Shankaragaurishvara Temple

The Shankaragaurishvara Temple stands in Pattan, Baramulla district, 27 kilometres from Srinagar. King Shankaravarman of the Utpala dynasty, a Shaiva who ruled Kashmir from 883 to 902, built it in his capital, then called Shankarapattana, dedicated it to Shiva and gave it his own name. Next to it he raised the Sugandhesha Temple in honour of his wife, also for Shiva and on the same plan, though much smaller.

Both temples are now dilapidated and no worship is held, yet the carving has lasted remarkably: the east-facing entrance porch is sculpted inside and out and looks almost freshly cut. Its pediments rise one above another in symmetry, and the entrance columns carry detailing in the Kashmiri manner. The plinths of both shrines sit inside a walled enclosure that was lined with a cellular, colonnaded passage, traces of which remain. The design recalls the Shankaracharya Temple, and the site is among the temples the state lists for tourism promotion.