Hoysalesvara Temple Sculpture, Halebid

Richard Banner Oakeley was one of four photographers known to have made the arduous journey to Halebid, India, between 1854 and 1857 to photograph the Holysaleswara Temple, a magnificent example of Hindu architecture and sculpture begun during the first half of the 12th century. In late 1856 on the recommendation of a friend, he marched some twenty days along treacherous country roads to locate this structure. Finding the temple more beautiful than any other building he had seen in southern India, Oakeley framed and lit his animated subject matter with consummate skill and invention. The image captures a sense of the lavish number of vivid sculptures that encircle the temple's walls.