Out of the 10 mentioned Temples situated in Pattadkal in Karnataka state of India, Mallikarjuana temples and Virupaksha Temple are the two impressive temples made my Queens.
Alongside the Malaprabha river banks lies a town named Pattadkal in Karnataka state of India
Located towards the north of the state lies this UNESCO World Heritage Site which is popular for its 10 temples (Kadasiddheshwara temple, Jambilingeshwara Temple, Galaganatha Temple, Chandrashekhara Temple, Kashi Vishwanatha Temple, Mallikarjuna Temple, Virupaksha Temple, Papanatha Temple and Jain Narayana Temple) situated in the shrine.
One such prominent and tallest temple among them is the Virupaksha Temple, dedicated to deity Virupaksha (Avatar of Shiva ) and his wife Devi Pampa .
Originally named as Lokeshwara Temple, this temple is considered to be build by a Queen and not King between 740 and 745 CE. Out of the 10 mentioned Temples of this site, Mallikarjuana temples and Virupaksha Temple are the two impressive temples made my Queens.
Queen Lokamana devi,wife of King Vikramaditya ll commissioned this monument to commemorate his husband’s victory over the pallavas of Kuchilapuram. Stories from Mahabharat, Ramayan are engraved within the walls and pillars .
Some of the stories include -Ramayana such as Shri Ram killing Bali, Seeta being abducted by Ravan lifting Kailash Parbat, Jatayu fighting with demon king Ravan and so on, While other include Krishna lifting Goverdhan, Bhishma lying on bed of arrows and many more.
It is believed that the architecture of the structure was inspired by the Kanchipuram’s Kailashnath temple. This nine-storey tower Black bull pavilion(Nandi ) is present towards the north and at present, the main temple consists of a Garbhagraha ( sanctum), three ante chambers, separate entrance or Pravesh dwar ,a pillared hall, a giant kalasha like pot also crowns its top. The temple is decorated delicately with carved pillars and thus it can be said that the temple exemplifies the Dravidian Architectural style.