R ani Ki Vaav [the step well] is an approved site on the world heritage. It was declared by the world heritage committee UNESCO. UNESCO has recognized this masterpiece as an exceptional example of water management system. It is a wonderful sample of technological development for utilizing ground water resources in a single structure. It is also a unique illustration of breaking large spaces into smaller volumes with artistic presentation. Rani Ki Vaav has a great appeal to every observer.
Queen Udayamati, the widow of King Bhimdev-I constructed this Vaay between 1022 and 1063 A.D. Rani Ki Vaay has become one of the most popular places to visit in Gujarat. King Bhimdev-I belonged to the Solanki dynasty of Anhilwad Patan. After his death Udayamati took up the project for solving the problem of water scarcity faced by the people of Patan. Unfortunately the queen also died before the completion of this structure. In the world of architecture, her beautiful idea has received immense appreciation.
Queen's stepwell or Rani ki Vaav is a seven storeyed structure. This East facing stepwell is 64 meters long, 20 meters wide and 27 meters deep. Each sculpture, passage, pillar and pavilion in this magnificent structure has enchanting carvings. On its side walls there are around 800 sculptures.
There are nearly 400 big sculptures of different gods and goddesses in the Vaav at present. These numbers would have been many more in the past in its original structure. Each storey has a narrow corridor for the visitors to appreciate beauty of sculptures and carvings engraved on the walls. Even the pillars of the Vaav are not exception to it. They display splendid artistic marvel on the stone.
In fact, the Vaay is solely dedicated to Vishnu. One can find Vishnu in different shapes and postures.
After Vishnu, next important statue is of Parvati. Nearly 15 galleries have the sculptures of Parvati. 12 statues of goddess Gauri together at the same place are rarely found anywhere. The Sun temple of Modhera has it. This Vaav has also all the twelve statues of Gauri namely- Uma, Parvati, Gauri, Lalita, Shriya, Krushna, Maheshwari, Rambha, Savitri, Trisanda, Total and Tripura. Besides, there are many statues of gods and goddesses such as Ganesha, Agni, Vaayu, Surya, Bhairav, Chamunda, Brahma, Indra, Indrani, Vaishnavi, Varahi, Mahalakshmi, Kuber, etc.
There are also some of the rare sculptures of gods. Here one can find the statue of Lord Buddha with four hands, the statue of Rama with sword and shield, the statue of Sun in form of Tapasvi, the statue of Shiva with beads in his hand, the statue of Parshurama with soft and gentle expression rather having hard and stern look, etc. Some of the sculptures display contemporary life-style, folk tales, animal and human instinct, etc. They reveal artistic vision and unique imagination of the sculptors. There are nearly 300 statues of Apsaras. The sculptors presented a vast range of emotions and feelings on the faces of the Apsaras. They display variety of different moods and situations.
Most of them present Vishnu in his ten different avatars. The most attractive sculptures are those of Varah, Vaman, Narsinha, Ram, Kalki and Mahishasurmardini. The apsaras with 16 different make up styles add to the grace of this unmatched structure. The stepwell also focuses on the holiness of water and its great significance in Indian culture.
The Vaav is the most developed, elaborate and ornamented example of submerged architecture. It sings the glory of development of stepwells in India. This Vaav is a large a and complex type of stepwell. It has ornamented panels of sculptures. It lay buried under the mud due to floods first, and then vanishing of the river Saraswati. It was hidden under the layers of silt for almost seven centuries. The Archeological Survey of India(ASI) took a great care to preserve this structure.
In February 2013 ASI nominated this Vaav for the World Heritage site. With the excellent teamwork by the ASI and State Government of Gujarat, it got recognition by the UNESCO.
