On the shores of the Bay of Bengal, bathed in the rays of the rising sun, the temple at Konarak is a monumental representation of the sun god Surya's chariot; its 24 wheels are decorated with symbolic designs and it is led by a team of six horses. Built in the 13th century, it is one of India's most famous Brahman sanctuaries. 

The main temple has two "stories", although the bottom one (at the level of which this is taken) is solid. There are two "buildings" (of course, all part of the one rock), a large main one, and a smaller forebuilding with a Nandi (statue of a seated cow) inside it. We stand here at the base of the forebuilding. At the upper left corner is a raised walkway leading to the upper part of the entrance building. To the right is a free-standing plinth. 

This is standing just inside the entrance, looking to the left. There is a free-standing statue of an elephant partly obscured by the shadows directly in front 

Ellora is an ancient village 30 km (18.6 miles) from the city of Aurangabad in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Famous for its monumental caves, Ellora is a World Heritage Site .
Ellora represents the epitome of Indian rock cut architecture . The 34 "caves" � actually structures excavated out of the vertical face of the Charanandri hills � comprised of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain cave temples and monasteries, were built between the 5th century and 10th century. The 12 Buddhist, 17 Hindu and 5 Jain caves, built in close proximity, demonstrate the religious tolerance prevalent during this period of Indian history. 

3,000,000,000 years old rock....