Kanthi Dewal Temple, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh Located in Ratanpur, in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh, the Kanthi Dewal Temple is a three-storeyed temple dedicated to Shiva. It was probably built during the fifteenth–sixteenth century CE. Ratanpur was the capital of the Kalachuris of Ratanpura, a branch of the Kalachuris of Tripuri. According to the Ratanpur inscription of the local king Jajjaladeva I, dated 1114 CE, his ancestor Kalingaraja conquered the Dakshina Kosala region and made Tummana (modern Tuman) his capital. Kalingaraja’s grandson Ratnaraja later established Ratanpura (modern Ratanpur). The temple is unusually tall and distinctive in shape, combining features of both Hindu and Islamic architecture. It enshrines a highly polished Shiva-linga made of black basalt. The two lower storeys are square in plan. The ground storey is almost plain, with door openings on all four sides. The storey above it features projecting jharokhas (bay windows) in the middle, flanked by small niches and alcoves on either side. The structure is crowned by a curvilinear shikhara. Source: Archaeological Survey of India