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The unfinished temple of Chait Singh at Ramnagar across its tank - 1814
Watercolour of an unfinished temple at Ramnagar in Varanasi from 'Views by Seeta Ram from Benares to Nazibghur Vol. III' was produced for the Lord Moira, afterwards the Marquess of Hastings, by Sita Ram between 1814-15. Marquess of Hastings, the Governor-General of Bengal and the Commander-in-Chief (r.1813-23), was accompanied by artist Sita Ram (flourished c.1810-22) to illustrate his journey from Calcutta to Delhi between 1814-15.
Ramnagar was the made the capital of the former princely state of Benares (Varanasi) by Raja Balwant Singh (r. 1740-1770) in 1750. The outer ramparts of the fort date from the 17th century. A vast flight of stone steps lead to a pointed archway and a series of courtyards leads to the white tower of the main palace within the fort. Within the fort, Raja Chait Singh (r.1770-1781), his son, ordered the construction of a temple. View shows an unfinished temple at Ramnagar across its tank, with smaller temple structures in the foreground. Inscribed below: 'Temple at Ramnagur built by Rajah Cheyt Sing.'
Source : British Library
Why is it un-finished ???
Good question. : )
I have seen a similarly unfinished temple in the outskirts of Bhopal, a Siva temple. The most interesting part was that the bare bones of the construction could be seen and the entire construction map was also inscribed on the rocks near the temple site.It was an insight into temple building.