Group Of Monuments, Hampi

The Group of Monuments at Hampi comprises the remains of Vijayanagara, the last great capital of a Hindu kingdom in South India, which flourished between the 14th and 16th centuries on the banks of the Tungabhadra River in what is now Vijayanagara (formerly Bellary) district, Karnataka. The site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1986 and spans more than 4,100 hectares, containing over 1,600 surviving structures, including temples, palaces, market streets, aqueducts and fortifications.

Key monuments include the Virupaksha Temple, an active shrine to Shiva with a gopuram rising about 50 metres and origins reaching back to the 7th century; the Vittala Temple complex, famed for its stone chariot and musical pillars; and the Royal Enclosure area, which includes the Lotus Mahal, the elephant stables, and the Mahanavami Dibba ceremonial platform. The empire's wealth and monumental building activity drew admiration from foreign travellers between the 14th and 16th centuries, before Vijayanagara was sacked in 1565 following the Battle of Talikota.