The Rameshvara temple at Koodli in the Shimoga district of Karnataka state is a Hoysala construction of the non-ornate variety and is dated to the 12th century. Koodli is a town of great antiquity and is located about 9 km north-east of Shimoga city, the district headquarters. The town gets its name because it is situated at the confluence of the Tunga and Bhadra tributaries that form the Tungabhadra river. According to art historianAdam Hardy, the temple is a single vimana with an open mantapa built with Soap stone. The temple is protected as a monument of national importance by the Archaeological Survey of India.
History of Koodli
Archaeological surveys have unearthed tools and other artifacts which indicate that the region in the vicinity of Koodli had been under habitation during the Paleolithic, the Neolithic and the Megalithic periods. Written epigraphs such as the Malavalli pillar inscription is available from the period of the Chutu dynasty, a 2nd-century AD vassal of the Shatavahana empire. They were succeeded by the Kadambas of Banavasi in the 4th century, and the Chalukyas of Badami in the 6th century. The Rashtrakutas and the Kalyani Chalukyas gained power in the region in the succeeding centuries. The Hoysala empire made their presence felt in the region from about the 11th century AD. They were followed by the 14th-century Vijayanagara Empire. In the 16th century, the Keladi Nayaka, a Vijayanagara vassal gained independence after the fall of the empire.
Temple plan
The shrine is an ekakuta construction. The material used is Soap stone, a standard in Hoysala constructions. It is built on an east-west axial plan and comprises a sanctum which has a vesara style superstructure, and a vestibule that connects the closed hall to the sanctum. The vestibule also exhibits a tower which from the outside looks like a low protrusion of the main tower over the shrine. Art historian Gerard Foekema calls it the "nose" of the main tower. The entrance to the hall is via three porches; at the north, south and east, each of which is supported by four lathe turned polished pillars, a standard feature in Hoysala temples according to art historian Percy Brown. Inside the temple and facing the sanctum is a platform on which is mounted a sculptured image ofNandi the bull. The sanctum houses a linga, the universal symbol of the god Shiva. The platform on which the temple stands, the jagati, comprises five plain moldings. The outer walls of the shrine are plain but for regularly spaced slender pilasters. The tower of the shrine has a finial called the kalasha. Below the finial is a heavy dome like structure. This is the largest sculptural piece in the temple with a ground surface area of about 2x2 meters and is called the "helmet" or amalaka. Its shape usually follows that of the shrine. Below the dome the tower comprises three tiers, each descending tier increasing in height. On the protruding tower of the vestibule is the royal Hoysala emblem; a warrior stabbing a lion.
