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Aditya Relief Cycle, Konark Sun Temple

Hindu Art

A sculptural relief cycle carved on the exterior walls of the jagamohana, or assembly hall, of the Konark Sun Temple in Odisha, India, built in the mid-13th century under King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty as a colossal stone chariot for the sun god Surya, its 24 wheels reading as the hours of the day and its seven horses as the days of the week. Among the temple's extensive sculptural programme are figures identified with the twelve Adityas, the solar deities whose collective cycle marks the sun's yearly passage through the months, carved as part of a temple whose entire architectural scheme is organized around solar time. Konark is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most celebrated works of Kalinga temple architecture.

Facts
Origins
CreationSourced to the subject's own account
1238 to 1258 2
Date of CreationSourced to the subject's own account
Mid-13th century AD, reign of Narasimhadeva I 2
Country
India 1
Custody
Current Location
Konark Sun Temple, Konark, Odisha, India 1
Physical Form
Medium
Carved stone relief (khondalite and chlorite) 1
Subject Matter
Depicted Subject
Figures identified with the twelve Adityas, the solar deities of the sun's yearly cycle, carved on the temple's jagamohana. 1
Rights and Reproduction
Reproduction and CopyrightSourced to the subject's own account
This atlas describes and cites the relief cycle rather than reproducing photographs of it. 2
Classification
Object Type
Sculpture or Statuary 1
Medium (class)
Sculpture 1
Connections

Associated With

Ganga, Deities

This source names Ganga directly: "King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty as a colossal stone chariot for the sun god Surya, its 24 wheels reading as the hours of the day and its seven horses as the days of the week."

Source Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)

This source names Konark Sun Temple directly: "jagamohana, or assembly hall, of the Konark Sun Temple in Odisha, India, built in the mid-13th century under King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty as a colossal stone chariot for the sun..."

Source Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)
Surya, Deities

This source names Surya directly: "colossal stone chariot for the sun god Surya, its 24 wheels reading as the hours of the day and its seven horses as the days of the week."

Source Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)

Belongs to Tradition

Hinduism, Religions

Derived: this work depicts a figure already recorded as belonging to this tradition; the work-to-tradition link is inferred from that live depicts edge and the figures own attested tradition affiliation, not independently sourced beyond it.

Depicts

The Adityas, Deities
Source Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)

Originated In

India, Regions
Source Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)
Sources
1. Surya, The Sun God (dsource.in)
dsource.in, National Institute of Design
  • dsource.in, Surya the Sun God, NVLI collection
    The stone sculpture of Surya was once a part of the 'garbh-griha' or the sanctum sanctorum of the famous Konark Temple in Orissa.
  • catalogue record, medium/object-type description
    A sculptural relief cycle carved on the exterior walls of the jagamohana, or assembly hall, of the Konark Sun Temple in Odisha, India, built in the mid-13th century under King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty as a colossal stone chariot for the sun god Surya, its 24 wheels reading as the hours of the day and its seven horses as the days of the week.
  • Originated In: India, Stored country property on this entity, cited to this source: India
View the Source
2. Konark Sun Temple, Grokipedia
Grokipedia
Konark Sun Temple (Wikipedia)
In Group: Konark Sun Temple Sculpture, own entity-description: "carved on the exterior walls of the jagamohana... of the Konark Sun Temple"View the Source
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