Architecture of Maharashtra
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Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
state in India is known for its Famous caves and cliffs. It is said that the varieties found in Maharashtra are wider than the caves and rock-cut architecture found in the rock cut areas of Egypt, Assyria, Persia and Greece. The Buddhist monks first started these caves in the 2nd century BC, in search of serene and peaceful environment for meditation, and they found these caves on the hillsides. Buddhist and Hindu cave temples at
Ellora Ellora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut Hindu temple cave complexes in the world, with artwork dating from the period 600–1000 CE., Quote: "These 34 m ...
and the
Ajanta Caves The Ajanta Caves are approximately thirty rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments dating from the second century BCE to about 480 CE in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state in India. The caves include paintings and rock-cut sculptures des ...
contain fine artistic design elements and India's oldest wall paintings can be seen here. Maharashtra's famous rock-cut caves have several distinct artistic elements though sculptures of the time are regarded to modern viewers as stiff and not dynamic. The Buddhist caves, particularly the older ones, are either temples (Chaityas) or monasteries (Viharas).


Ancient

The oldest building in the state is Vakataka ruins in Mansar.


Rock cut caves

Rock-cut architecture took turn with the Buddhist reign and remarkable Buddhist monuments were produced in areas such as Bihar in the east and Maharashtra in the west. Natural grottos and caves in the hillside were excavated by the Buddhist monks and turned into glorious prayer halls and monasteries. Ranging from tiny monastic cells to colossal, elaborately carved temples, they are remarkable for having been hewn by hand from solid rock. Their 3rd century BC origins seem to have been as temporary shelters for Buddhist monks when heavy monsoon rains made their normal itinerant lifestyle impossible. Modeled on earlier wooden structures, most were sponsuoions sit like a sceptre and crown amidst hills turned mauve.


Medieval


Hindu

During the early medieval period, the Maharashtrian region's architecture was largely based on a combination of old and new Nagara styles.
Bhimashankar temple Bhimashankar Temple is a Jyotirlinga shrine located 50 km Khed taluka (alias Rajgurunagar), near Pune, in Maharashtra, India. It is located 127 km from Shivajinagar (in Pune) in the Ghat region of the Sahyadri Mountains. Bhīmāsha ...
is considered to be a unique mix of these two Nagara styles. During the late period, Hemadri a court polymath of Yadavas of Deogiri used his unique combinational Nagara style to create many temples, which were again rebuilt due to numerous Islamic clashes and their penchant for destroying Hindu places of worship. Foremost among these are Trayambakeshwar Temple,
Tulja Bhavani temple Tulja Bhavani Temple (Marathi: श्री क्षेत्र तुळजा भवानी देवस्थान) is a Hindu temple dedicated to goddess Bhavani (goddess Parvati), also referred to as Durga and Sati. It is located in ...
, Ghrishneshwar temple among others.


Indo-Islamic

Some structures at the Daulatabad FortThe Daulatabad Fort itself was built by the
Yadava The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and Sat ...
dynasty in the 12th century CE, and the Indo-Islamic structures were added later by the
Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).
in the 14th century CE.
is the earliest examples of Indo-Islamic architecture in Maharashtra. The medieval Ahmednagar Sultanate built the Ahmednagar Fort,
Tomb of Salabat Khan II The Tomb of Salabat Khan II is also commonly but mistakenly known as Chandbiwi's Mahel, Chand Bibi Palace or similar variations. It is a three-storey stone structure situated on the crest of a hill, 13 km from Ahmednagar city in the state o ...
and Bagh Rauza in
Ahmednagar Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1494 ...
. Their style is similar to that of the other
Deccan Sultanates The Deccan sultanates were five Islamic late-medieval Indian kingdoms—on the Deccan Plateau between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range—that were ruled by Muslim dynasties: namely Ahmadnagar, Berar, Bidar, Bijapur, and Golconda. Th ...
. The best example of Mughal architecture in Maharashtra is
Bibi ka Maqbara The Bibi Ka Maqbara (English: "Tomb of the Lady") is a tomb located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It was commissioned in 1660 by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in the memory of his wife Dilras Banu Begum (posthumously known as Rabia-ud-Daura ...
built by Mughal Emperor
Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
, which is a replica of the
Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...
.


