Shivneri Caves

The Shivneri caves are a group of about 60 Buddhist caves cut into Shivneri hill, roughly 2 kilometres south-west of Junnar, around the fort where Shivaji was born. They were excavated early in the 1st century CE and by the early 2nd century formed a busy Buddhist centre. Most are viharas or small cells, with some chaitya halls, spread across the east, west and south faces of the hill.

Cave 26 is a two-storey vihara, and one cave known as Bara-kotri has 12 cells for monks. The most striking is Cave 47 on the south face, a chaitya about 9.9 by 6.5 metres with rounded pillars and tiered capitals like those at Nashik. It holds a stupa with a railing pattern and a parasol, and the ceiling is painted with squares of concentric orange, brown and white circles. An inscription records a gift by a merchant named Virasenaka.