SSC
The Ellora Caves are located in:
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Answer: Option A — Aurangabad district, Maharashtra
Detailed Solution
The Ellora Caves are located near Ellora (Verul) village, about 30 km from the city of Aurangabad (now Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar), in Maharashtra.
About the Ellora Caves:
- There are 34 main caves, carved into the basalt cliffs of the Charanandri hills between about the 6th and 10th centuries CE.
- They are unique because they include monuments of three religions, showing religious harmony:
- Caves 1-12: Buddhist (about 5th-7th century).
- Caves 13-29: Hindu (about 6th-9th century).
- Caves 30-34: Jain (about 9th-10th century).
The most famous is Cave 16, the Kailasa (Kailashnath) Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is the largest monolithic rock-cut structure in the world. It was carved from the top downward out of a single rock.
The Kailasa Temple was built mainly by the Rashtrakuta king Krishna I in the 8th century.
Cave 10, the "Vishvakarma Cave" (also called "Carpenter's Cave"), is a Buddhist chaitya hall.
Cave 32, the "Indra Sabha", is a Jain cave.
The Ellora Caves were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
About the Ajanta Caves:
- They are also in Aurangabad district, about 100 km from Ellora, on a horseshoe-shaped cliff above the Waghora river.
- There are about 30 caves, all Buddhist, carved from the 2nd century BCE to about the 5th-6th century CE, under the Satavahanas and the Vakatakas (especially King Harishena).
- They are famous for their wall paintings (frescoes) showing Jataka tales and the life of the Buddha, such as the "Padmapani Bodhisattva".
- They were rediscovered in 1819 by a British officer, John Smith, while hunting a tiger.
- They were also declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
Other caves in Maharashtra:
Elephanta (Mumbai harbour), Karla, Bhaja and Kanheri.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Raisen district, Madhya Pradesh, has Bhimbetka and Sanchi.
- ✗Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, has the Belum Caves.
- ✗Raigad district, Maharashtra, has the Elephanta island and Janjira.
Quick tip
Remember: Ellora = Aurangabad, Maharashtra (34 caves: Buddhist 1-12, Hindu 13-29, Jain 30-34; Kailasa Temple, Cave 16, by Rashtrakuta Krishna I); Ajanta = all Buddhist, paintings; both UNESCO 1983.
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Monuments & Religious Places — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Monuments & Religious Places, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers India's important monuments, temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras and pilgrimage sites, who built them and when, their architectural styles, and India's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Questions ask who built a monument, where it is located, or which dynasty or style it belongs to. For example, the Qutub Minar was begun by Qutbuddin Aibak, and the Sun Temple at Konark was built by the Eastern Ganga king Narasimhadeva I. Revise the UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a list, noting the most recent additions. Practise the monuments and religious places questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.