Maratha

The
Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...
ruled between the 17th and 19th centuries. They were constantly at war against the Mughal Empire. Therefore, several fortifications were built throughout the area, including
Shaniwar Wada Shaniwar Wada is a historical fortification in the city of Pune, India. Built in 1732, it was the great seat of the Peshwas of the Maratha Empire until 1818. Following the rise of the Maratha Empire, the palace became the center of Indian poli ...
,
Pratapgad Pratapgad is a mountain fort located in Satara district, in the Western Indian state of Maharashtra.The fort is situated 24 kilometres from the Mahabaleshwar hill station. The fort is now a popular tourist destination. The fort's historical s ...
, Raigad and
Mangad Mangad is a village in Kasaragod district in the state of Kerala, India.There are others places called Mangad in Thrissur, Kannur and Kollam. References

Villages in Thrissur district {{Thrissur-geo-stub ...
.
Shivaji Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
built the
Lal Mahal The Lal Mahal (Red Palace) of Pune is one of the most famous monuments located in Pune, India, where Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, founder of the Maratha Empire spent his childhood. History In the year 1630 AD, Shivaji Maharaj's Father Shahaji R ...
in Pune. During Confederacy era, many of the popular temples were built/revived all over Maharashtra. They reflect a peculiar architectural style regarded as
Maratha Architecture The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a ...
.


Colonial


Portuguese

During Portuguese rule in Mumbai, several fortifications, including the
Madh Fort Madh Island (Marathi pronunciation: əɖʱ is a group of several quaint fishing villages and farmlands in northern Mumbai. Geography The area is bounded by the Arabian Sea to the west, and the Malad creek on the east. There are few beaches li ...
and
Castella de Aguada Castella de Aguada (corruption of ''Castelo da Aguada'', Portuguese for "Fort of the Waterpoint"), also known as the Bandra Fort, is a fort located in Bandra, Mumbai. "Castella" is a misspelling for Portuguese "Castelo" (castle), although it s ...
were built in the city.


British Colonial

During the British colonial era, European styles became prevalent, especially in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
(Bombay at that time). The most significant examples are the two World Heritage sites of Mumbai ― Chhatrappati Shivaji terminus (designed by
Frederick William Stevens Frederick William Stevens (11 November 1847 – 5 March 1900) was an English architectural engineer who worked for the British colonial government in India. Stevens' most notable design was the railway station Victoria Terminus in Bombay (in 199 ...
in the gothic revival style), and the Victorian and Art Deco ensemble of Mumbai (consisting of
Bombay High Court The High Court of Bombay is the high court of the states of Maharashtra and Goa in India, and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. It is seated primarily at Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay), and is one of the ol ...
,
Rajabai Clock Tower The Rajabai Tower is a clock tower in South Mumbai India. It is in the confines of the Fort campus of the University of Mumbai. It stands at a height of 85 m (280 ft or 25 storeys). The tower is part of The Victorian and Art Deco Ense ...
and
University of Mumbai The University of Mumbai is a collegiate university, collegiate, State university (India), state-owned, Public university, public research university in Mumbai. The University of Mumbai is one of the largest universities in the world. , the un ...
). Other examples include and Municipal Corporation Building and Asiatic Society in Mumbai and Fergusson College of
Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
.


Indo-Saracenic

A new architectural style known as the Indo-Saracenic Revival Architecture developed, a combination of British and Indian styles. The best examples of this style are
Gateway of India The Gateway of India is an arch-monument built in the early 20th century in the city of Mumbai (Bombay), India. It was erected to commemorate the landing of King-Emperor George V, the first British monarch to visit India, in December 1911 at ...
, Taj Mahal Hotel, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu SangrahalayaThe name translates to "King Shivaji Museum" (formerly ''Prince of Wales Museum'') in Mumbai.


Art Deco

Mumbai has one of the largest collections of art deco buildings in the world.


Post-Independence (1947―present)

Modern skyscrapers built in the
international style International style may refer to: * International Style (architecture), the early 20th century modern movement in architecture *International style (art), the International Gothic style in medieval art *International Style (dancing), a term used in ...
such as The Imperial, Antilia, and
Palais Royale Palais Royale is a dance hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on Lake Shore Boulevard at the foot of Roncesvalles Avenue on Lake Ontario. Originally built as a boat works, it became notable as a night club in the now-defunct Sunnyside Amusem ...
form the skyline of Mumbai.


Gallery


Notes


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * {{Architecture of India
Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
Culture of Maharashtra