Ratnagiri

The most important edifice of the Ratnagiri complex so far discovered are the ruins of an apsidal temple located in a strategic place surrounded by monasteries and stupas. These temples were constructed near Mathura and Taxila as well as on the Udayagiri hill near Bhubaneswar around the second century BC. Curling lips, dangling ears, elongated faces and sloping foreheads are some of the outstanding iconographical features of these Buddhist images.

The excavation at Ratnagiri has revealed the remains of an imposing stupa, two quadrangular monasteries, a single winged monastery, eight temples, a large number of small stupas, sculptures, and architectural pieces indicative of an establishment that can be compared with the major Buddhist sites in the world.

For lovers of art and architecture, lay tourists as well as special groups, Ratnagiri offers in its magnificent ruins, a large brick monastery with beautiful doorways, cella, sanctum with a colossal Buddha figure, and a large number of Buddhist sculptures.