"There are similar temples in Pattadakal. Actually, that is what the best part of Pattadakal. In the same compound, you see 10 temples of various styles and all of them build in 7th or 8th century. "

"Great to see it interests you :) Not many people would find temple architecture exciting ;)"

"Just happened to read the 'curvilinear' bit. I saw a few temples in Gujarat of the same style. Interestingly, you almost never see this further down south (in TN for instance) - linear is the norm here. Check the picture I just shared with you of a famous temple in Tanjore, for a sample."

"Amazing!"

"Owner of the stall where we had breakfast twice."

"Side view of the Virupaksha temple with its surrounding wall. Notice the windows, they are in many different designs and do not have the same sculpture surrounding them."

"Curvilinear nagara architecture with a shikhara at the top. This is probably the Galaganatha temple with ribbed Amalaka (and Kudu?) repeated at each level."

"This site sort of astounds an onlooker. It is as if the architects flaunted all the building styles they had mastered, at one place. Pattadakal is considered to be the peak of architectural achievement of the period, with the southern (Dravida), northern (Nagara) and hybrid (Vesara) styles being prevalent."

"The Mallikarjun temple built in 740 A.D. is adjacent to the Virupaksha temple and resembles it so closely that they are called as twin temples. This was built by the queen Trailokyamahadevi, who was a second wife to Vikramaditya and the younger sister of Lokamahadevi. 

The temple is smaller as compared to the Virupaksha temple but has 18 pillars like the latter, depicting scenes from the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagwat and Panchatantra. The ceiling and antechamber have sculptures of Shiva and Parvati and the walls are decorated with bas-reliefs of Gajantaka, Harihara etc. The dome of the 'vimana' is circular unlike that of the Virupaksha temple which is square."

"The inscriptions indicate the name of the sculptor to be Paka."

"The Sangameshwar temple was built by King Vijayaditya Satyashraya - left incomplete for some reason. A Shiva temple built in large proportions, it is simple yet effective. The oldest temple built by Vijayaditya Satyashraya (697 – 733), exhibits in its vimana an influence of the contemporary Pallava temples, as in the Virupaksha and Mallikarjuna temples. The temple is square on plan from the base to sikhara similar to the Virupaksha shrine, has no sukanasika but the vimana has three storeys."

"This building is assigned to the 8th century. Built out of dressed blocks of sandstone it is built in the nAgara style. The shikhara is lost."

"The above post should say inscription instead of insciption."

"The temple faces east and is an exquisite specimen of Dravidian architecture. The temple hall comprises 18 carved pillars which support the structure. Against the courtyard wall are smaller shrines many of which have lost the idols they were built for. The outer walls bear fine pieces of natural life-like sculptural art. The inner sanctum houses a Shivalinga and is still worshipped in the present. Virupaksha is a family deity to many families around the Karnataka region (information sourced from a tourist guide for Pattadakal)."

"The temple itself was built in 740 A.D. An insciption says it was commissioned by queen Lokamahadevi of the King Vikramaditya to commemorate the conquest of Kanchi. The architect was Sutradhari Gunda."