Pallava Art & Architecture – Minimal MCQ

1) The Pallava dynasty is especially associated with which two centres of art and architecture?

Madurai and Thanjavur
Ujjain and Vidisha
Kanchipuram and Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram)
Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda

2) The earliest Pallava temples were primarily of which type?

Brick-and-wood structural temples
Rock-cut cave temples
Free-standing gopura gateways
Stupa monuments

3) The Mandagapattu inscription of Mahendravarman I famously declares a temple built without which materials?

Stone and metal
Brick, timber, mortar and metal
Wood and lime-plaster only
Sandstone and granite

4) Who is credited with the major shift from rock-cut to structural stone temples in Pallava art?

Nandivarman II
Narasimhavarman II (Rajasimha)
Mahendravarman II
Dantivarman

5) The Pancha Rathas at Mamallapuram are notable because they are:

Brick replicas of wooden shrines
Separate structural shrines joined by corridors
Monolithic temples carved out of single rock outcrops
Subterranean cave sanctuaries

6) The Descent of the Ganges/Arjuna’s Penance at Mamallapuram is a:

Painted mural panel
Bronze repoussé relief
Massive open-air rock relief
Inlaid mosaic wall

7) The Shore Temple at Mamallapuram (early 8th c.) is primarily dedicated to:

Vishnu only
Shiva (with a smaller Vishnu shrine)
Surya
Brahma

8) The Kailasanatha Temple at Kanchipuram is associated with which Pallava ruler?

Narasimhavarman I (Mamalla)
Simhavishnu
Narasimhavarman II (Rajasimha)
Nandivarman III

9) Pallava pillars often feature which characteristic base motif?

Lotus-and-geese
Lion/Yali (vyala) bases
Elephant-with-riders
Fish-and-pearls

10) The rathas at Mamallapuram are named after:

The Alvars
The Nayanmars
The Pandavas and Draupadi
The Sapta Matrikas

11) The Somaskanda panel (Siva, Uma, and Skanda) frequently appears where in Pallava temples?

On the gopura exterior
In the garbhagriha (sanctum) back wall
On the temple tank steps
On freestanding victory pillars

12) In the Pallava period, which architectural element generally remained modest compared to later Dravidian temples?

Gopura (gateway tower)
Vimana (sanctum tower)
Prakara walls
Mandapa interiors

13) Which ruler’s epithet gives Mamallapuram its name and is linked to the monolithic ratha phase?

Simhavishnu (“Simha”)
Narasimhavarman I (“Mamalla”)
Dantivarman (“Danti”)
Aparajita (“Aparajita”)

14) The typical Pallava vimana over the sanctum is best described as:

Curvilinear (rekha) tower
Circular dome
Stepped pyramidal, tiered superstructure
Flat wooden roof

15) The Varaha and Mahishasuramardini mandapas at Mamallapuram are famous for:

Bronze casting
High-relief narrative panels
Fresco-secco murals
Painted ceiling coffers

16) The “Mahendra style” mainly refers to Pallava:

Bronze sculpture workshops
Rock-cut cave architecture under Mahendravarman I
Brick stupas of early Buddhism
Temple tanks and ghats

17) The “Rajasimha style” is exemplified by which temple type?

Large wooden halls
Structural stone temples with rich sculptural niches
Brick chaityas
Cave monasteries

18) Which statement about the Pancha Rathas is most accurate?

They were fully functional, consecrated temples in continuous worship
They were primarily prototypes/models demonstrating varied Dravidian temple forms
They were memorial cenotaphs
They were palace audience halls

19) In Pallava structural temples, which plan feature becomes increasingly common?

Axial garbhagriha with enclosed pradakshina and fore-halls (mandapas)
Circular sanctum with radiating chapels
Octagonal nave with aisles
Cross-in-square plan

20) The Pallavas are generally dated to which centuries for their major artistic output?

2nd–4th centuries CE
5th–7th centuries BCE
6th–9th centuries CE
10th–12th centuries CE