Elephanta caves contain marvelous high-relief sculptures from the first century AD, and can be reached in about an hour and a half by boat from Bombay.

The temple establishes the world of its own through the compelling geometry of its floorplan, its naturalistic three-dimensional carving style and the subtle play of indirect light in its recesses due to the open, colonnaded 'verandas' the rock-cut architecture of the time.

The huge, high-relief works in the main cave, on both sides of the entrances and on the south wall, are characteristic of the cult of Siva and considered to be among the most perfect expressions of Indian art of their time