The Pillared Temple Hall at the Philadelphia Museum of Art is a visually stunning surprise. Entering through an intricately tiled doorway, one glimpses rows of carved pillars that exude an air of historic significance.

Built in 16th century AD in honor of the Hindu god, Vishnu, the pillars from Madanagopalasawamy in Madurai, India are the only pre-modern Temple Hall to exist outside of India.

The carved granite pillars lay as a pile of rubble in 1912. Adeline Pepper Gibson bought 60 of the granite carvings from the pile, and her family donated the pillars to the Philadelphia Museum of Art upon her death in 1919.
The pillars depict scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata as well as a variety of divine and human figures.

The Pillared Temple Hall at the Philadelphia Museum of Art is a must see. It made me feel like I stepped into a Hindu Temple. The hall is located at Gallery 324, Asian Art, Caplan Gallery on the 3rd floor.