultural or natural value of outstanding universal significance. Ellora’s inscription recognizes the complex’s architectural and historical importance.
Deccan: A large plateau region of south-central India, bounded by the Western and Eastern Ghats. Ellora stands in the Deccan, whose rulers and trade networks shaped its history.
Cave 10, Ellora: A Buddhist chaitya hall at Ellora, also known as the Vishvakarma Cave. Its vaulted hall and seated Buddha show the Buddhist group’s distinctive design.
Krishna I: An eighth-century Rashtrakuta ruler traditionally credited with commissioning the Kailasa Temple. His reign is closely linked to the temple’s monumental excavation.
Archaeological Survey of India: India’s national agency responsible for archaeological research, conservation, and protection of monuments. The agency manages and conserves Ellora as a protected archaeological site.
Buddhism: A religious and philosophical tradition founded on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama. Buddhist monasteries and sanctuaries occupy Ellora’s earliest cave group.
Cave 16, Ellora: The cave number assigned to the Kailasa Temple in the Ellora complex. Its numbering identifies the complex’s most ambitious single-rock monument.

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