Latina shikhara
Also called: Rekha-prasada · Topic: Early Indian Art and Architecture: Stupas, Rock-cut Caves, Temples · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
A latina shikhara is the simplest and most common kind of Nagara (north Indian style) temple tower. It is square at the base. Its walls curve inward as they rise and meet at a point at the top. It is also called rekha-prasada. In Odisha it is called rekha deul. It is the basic shape from which more complex Nagara towers grew.
Example
The Parashurameshvara temple at Bhubaneswar in Odisha (c. seventh century CE) has a single curved latina tower over its garbhagriha, the small inner room that holds the main image.
Don't confuse with
- Phamsana: a roof of broad, short slabs that rises in straight slopes, not curves, to a point. It is often used over halls (mandapas).
- Valabhi: a rectangular building with a rounded, wagon-like (barrel-vaulted) roof.
Related concepts
- Puranic Hinduism
- Vaishnavism
- Avatar
- Dashavatara
- Varaha
- Vasudeva-Krishna
- Shaivism
- Linga
- Garbhagriha
- Antarala