By Temple Art Museum is housed in the hall of a thousand pillars in the Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple, located in the heart of the city. The museum exhibits a good collection of icons, drawings and photographs of the art and architecture of the temple. It also has a collection of bronzes, paintings, jewelry, musical instruments, lamps and wood carvings. The Hall of Thousand Pillars or the Aayiram Kaal Mandapam is a major tourist attraction in Madurai. The hall has only 985 carved pillars, unlike the name suggests. Built by Ariyanatha Mudaliar, the hall with its pillars of Yali and elephant sculptures along with other motifs and figurines is a great example of artistic engineering. The hall also houses the Temple Museum which displays items that are as old as 1,200 years.
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