ABSTRACT

The city of Vijayanagara has been the subject of extensive scholarship especially after the excavations conducted between 1975 and 1995.1 A detailed description of this complex archaeological site and its division into royal and sacred areas has been provided by Michell, Fritz, and Nagaraj Rao who have studied the physical remains extensively.2 However, some questions about the built environment still remain to be answered. The central question is what determined the character and order of the city? We know that there was no designer of the entire city, probably only in the royal area was there the hand of the king. Practical and economic factors account for the urban environment. Who, for example, regulated the production and distribution of agricultural land and craft goods near the capital and throughout the empire? What was the reason for the conspicuous display of architecture in the capital city? What was the role of the temples, rulers, and merchants as developers, and how did institutions interact within the city and in the context of the regional networks of power? This chapter attempts to understand the dynamics between three major institutions that commanded urban space: the king, the temple, and the market by using visual, historical and literary sources. For such an interpretation of urban and suburban forms in a cultural context, the cityscape will be examined in the light of the historical circumstances of the origin, growth, and development of the city.