Ratnagiri, Odisha

Ratnagiri
Entrance to Monastery 1, Ratnagiri
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism
Status	Preserved
Location
Location	India
State	Odisha
Shown within India Show map of India Ratnagiri, Odisha (Odisha) Show map of Odisha
Geographic coordinates	20°38′28″N 86°20′07″E / 20.6412°N 86.3353°E / 20.6412; 86.3353

Ratnagiri (Odia: ରତ୍ନଗିରି, meaning "hill of jewels") is the site of a ruined mahavihara, once the major Buddhist monastery in modern Odisha, India. It is located on a hill in between the Brahmani and Birupa rivers in Jajpur district. It is close to other Buddhist sites in the area, including Lalitagiri and Udayagiri, and 100 km (62 mi) from the state capital Bhubaneswar and 70km from the former state capital Cuttack.^[1]

The Buddhist monuments were constructed from the 5th century CE onwards, with the last work in the 13th century, and the peak period of work done between about the 7th to 10th centuries. After perhaps the 16th century the site ceased to be used and fell into ruins. These were little known until the 1960s when major campaigns of excavations by the Archaeological Survey of India ("ASI") revealed the site, producing large quantities of very fine sculpture. Monastery 1 has been described as "the finest in terms of carved stone decoration to have survived in India".^[2] Some of this was removed to museums elsewhere, with much left on site. A museum at the site has recently been opened to house many pieces.^[3]

The main elements were an impressive stupa (Stupa 1) surrounded by several hundred smaller stupas of varying dimensions, three quadrangular monasteries (Monasteries 1 to 3). Monastery 1 is much the largest, with a beautiful carved doorway, spacious open courtyard, cells and verandah facing the courtyard, with a spacious shrine centred on a colossal Buddha.^[4]

The buildings are mainly in brick (much of which has now been removed), but the doorways, pillars and sculpture are mostly in two types of stone, which contrast attractively. These are a "blue-green chlorite and the local khondalite, a garniferous gneiss with plum-coloured overtones".^[5] The large numbers of sculptures in stone, with a few (27) bronze and brass figures,^[6] excavated at the site are mostly in the "Post-Gupta" style, the earlier ones continuing the classic style of Gupta art. They are mostly images of Buddha and the Buddhist pantheon, and analysis of the trends in subjects over time suggests that Ratnagiri turned to become a centre of Tantric Buddhism, as did Nalanda in Bihar. In particular, over two dozen colossal Buddha heads have been found.^[7]