NCERT Solutions for Class 8th Social Science Chapter 2 Krishnadevaraya — LET'S EXPLORE
Book page 35 Updated on2026-09-19
Q1.
In Fig. 2.14, what elements do you observe? What do they tell you about life then? (Hint: observe the weapons, the animals, the activities.)
What Fig. 2.14 shows. A photograph of a carved granite wall of the Vitthala temple at Hampi. The blocks are pale honey-coloured and the carving is shallow relief, running in five continuous horizontal bands, one above the other, each several blocks long.
Top band. Elephants walking one behind the other, trunks curled down; at the right end a horse with a man beside it.
Second band. Camels and horses being led along by men on foot — one man pulls a camel by a rope, others walk between the animals carrying sticks.
Third band. Mounted horsemen, several horses rearing up on their hind legs; one rider is drawing a bow, another carries a long weapon.
Fourth band. Hunting scenes — hounds running down deer, a man drawing a bow, a man striking an animal at close quarters.
Bottom band. Ranks of foot-soldiers in step, each with a round shield and a short sword, with more camels and riders among them.
The book’s own caption reads: “A panel from the Vitthala temple.”
Fig. 2.14, page 35 — described here; see the textbook for the photograph of the carved panel.
Answer
The panel is carved in horizontal bands, one above the other, and each band carries a different part of the kingdom's life. Looking at the stone from the top down:
Top band — elephants. A file of elephants walking one behind the other, with small human figures beside them.
Second band — camels and their drivers. Camels led on foot by men who carry sticks or goads, with other figures walking alongside carrying loads.
Third band — horses. Some horses are being led by grooms holding the bridle; others carry riders, and one or two riders hold a long weapon — a lance or a bow — as their mounts rear up.
Fourth band — a hunt. Men on foot with bows and staffs, dogs running ahead, and animals in flight before them.
Bottom band — files of small figures on foot, in rows, some carrying round shields and weapons.
What this tells you about life then:
What is carved
What it tells you
Elephants, horses and camels — carved at the same scale and importance as people
Animals were the measure of a kingdom's power. They carried the army, the goods and the king. Rani Durgavati's strength is described the same way: 20,000 soldiers and 1,000 elephants.
Grooms leading horses, not riding them
Horses were traded and delivered, not just used. The chapter tells you on this very page that the Portuguese came to Vijayanagara to sell horses, and that the king treated them well so they would not sell to enemy kingdoms.
Lances, bows, shields; riders and foot-soldiers together
Cavalry and infantry fought as one force, and the temple wall was a fit place to record it — war was part of public, even sacred, display.
A hunt with dogs
Hunting was a royal activity — training for war and a demonstration of skill — and worth carving in stone.
Rows and rows of ordinary figures walking, leading, carrying
This is a procession: the everyday movement of a great city. It matches Domingo Paes on the same page — “the streets and markets are full of laden oxen… you could find in great abundance everything that you wanted.”
Why it happens: a temple in Vijayanagara was not only a place of worship. As the chapter explains later (page 57), temples “created ecosystems with bustling markets”, held land and wealth in trust, built irrigation works and lodgings, and gave merchants credit. A building at the centre of the city's economy naturally carried the city's economy on its walls — soldiers, traders, animals and hunters, not only gods.
Check it yourself: open your book at Fig. 2.14 and count the bands. Then count how many different animals you can find in a single band. The carvers repeated a form and varied it — which is how a wall of small figures can be read from a distance.