Chandramauleshwara Temple

In the Unkal neighbourhood on the northern edge of Hubli, the Chandramauleshwara Temple is an 11th-century Shiva temple built in the Western Chalukya style. The exterior stonework is detailed and well-preserved, with the sculptural bands and layered shikhara tower that characterise Chalukyan craftsmanship at its best.

The temple is an active place of worship and receives relatively few non-local visitors, which means you can see it without the management infrastructure that surrounds more famous Chalukyan sites. The walk around the exterior to read the carvings takes about 20 minutes. The Unkal Lake is a short distance away and makes a reasonable pairing for an afternoon excursion from the city centre.

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A story
The Chalukyas of Kalyani, who built this temple in the 11th century, developed a distinctive architectural style characterised by intricately layered shikhara towers and horizontal bands of sculpture that wrap around the exterior walls. The carvings at Chandramauleshwara include celestial dancers, mythological scenes, and the dense decorative foliage called kirtimukha that is almost a signature of Chalukyan work. It is a style that influenced temple architecture across the Deccan for centuries after the dynasty fell.

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