Ratnagiri (Odisha)

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Ratnagiri

Ratnagiri is a historic Buddhist monastery complex in the Indian state of Odisha . It is located on a hill and consists of a large stupa and around 700 smaller stupas from several temple and monastery buildings that date from the 5th to 13th centuries .

location

Ratnagiri is located in the Jajpur district , about 70 kilometers from the city of Cuttack in the Birupa valley . There are other Buddhist monasteries in the vicinity, Udayagiri and Lalitgiri .

Excavation history

The facility was first mentioned in 1906 in the Cuttack District Gazetteer in a report by a Jajpurs District officer. Organized excavations were first undertaken by the Archeological Survey of India from 1958 to 1961 . It wasn't until about 20 years later that the results appeared, edited by Debala Mitra . Numerous statues were removed from the monastery complex and placed in museums, such as the Indian Museum in Calcutta, the Patna Museum , the National Museum New Delhi , the Odisha State Museum and the Brooklyn Museum .

buildings

There are two main monastery complexes in Ratnagiri, of which monastery 2 is the older and the origin possibly dates back even further than the 5th century. This building complex had two more construction periods in the 7th century and in the 11th century . Monastery 1 is the larger of the two complexes. Its first buildings date from the 8th century , and there was further building activity in the 11th century. In the 16th century there was renewed construction activity, including the restoration of the main stupa. The Buddha statue in the sanctuary of monastery 1 is the frequently encountered figure of the seated Buddha. In monastery 2 there is another figure in the sanctuary, a Buddha who descends from the Trayastrimsa heaven.

Another important building is a Mahakala temple from the late 11th century. His sanctuary is adorned with a two-armed mahakala statue.

Monolithic stupas in Ratnagiri

The more than 700 monolithic stupas are not only noteworthy for their large number, their iconography is also significant. They mainly show deities from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Much of these stupas, 535, are on the southwest side of the main area of ​​the stupas. Most date from the 9th to 13th centuries and were made locally.

literature

  • Debala Mitra: Ratnagiri, 1958–61. Archeological Survey of India 1983

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ratnagiri . In: Times of India Travel . ( indiatimes.com [accessed November 14, 2018]).
  2. ↑ Ratnagiri | Odisha Tourism. Retrieved November 14, 2018 .
  3. ↑ Thomas E. Donaldson: Iconography of the Buddhist Sculpture of Orissa: Text . Abhinav Publications, 2001, ISBN 978-81-7017-406-6 ( google.de [accessed November 14, 2018]).
  4. ↑ Thomas E. Donaldson: Iconography of the Buddhist Sculpture of Orissa: Text . Abhinav Publications, 2001, ISBN 978-81-7017-406-6 ( google.de [accessed November 14, 2018]).

Web links

Commons : Ratnagiri  - collection of images

Coordinates: 20 ° 38 '28.3 "  N , 86 ° 20' 7.1"  E