Temples of Raichur district in Karnataka are some of the architectural marvels of south India. Raichur, on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, was the princely state of Mysore during the rule of Tipu Sultan, later coming under the Kingdom of the Nizam.
1. Gabbur is one of the religious quarters of the district and has several old temples and inscriptions. In the old days, it was a center of education and was also known as Gopuragrama. The most important of the temples of Raichur district are those of Male-Shankara, Venkateshwara, Ishwara, Bangara Basappa and Hanuman.
2. In addition to these, there are several ruined temples of Raichur district, two or three mathas, a few cisterns and a gateway called the Chandi-gage with a temple on either side of it. The Male-Shankara temple, one of the well known sacred sites of this district is built of rough grey stone and has a high plinth. The carving in the temple is plain on description of the roughness of the stone. There are two inscriptional tablets at the northern and western entrances and there is a large reservoir in front of the temple.
3. The temple of Venkateshwara is a popular one amongst the temples of Raichur district and consists of three shrines, two of them containing the images of Vishnu and the third a linga. The carving on the outer walls of this temple represents elegant figures of various deities and animals, those of the elephants being particularly striking. On the eastern side of the temple, there is a large cistern, with beautifully carved granite steps all round, called Sat baoli or seven cisterns. One of the mathas here is called Ganni Gudi Matha. It has a magnificently carved door. There is a tank, which is now in carcass. The Bangara Basappa temple has a shrine with an image of Ganesha, two Nandis (one is of fairly large in size and the other is a small one) and an inscriptional flank.
