★ UNESCO
World Heritage
World Heritage
📷 Ankit Bhattacharjee · Pexels
Where in the world
India
Ellora Caves
Ancient India (Gupta) · India
Field notes
- civilizations
- Ancient India (Gupta)
- types
- Temple · Cave painting
- occupied
- 600 CE — 1,000 CE
- visitors
- 1,760,583 / year
- country
- India
The site
Cut straight from the basalt cliffs of the Charanandri Hills in India, the Ellora Caves form one of the largest rock-cut complexes on Earth, with Hindu, Buddhist and Jain shrines carved between 600 and 1000 CE. Its masterpiece is Cave 16, the Kailash temple, a chariot-shaped monument to Shiva and the world's largest single monolithic excavation. Standing side by side, these UNESCO-listed caves illustrate the religious harmony of ancient India.
