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Thanjavur Temple

The Granary of South India, Thanjavur was the royal city of the Cholas, Nayaks and the Mahrattas in the ancient India. Thanjavur or Tanjore reached the acme of art & culture and development during the rule of the Chola king, Rajaraja Cholan. Even today, Thanjavur is remains to be the center of all the classical arts and music. This city has produced many classical musicians and bharathanatyam dancers and is also well known for its unique painting style called Tanjore Painting.

Thanjavur boasts of numerous beautiful temples and the Big Temple of Thanjavur stands tall with its beaming tower. It's one of the architectural marvels of the world. Known for its exquisite handicrafts, bronzes and south Indian Musical Instruments, Thanjavur is also famous for its distinctive art style and world famous weaving silk sarees.

Key Attractions :

The Palace
The Palace of Thanjavur, located near the temple is a vast structure of masonry built partly by the Nayaks around 1550 AD and party by the Marathas. This the architecture of this palace is worth seeing. Two of the palace towers, the armoury and the observation tower are visible from every part of the city. The palace also houses an art gallery, a library and a hall of music.

Brihadeshwara Temple & Fort
Built by great Chola king in the 10th century AD, Brihadeshwara Temple & Fort is an exquisite example of Chola architecture and is listed in world heritage. A monolithic cupola made of a single granite block weighing 80 tons covers the head of the temple. The cupola was taken to the top by being pulled on a 6 km long inclined ramp, a technique used by pyramid builders of Egypt. For over thousand years, the temple has been the centre of continuous worship. Non-Hindus are not allowed inside the temple.

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» Tiruvarur : The Thyagarajaswami Temple here has the biggest temple chariot in Tamil Nadu. This is the birth place of Saint Thyagraja -One of the Musical Trinity.

» Saraswathi Mahal Library : The Saraswati Mahal Library houses over 30,000 Indian and European manuscripts written on palm leaves and papers.

» Art Gallery : The Art Gallery In the palace has a number of granite and bronze statues of the Chola period.

Climate
Thanjavur enjoys a tropical climate throughout the year. The temperature of summer months ranges from 32 degree C to 36 degree C and the temperature of winter months ranges between 22.8 degree C to 23.5 degree C. The average rainfall is 111.37mm.

Wheels to Thanjavur
» By Air : The nearest airport is at Tiruchi. Thanjavur is 65 km east of Tiruchi. Madurai is the nest closest aiport. It's about 200 Kms by road. Thanjavur is around 350 Kms south of Chennai by road.

» By Train : Thanjavur also has a railway junction, which is well connected with Tiruchi, Chennai and Nagore.

» By Road : Thanjavur is well connected with all the major towns in Tamil Nadu by road. The city is also connected with Kochi, Ernakulam, Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala and Bangalore in Karnataka.