Discuss in brief how the different scholars/historians have analysed and interpretrated different buildings (structures) of the Vijayanagara Empire.
The interpretation given by different historians/scholars about the buildings of Vijayanagara Empire is as follow:
(i) The Italian traveller Nicolo Conti travelled through Vijayanagara in 1426. He writes about Hampi that the circumference of the city sixty miles, its walls extended to the hills and cover the valley below.
(ii) Persian traveller Abdur Razzaq, came to India in 1443 (during the time of Deva Ray II) gives very impressive description of city of Vijayanagara. He wrote that Vijayanagara was an unprecedented city, the life of which was neither ever heard or seen in the whole word. This city is built in such a way that its seven guarding fort gates are built within each other. In the city there is a separate market place of every occupation. The royal palace is very vast.
(iii) Domingo Paes, a Portuguese traveller had described Vijayanagara was most prosperous city having vast granaries of rice, wheat etc. The markets and even road side of the city were full of innumerable things.
(iv) Barbosa and another Portuguese travellers and writers came to India in 1516. He described Vijayanagara as a densely populated city. According to him city was a great centre of foreign trade.
