Below these panels are marvellous Chola frescoes executed in the elegant Ajanta style that have been discoveredand uncovered only in recent times for murals of later period obscured them. Dotting the beautiful countryside around Thanjavur are other little temple towns. Guarding the temple is an enormous figure of Nandi, the bull, carved out of monolithic block of black granite, 6m long. Within the temple and along its gateways and shrines are other superb examples of stone carving. Beautifully sculpted panels with mythological scenes like Parvathi's wedding decorate the walls.
Fine figures carved with skill decorate the outer structure.
Trichy Malaikkottai Precariously perched atop a massive outcrop of rock that rises abruptly out of the flat surrounding plain is the famous Rock Fort at Tiruchirapalli. The Fort as it stands today was built by the Nayak rulers of Madurai, and its last major battle was fought during the Anglo-French wars of the Carnatic in the 18th century. Apart from the rock, temples are built at various levels during different periods. The oldest are the Pallava cave temples carved out on its Southern face. The Vinayaka temple at the highest point of the rock stands at a height of 84 mts.