Someshwara Devastana, Dambal

The decade old trip to Dambal happened on the morning of April 30, 2011. These pictures were shot in a Nikon Coolpix. These poorly composed pictures do not justify the beauty of this Chalukyan monument. However, since the pictures are so old, I thought they deserved a place in the blog.

Someshwara Devastana is situated on the outskirts of Dambal village, right besides Gadag-Dambal road. It is a protected site under the care of ASI. This temple is a classic Western Chalukyan design, it has a spacious pillared hall (Sabha Mantapa) with a dance stage (Nritya Mantapa) in the center, a vestibule (Antharala) connects the Sabhamantapa and the sanctum (Garbhagudi). This east-facing temple has three balustraded entrances. As you see the temple looks simple on the outside, its granduer lies in its interior. The temple has survived the forces of Nature & Time, also ASI has put in efforts to maintain its condition.

The exterior looks of the temple exudes strength, a feel of well built solid walls. The subtleness of the pillared walls has its own beauty.

The temple plan is symmetric in east-west axis. The eaves around the Sabha Mantapa and the projecting channels from the roof drain away rainwater efficiently, preventing seepage into the structure.

This is one of the balustraded entrances, probably the southern entrance. Here we get a glimpse of the pillars in the Sabha Mantapa. The outer pillars fixed into the seating platform (Sukhanasi) are half-pillars.

The Sabhamantapa has about 30 pillars including the 4 pillars of Nritya Mantapa. The deity of this temple is Someshwara, a form of Shiva.

I'm not sure why I shot just six pictures of this magnificent temple. That too only with Nikon. I cannot locate any pictures shot in Canon DSLR which I was carrying during this trip. May be I had limited memory cards and I wanted to save memory for two forts on the day's agenda.

I've been planning to revisit Dambal, hoping to see Someshwara Devastana again soon, very soon.
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