Valisvara Temple, Thiruvalisvaram

The Valisvara Temple stands in Thiruvalisvaram in Tirunelveli district and is dedicated to Shiva. It is dated to the early 10th century and credited to Raja Raja Chola I, and is regarded as a fine example of Chola architecture in the Dravidian style.

Shiva appears here seated in the sukhasana pose, and there is also an image of him as Chandesanugrahamurthi, along with figures of Parvati and a devotee. The vimana carries Shiva as Ardhanarishvara. The artistic style recalls the Pallava temples of Panamalai and Kanchipuram, and the historian K. A. Nilakanta Sastri judged the craftsmanship of the whole composition unmatched in beauty by anything comparable.