Hoysala Dynasty Temple Complex

Timeline

1. c. 1117–1121Belur · KarnatakaHoysala king Vishnuvardhana built the Chennakeshava Temple at Belur after defeating the Chalukyas, summoning renowned sculptors such as Danikachari, and establishing the basic layout of the star-shaped platform and multi-tiered porches.
2. 1161–1170Chennakeshava Temple, Belur · KarnatakaBy the 1160s the main temple and cloister carvings were essentially complete; under succeeding rulers such as Ballala II, sacrifices and festivals continued to be held, Brahmin settlements and subsidiary temple buildings formed around it, and it became an important religious and economic node in western Hoysala territory.
3. c. 1311–1320Belur · KarnatakaMalik Kafur's (Malik Kafur's) expedition into South India looted Belur and Halebidu, damaging some subsidiary structures, but the core of the main Chennakeshava temple was preserved intact; later Vijayanagara and Mysore regimes both maintained it, and the complex continued its religious functions.