'Looking at Konark temple (13th century AD) from slightly different angles' - by K J S Chatrath

Konark Sun Temple is a 13th-century CE sun temple at Konark about 35 kilometres northeast from Puri on the coastline of Odisha, India. The temple is said to have been got built by king Narasingha deva I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty about 1250 CE. It is dedicated to Lord Surya (Sun). 

This temple, is often, along with the temples at Khajuraho, talked about for erotic sculptures. But there is so much more to see and understand in Konarak besides the eroticism- only if one has the time, inclination and patience.

I place herewith some photos of Konarak, which do not stress on eroticism.

Please take a look:

 

In this sculpture the drum or the 'dhol' is kept in place by tying a thick band around it and the forearm while the hand remains free and does the beating of the drum.

 Shailabhanjika. A salabhanjika is the sculpture of a woman, displaying stylized feminine features, standing near a tree and grasping a branch.The name of these figures comes from Sanskrit meaning 'breaking a branch of a sala tree.

 

There are not very many sculptures of children in Konark. Here is one of a mother and her little child. The seating pose of the lady is unusual with one foot on a low stool and the other on the ground. One can notice an elaborate hairstyle and ornaments in the ears and strings around the neck and a 'kangana' in her right wrist. Unfortunately salty winds of the Bay of Bengal have taken their toll on this beautiful and tender sculpture.