BROKEN TEMPLESTHE SUBCONTINENT ATLAS
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Hindu · India · SITE DOSSIER

Somnath

A coastal shrine with a long history of damage and rebuilding.

Prabhas Patan · Gujarat

LAST DOCUMENTED CONDITION

Rebuilt

As documented: 2026-09-28
LOCATION PRECISION

Approximate locality

20.8880°, 70.4014° · not a surveyed footprint

How to read this history

AI-assisted source review: 2026-09-28. Independent specialist review: not completed.

The recorded chronology

Selected episodes. Rebuilding and later changes are distinguished from damage.

  1. Destruction · intentional causeOpen this episode on the map ↗

    1025–1026 AD

    Mahmud’s campaign plundered and damaged the temple; the consulted visitor history describes destruction.

    eventSupported in consulted sources

    Mahmud’s campaign plundered and damaged the temple; the consulted visitor history describes destruction.

    The range reflects the late-1025/early-1026 wording in Gujarat Tourism.

    dateSupported in consulted sources

    1025–1026

    actorSupported in consulted sources

    Mahmud of Ghazni and his army

  2. Destruction · intentional causeOpen this episode on the map ↗

    1297–1299 AD · accounts differ

    Accounts place a further destructive campaign in different years. No exact date is selected here.

    eventDisputed

    Accounts place a further destructive campaign in different years. No exact date is selected here.

    Gujarat Tourism gives 1297; the reference article gives 1299. Actor attribution for this episode needs original-source review.

    dateDisputed

    1297–1299 · accounts differ

    actorUnknown

    Individual responsibility not established in the consulted account.

    The source does not identify a responsible individual for this episode.

    • Rebuilding · not-applicable causeOpen this episode on the map ↗

      1951 AD

      The modern temple was reconstructed after Indian independence.

      eventSupported in consulted sources

      The modern temple was reconstructed after Indian independence.

      dateSupported in consulted sources

      1951

      actorUnknown

      Individual responsibility not established in the consulted account.

      The source does not identify a responsible individual for this episode.

      GUARDIANS OF INDIA’S HERITAGE

      People behind the preservation

      Explore these lives and contributions in the companion collection. Each story explains its evidence and limitations.

      Location & last documented condition

      locationSupported in consulted sources

      Approximate locality marker; the point is not a surveyed historical footprint.

      present conditionSupported in consulted sources

      The present temple is a twentieth-century reconstruction.

      Source context

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      References are discovery leads unless marked as consulted.

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