Archival Details
- Tradition: Vijayanagara
- Period: 1856
- Credit line: Greenlaw, Alexander John Colonel, born 1818 – died 1870 (photographer)
- Source: Wikimedia Commons, accession File:Eastern Gopura, Krishna Temple Complex, Hemakuta Hill 1856 photo.jpg
The Vijayanagara empire (14th–17th century) was the last great Hindu empire of South India, ruling from its capital at Hampi in present-day Karnataka. Its temples, gateways, and monolithic sculpture — now preserved as the Group of Monuments at Hampi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site — are known for massive scale, elaborate pillared mandapas, and a style blending Dravidian temple architecture with Deccan influences, developed across successive dynasties until the capital was sacked in 1565.
