I would shortly be writing in full detail about the Bhitargaon Brick temple, located at about 45 kms from Kanpur. But, for readers who are totally unfamiliar with the otherwise non-descript village, I must mention a brief. Bhitargaon’s importance lies in that it houses one of the earliest instances of a significant brick temple structure covered throughout with terracotta sculptures of superb workmanship and with a shikhara. Having most likely been erected shortly after the reign of Kumaragupta II (d. 455 AD), it represents the initial stages of shift from stone as the building material to terracotta / brick, as within a century, a number of other brick temples are seen as having come up in the near vicinity, such as the elaborate temple complex at Bhitari, near Varanasi, in the reign of Skandagupta (d. 467 AD).

The temple, built on a square plan with double-recessed corners and facing east with a tall pyramidal spire over the garbhagriha, as it exists today is largely a reconstruction from the early years of Indian Archaeology under the British with many features reflecting the state of knowledge about Indian Architecture in the period (end 19th c). The walls are decorated with terracotta panels depicting mythological themes, Shiva and Vishnu etc. When Cunningham had first visited the site in 1877-78, the remains of the porch and of the ardhamandapa were still visible, which later collapsed in 1894 after a lightning strike, and was re-constructed. In a Photograph from 1878 by Joseph Beglar (British Museum), one can see the substantial entrance porch (ardha-mandapa), now simplified. There was serious disagreement about how the shikhara may have looked, due to which the top quarter of the temple remained untouched, with weeds growing freely between the bricks. The Arch of this Temple along with the one at Mahabodhi Temple, Bodh Gaya are often considered as the earliest examples of the ‘Hindu Arch’.