Vijayanagara: Splendour in Ruins by John Gollings

by George Michell

The remarkably accomplished Alexander Greenlaw, probably the first photographer to reach Vijayanagara in South India in 1855, is known principally through his monumental paper negatives of this great imperial Hindu city. Greenlaw, an army officer, explored the vast site, capturing the temples, shrines, palaces and pleasure pavilions with his camera, as well as recording the dramatic landscape that surrounds the ruins of this once majestic capital. While Greenlaw s response to the architecture within its spectacular natural setting is the principal focus of this book, the work of subsequent photographers at the site is also explored. Presenting the work of William Pigou, Edmond David Lyon, Nicholas & Co. and others, the role of photography in documenting and preserving the site is examined through a comparative approach that seeks to present a comprehensive overview of commercial, archaeological and other documentary activities at Vijayanagara in the 19th century. The book will highlight the extraordinary achievement of this small group of talented individuals, through a stimulating combination of text and images, which together offer a fresh vision of this inspiring city.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

George Michell is a world authority on South Asian architecture, and a founder-trustee of the Deccan Heritage Foundation. He is amongst the most distinguished architectural scholars produced by the University of Melbourne.

He was born in Australia and received a Bachelor of Architecture degree from this university in 1968. He then turned his attention to India and obtained his PhD in 1974 from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, for his dissertation on Early Chalukya temple architecture. In 1976 he played a pivotal role in the ‘Arts of Islam’ exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in London. During the 1970s he directed courses on Asian architecture at the Architectural Association, London, as well as coediting Art and Archaeology Research Papers (AARP), a journal specialising in architecture and art of the Islamic and Indian worlds. In 1978 he edited Architecture of the Islamic World: its History and Social Meaning (republished in 1995).

George lives in London with his partner and splits his time between research trips to the Deccan and writing about its ancient architecture, at home.