IMPORTANT MONUMENTS AT HAMPI

1. Queens Bath 2. King's Palace - Enclosure 3. Hazara Rama Temple 4. The Mint 5. Excavated sites 6. Danaik's enclosure 7. The Zanana - enclosure 8. Ganagitti Temple 9. Pattabhirama Temple 10. Octagonal Water Pavilion and Bhojana Sala 11. Large Underground Temple 12. Uddhana Virabhadra Temple 13. Chandikesvara or Chandesvara Temple 14. Image of Lakshmi Narasimha 15. Siva Temple 16. Saraswathi Temple 17. Krishna Temple 18. Sasvekalu and Kadalekalu Ganesha Images 19. Vishnupada 20. Temples on the Hemakuta hills 21. Virupaksha Temple 22. Temples north of the Virupaksha Temple 23. Kodandarama Temple 24. Achyutaraya Temple 25. Matanga Parvatam 26. Varaha Perumal Temple 27. Rama Temple 28. King's balance 29. Stone Bridge 30. Raja Gopura 31. Vishnu Temple 32. Vitthala Temple 33. Malyavanta Raghunatha Temple. And monuments at : 34. Anegondi 35. Hospet 36. Ananthasayanagudi 37. Malapannagudi 38. Kamalapuram 39. Kadiramapuram

The plan of the typical Vijayanagara temple exhibits most of the characteristic features of South India.  Most of the Vijayanagara temples at Hampi have a covered and pillared pradakshina-prakara round the garbhagriha and antarala. Generally the ardhamandapa has four ornate central pillars and two side porches with steps and surul yali balustrades. The mahamandapa is a highly ornate structure with many fine specimens of composite pillars. It is the most profusely embellished part of a Vijayanagara temple being rivalled only by the kalyana-mandapa.

The kalyana-mandapa is one of the highlights of the Vijayanagara style. This is usually an open pillared mandapa often with a raised platform in the centre, over which a pitha was placed for seating the deity and his consort during the annual kalyana (marriage) festival of the god. The sculptor's skill was fully lavished on these mandapas which contained elaborately carved and symmetrically-spaced compound pillars of various types. The ceilings were also carved. Originally these mandapas appear to have been painted and were often the most ornate of the structures in the temple-complexes.

The mantapas often have large elephant-balustrades flanking the entrance-steps. The pillars along the outer edge of the mandapa are of various composite types.The Vijayanagara gopuras at Hampi are in typical style, though they are of moderate size.

 Most of the regular buildings at Hampi are concentrated in the citadel area. Unfortunately they are mostly ruined. Of the gorgeous multi-storeyed painted and gilded palaces and mansions of Vijayanagara extolled by contemporary writers, there is hardly anything left except a few stone basements, since the brick and timber superstructures have all disappeared now. Compared to the original state of the city, the extant ruined specimens are only a handful and represent in all likelihood the minor edifices such as the elephant-stables. Important structures like the royal residences and other state buildings have been razed to the ground. At present the civil buildings at Hampi include a number of palace-bases, open pavilions, pillared halls, baths and stables. To this class of monuments may also be added some of the long and broad ancient bazaars of the city.

For civil architecture, stone was used for the base while various materials, like stone, wood, metal and brick, were employed in the superstructure. The arch, especially the wide four-centred type, was freely used in the construction. Elaborately ornate stucco decorations were largely used. The lotus and rampant yali motifs were most common. Ceilings were domed or vaulted. Often the superstructure above a palace-building had a number of diminishing tiers of kapotas (cornices) capped by a sikhara resembling a temple-vimana (e.g. the Lotus-Mahal at Hampi and the Gagan-Mahal at Penukonda). The buildings were originally painted and gilded.

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