About the Place & what to see:

Solampur, a village in the Bhandaripokhari police-station of Bhadrak district is famous for the the discovery of a large number of Mahayanic and Tantric Buddhist images. During the Bhaumakara period this place was well known as the'Solampur Vihar'. Some of these archeological remains are in a badly damaged condition. The images fixed to the niches of the outer walls of the Raghunath temple, shows remarkable style of art of the early mediaeval period. The notable statue there is the one representing in a slab of stone the eight great events associated with the life of Gautama Buddha. The main image is if Buddha seated in Bhumisparsa mudra. To the left of him at the bottom is depicted his birth scene from Mayadevi.Just above it Buddha is found turning the Wheel of Dharma. The topmost figure depicts the mahaprayana of Buddha. Such sculptures are found in many places in India during the Gupta and post-Gupta period. But the Solampur images are significant for their preciseness and artistic carving which single out them as one of the finest specimens of its kind. Historians date back these monuments to the Bhaumakara period.

Avalokitesvara image of this place sitting on a lotus throne may be compared with that of Avalokitesvara image found in Ratnagiri and Vaisravana image found in Udaygiri. The image of Tara in tribhanga pose which has been attached to the outer wall of the Raghunath temple denotes the artistic influence of Ratnagiri on this place. The chlorite image of Vajrasattva of this place, now in the Indian Museum, Calcutta is a fine specimen of plastic art and looks animated by natural vigour and grace. Vajrasattva is regarded as the 6th Dhyani Budhha and is worshipped only by those who are initiated to the Vajrayana cult. This image embodies the latest development of the Buddhist ideology and may be dated back to the 11th century A.D.

It also contains the ruins of an old brick fort believed to be built by Kapilendra Deva, king of Orissa(1435-70). Inside the fort are a tomb and the ruins of a temple.