SSC
In Dravidian (South Indian) temple architecture, the monumental entrance gateway tower is called the:
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Answer: Option A — Gopuram
Detailed Solution
In Dravidian (South Indian) temple architecture, the large, ornate gateway tower at the entrance of a temple complex is called the "gopuram" (or "gopura").
About the gopuram:
- It is a monumental tower built over the entrance gate in the outer walls (prakaras) of a temple complex.
- It is usually rectangular at the base, rises in several storeys and becomes narrower towards the top, ending in a barrel-vaulted roof with several pot-shaped finials ("kalashas").
- It is covered with brightly painted sculptures of gods, goddesses, mythological figures and animals.
- In early temples (such as the Pallava and early Chola temples), the gateways were small and the main tower over the sanctum was the tallest structure.
- From the later Chola and Pandya periods (12th-13th centuries) onwards, the gateways became larger, and under the Vijayanagara and Nayaka rulers (14th-17th centuries), they became huge and taller than the sanctum tower.
- A temple complex may have several gateway towers, one in each direction and in each enclosure wall.
Famous gopurams:
Raja Gopuram of the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam (Tamil Nadu): about 73 metres (239 feet) high, with 13 tiers; completed in 1987. It is one of the tallest temple towers in Asia.
Murudeshwar Temple (Karnataka): its modern gateway tower is about 72 metres high.
Meenakshi Temple, Madurai: has 14 gateway towers; the tallest (southern) is about 52 metres high.
Annamalaiyar Temple, Tiruvannamalai.
Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram.
The emblem of the Government of Tamil Nadu shows the gateway tower of the Srivilliputhur Andal Temple.
Parts of a Dravidian temple:
- Garbhagriha: the sanctum.
- Mandapa: the pillared hall.
- Prakara: the enclosure wall.
- Temple tank: a water tank inside the complex.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Shikhara is the curvilinear tower of north Indian temples.
- ✗Torana is an ornamental arched gateway, typical of Buddhist and northern architecture (as at Sanchi).
- ✗Mandapa is a pillared hall.
Quick tip
Remember: Gopuram = gateway tower of South Indian temples (grew taller under the Vijayanagara and Nayaka rulers; Srirangam Raja Gopuram about 73 m; Madurai has 14); Tamil Nadu emblem = Srivilliputhur tower.
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