Tag Archives: Muslim

Somnath Temple Spire

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The Somnath temple was reconstructed several times in the past after repeated destruction by multiple Muslim invaders and rulers over India.

The present temple is a Māru-Gurjara architecture (also called Chaulukya or Solanki style) temple. It has a “Kailash Mahameru Prasad” form. The architect of the new Somnath temple was Prabhashankarbhai Oghadbhai Sompura, who worked on recovering and integrating the old recoverable parts with the new design in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The new Somnath temple is intricately carved, two level temple with pillared mandapa and 212 relief panels.

The temple’s śikhara, or main spire, is 15 metres (49 ft) in height above the sanctum, and it has an 8.2-metre-tall flag pole at the top.

Somnath Temple Dome

History in Khambhat, India

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Khambhat, in east-central Gujarat state, west-central India, lies at the head of the Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay) and the mouth of the Mahi River.

The town was mentioned in 1293 by the Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who referred to it as a busy port. It was still a prosperous port in the late 15th century, when Muslims controlled Gujarat. As the gulf silted up, however, the port became insignificant. The town was the capital of the princely state of Cambay, which was incorporated into Kaira (later Kheda) district in 1949.

There are several structures from the past, including this building, that display architecture from that era.

A Building from the Past in Khambhat