Latest revision as of 11:47, 15 November 2014

Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.

[edit] Halebid

Village in the north-east of the Belur tdhik of Hassan District, Mysore, situated in 13° 13' N. and 76° o' E., 18 miles south- west of Banavar railway station. Population (1901), 1,524. Hale-lndu, ' old capital,' marks the site of Dorasamudra or Dvaravatipura, the capital of the Hoysala kings, founded early in the eleventh century. The city was taken by the Muhammadan general Malik Kaffir in 1310, and plundered of immense wealth. In 1326 another Musalman army carried off what remained, and totally destroyed the city. Its splendour is attested not only by the fabulous riches obtained from its conquest, as stated by Muhammadan historians, but by its archi- tectural monuments, which still rank among the masterpieces of Hindu art.

The most remarkable are the Hoysalesvara and Kedaresvara temples, the latter unfortunately in ruins. The Hoysalesvara, though never completed, was praised in the highest terms by Fergusson, as a foremost example of Hindu architecture. There are also some striking Jain basfis, but these are not decorated with the lavish sculpture of the other temples. Traces of different parts of the oUl city are still pointed out.