Kalleshvara Temple, Bagali

The Kalleshvara Temple stands in Bagali, called Balgali in old inscriptions, 9 kilometres from Harpanahalli in Vijayanagara district. Its building spans two dynasties: the shrine and closed hall belong to Rashtrakuta rule in the mid-10th century, while the open hall and extra shrines are Western Chalukya work from around 987, under Tailapa II. One Duggimayya performed the consecration. Thirty-six old Kannada inscriptions of the 10th and 11th centuries, recording gifts, have come from the site, and the Archaeological Survey of India protects it.

The soapstone shrine of Shiva faces east, with a vestibule and a closed hall entered from south and east, and its tower bears erotic carvings. In front is a big open hall with fifty ornate lathe-turned pillars under a decorated ceiling, 24 of them on a raised platform with balcony seating. Eight small shrines ring the main one, among them shrines to Surya and Narasimha. Loose late-Chalukyan sculptures in the closed hall show Shiva, Ganesha, Surya and Sarasvati, among others.