The Temple of Thanjavur - The Lust of the Gods, India (172/418)

Under the reign of the great King Rajaraja, founder of the Chola empire which stretched over all of southern India and ist neighbouring islands, the great Temple of Tanjore (Thanjavur) was constructed between 1003 and 1010. Surrounded by two rectangular enclosures, the Brihadisvar, built from blocks of granite and, in part, from bricks, is crowned with a pyramidal 13-storey tower, the vimana, 61 m high and topped with a bulb-shaped monolith. The walls of the temple are covered in rich sculpted decoration.