Plaosan South Temple

INDONESIA, Central Java, Prambanan

The Plaosan South Temple, also called Plaosan Kidul (South), is the southern portion of the Plaosan Temple complex. The temple complex was constructed in the middle of the 9th century and is said to have been built for his queen by King Rakai Pikatan (reigned 835–850), a devout Hindu monarch of the Mataram Kingdom (circa 732–929). Another version is that the temple complex was built by the Buddhist queen herself. The complex is divided into three temple groups, namely the northern, central, and southern groups. The northern and central groups are known collectively as the Plaosan North Temple, and are separated from the Plaosan South Temple by an open plaza.
The Plaosan South Temple is similar in layout to the Plaosan North Temple. The entrances to the shrines face west and are surrounded by walls. There is a courtyard in the middle of the complex with a square platform at its center. The courtyard is surrounded by 16 ancillary shrines and 45 small stupas. The ancillary shrines line both sides of the central pathway on the west of the courtyard, arrayed in groups of four and forming two rows. It is said that a number of Amitabha Buddha sculptures were unearthed from this location. The small stupas are placed on the other three sides of the courtyard.
The ancillary shrines are better preserved and are made of andesite stone. Above the single-tier base, there is a rectangular chamber with a portico projecting from the front. Decorative floral relief carvings adorn the door posts, while there is a kirtimukha above each doorway. The roof is in the form of a truncated pyramid, with a stone stupa at the center, surrounded by smaller stupas.