Editing Khajuraho Group of Monuments (section)

== Construction ==
The temples are grouped into three geographical divisions: western, eastern and southern.

The Khajuraho temples are made of sandstone, with a granite foundation that is almost concealed from view.<ref>V.A. Smith, “Observations on some Chandel Antiquities”, Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Volume 48, pp 290-291</ref> The builders didn't use mortar: the stones were put together with [[mortise and tenon]] joints and they were held in place by gravity. This form of construction requires very precise joints. The columns and architraves were built with megaliths that weighed up to 20 tons.<ref>"Lost Worlds of the Kama Sutra" History channel</ref> Some repair work in the 19th Century was done with brick and mortar; however these have aged faster than original materials and darkened with time, thereby seeming out of place.

The Khajuraho and Kalinjar region is home to superior quality of sandstone, which can be precision carved. The surviving sculpture reflect fine details such as strands of hair, manicured nails and intricate jewelry.

While recording the television show ''[[Lost Worlds (TV series)|Lost Worlds]]'' (History Channel) at Khajuraho, Alex Evans recreated a stone sculpture under 4 feet that took about 60 days to carve in an attempt to develop a rough idea how much work must have been involved.<ref>"Lost Worlds of the Kama Sutra," History Channel</ref> Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone.<ref>Lehner, Mark (1997) ''The Complete Pyramids'', London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05084-8. pp. 202–225</ref> They concluded that these temples would have required hundreds of highly trained sculptors.