Boulderscape empire — Vijayanagara ruins, rice fields, and a river crossing at sunset
Hampi is the ruined capital of the Vijayanagara Empire (1336–1565 CE), a vast complex of temples, markets, royal enclosures, and water channels scattered across an otherworldly landscape of enormous rounded granite boulders on the banks of the Tungabhadra River in Karnataka, India. At its peak in the 15th century, Vijayanagara was one of the largest cities in the world — contemporaries compared its scale to Rome — before it was sacked and burned by the Deccan Sultanates in 1565. The ruins stretch over 26 square kilometres: the Virupaksha Temple (still active, with its 50-metre gopuram tower),…
Hampi was founded as the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1336 CE by Harihara I and Bukka Raya I, two brothers who had converted from Hindu to Islam and back again under the Sultanate of Delhi. The city grew over two centuries to become one of the wealthiest in Asia — Portuguese travellers in the 1520s described seeing more jewels and gold than they had seen in all of Europe. At peak population it housed 500,000 people. In January 1565, the combined forces of the Deccan Sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara army at the Battle of Talikota and sacked the capital — burning, looting, and demo…