inscriptions in the hassan district

Chavana, son of Dasoja
Chikka Hampa
Dasoja of Balligrauia
Kaliyoga Viivakarmma of Lokkigundi
Keneha Malliyanna
Kesava Deva
INTRODUCTION XXXY1I
Kumars Maohari
Mayina
Malliyana
Nagoja of Gadugu
Padari Malloja
Poissananar Bira
The tower of the temple was always considered incongruous, but this cannot
have been the original erection. For we find from Bl. 24 that in 1298 the
wood work had rotted and fallen, and was repaired, pillars being erected to
support it. The temple suffered injury at the time of the Muhammadan invasion
in 1310, and was shut up till the time of Hanhara II of Vijayanagara.
In 1387 the broken kalasa on the top was restored (Bl. 63). In 1397 the
gopura over the gateway, which had been burnt by the Musalman army of
Kalburga under Ganga-Salar, was re-built with seven storeys (Bl. 3). The
central tower of the temple was also rebuilt in 1736 (Bl. 64) It had again
to be rebuilt however in 1774, in the time of Haidar Ali (Bl. 65). With so
many vicissitudes it is not to bo wondered at that the style of the tower was
not in keeping with the style of architecture. It has been a frequent source
of trouble since, and been rebuilt, but has now disappeared altogether. The
temple is in charge of the priests.
The Halebid temples are the Hoysalesvara and the Kedaresvara". The
date of the former is not accurately known. Mr. Fergusson says that it was
left unfinished, being interrupted by the Muhammadan conquest after the
works had been in progress for 86 years, but no authority is given for this
statement. It is said in Bl. 147 that Kdtamalla erected a Siva temple in
Dorasamudra in 1121 and named it after the patron of his family, Vishnuvarddhana-PoysaleSvara.
But as no description of the temple is given it cannot be
identified with the celebrated structure under notice, which was more likely a
national monument. That it was not later than the time of Vishnuvarddhana
is proved by an inscription over the southern door (Bl. 239), which says that
the sculpture there was executed by Kahdasi for Narasimha-Deva's sculptor
Kedardja, and therefore in about 1141. There is also an inscription at the back
of the larger Nandi pavilion that Devoja made the western doorway, and we
have already seen that he was one of the sculptors at Belur, and must even
then have been of considerable age, for he had a son Chavana who was also a
sculptor at the same place. The Praudha-Raya pillar (Bl. 93) contains an
account of Narasimha's birth, but as this was brought in by the Vijayanagara
king whose name it bears to prop up a cracked stone beam, it may not have
been any part of the present building. The temple is a double one and from
the votive inscriptions on the inner walls (Bl. 99 to 111) dating from about
1 This is erroncously called Kaitesvara in some works.