Materiality, Labour and Ritual Space: Artisanal Narratives of the Lepakshi Temple

Artisanal labor at the Lepakshi temple, part of the UNESCO-listed Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas, is revealed as more than mere technical production—it was a performative force shaping South Indian monumental sacred architecture. Through interdisciplinary analysis integrating material culture, visual semiotics, and spatial phenomenology, this study uncovers the agency of hereditary artisans, painters (silpins), and ritual labor networks, whose aesthetic interventions transformed granite into a 'sacralized capolavoro.' Epigraphic, iconographic, and phenomenological methods reposition Lepakshi as a dynamic archive of embodied craftsmanship, challenging traditional historiography. The research highlights how late Vijayanagara cosmopolitanism influenced these practices, offering new insights into the material and ritual dimensions of South Indian temple-building traditions.

Naidu, K. A., Anuradha, A., & Adinarayana, M. (2026). MATERIALITY, LABOUR AND RITUAL SPACE: ARTISANAL NARRATIVES OF THE LEPAKSHI TEMPLE. International Journal of Drug Delivery Technology, 16(56s). https://doi.org/10.25258/ijddt.16.56s.25