Sculptural Splendour - Meenakshi Temple, Madurai

The King Thirumalai Naicker played an important role in the construction of the new form of the temple according to records. There is an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple and it was in the list of top 30 nominees of the "New Seven Wonders of the World".The temple is surrounded by gopurams (gateway tower). There are ten gopuram the tallest of which, the famous southern tower, rises to over 170 ft (52 m) and was built in 1559. The oldest gopuram is the eastern one, built by Maravarman Sundara Pandyan during 1216-1238. Both the Meenakshi and Sundareshwarar shrines have gold plated Vimanam. The seven foot high idol of Mukkurini Vinayakar is carved out of a single rock, is located outside the Sundareswarar shrine. Near the Kambathadi mandapam, sculptures of Badrakali, Agora Veerabhadra, Agni Veerabhadra, Kaali, the Urdhwa Taandavam of Shiva, Ardhanaareeswarar, Shankaranarayanan, Tripurasamhaaramurthy, Kaalasamhaaramurthy, Raavanaanugrahamurthy and famous "Marriage of Meenakshi" sculpture which are of special significance having been carved out of a single rock.