File:0122221 Rupni ka mandir, Nachna Madhya Pradesh 074.jpg

English: The Rupni temple of Nachna, sometimes referred to as the Rupni ka mandir, is a post-16th century temple once again repaired and repainted over in the 20th century. It is located to the south of the Mahadeva temple and west of the hill where Kumra matha ruins exist. While the Rupni temple looks modern from a distance, it is notable for the 6th to 8th century sanctum doorway, art panels and pillars that are embedded inside the temple, much like the artwork embedded in the surviving structure of the hilltop Kumra matha. These parts are from some lost Hindu temples. They are useful in comparative Hindu art studies.

For a scholarly discussion of Gupta era artwork (5th and 6th-century) embedded in the Rupni temple, along with the context of other Nachna-Kuthara temples, please see Joanna Williams, The Art of Gupta India, pp. 105–112 with appended plates and footnotes.

Background:

Nachna is a small remote village in the hilly forested terrain of Panna district of Madhya Pradesh. It is sometimes locally referred to as Kachhagawan. It must have been a prosperous, major town in ancient India given the wealth of temples and archaeological remains found in and near here (Nachna–Kuthara–Lakhorobagh). It is one of the notable, much published Gupta and post-Gupta era sites in India, sometimes referred to as Nacha-Kuthara or Kachhgawan site. The artwork and temples found here, together with other Gupta era sites in India, have provided insights into Gupta era Hinduism and Jainism, the development of Hindu temple architecture in the 5th and 6th century, firmer dating for Hindu and Jain iconography throughout Indian subcontinent, and a window into Indian culture during the Gupta Empire era.

Nachna-Kuthara was a part of the historic Baghelkhand region, which some scholars classify as northeastern Bundelkhand between Satna and Jabalpur. Between the 4th and 7th-century CE, this region was ruled by the Parivrajakas (forest ascetics dynasty) and the Uchchhakalpas (shilpins or artisans dynasty named after their capital). Many inscriptions and copper plate grants found in this region suggest the prosperity and importance of Nachna area as a regional trade and culture hub, particularly to the Uchchhakalpas. Given the array of beautiful artwork and temples here from the ancient period, Nachna may have served as a regional capital of the Uchchhakalpas.