Integrated Environment: The Sacred Landscape of Dhār Tīrtha in the Vicinity of Lonar Crater

Abstract

This essay examines the Dhār Tīrtha-Gāimukh complex as a conglomerate, set within the landscape of the Lonar crater situated in Buldhana district of Maharashtra. The architectural productions here are a palimpsest of reappropriated structures and reused spaces. There can be traced a continuum in the building activity from the thirteenth through eighteenth century AD. The following article is a preliminary investigation to map this built environment and religious affiliations in order to understand the role of Dhār tīrtha within the ambit of Lonar.