Contents: Introduction. 1. The earliest temples in Karnataka. 2. Old texts on the architecture of shrines. 3. The approach of earlier authors. 4. Proposals for the architectural description of Indian shrines. 5. Northern Karnataka, 11 century. 6. Northern Karnataka, 12-13 century. 7. The Kalyana region, 12 century. 8. Southern Karnataka, 12 century. 9. Southern Karnataka, 13 century. General conclusions. References. Index of the most important terms. Index of monuments.

"This book gives a detailed analysis of architectural designs found in Indian temples built in Karnataka in the period 1000-1300 AD, and a view on the architectural features common to all sophisticated temples built in medieval India. Indian temples are decorated with architecture in an ingenious way not found elsewhere in the world, and in medieval Karnataka that special use of architecture reached a climax. Both text and illustrations are a complete and unabridged publication of a Ph.-D.-thesis submitted at Leiden University (Leiden, The Netherlands) in 2003." (jacket)