The stone sculptures and monuments of South India were mostly carved from 7th century to the 9th century AD. These stone sculptures were mainly connected with the two most important dynasties of that period, the Pallavas and the Pandyas. Both of these dynasties were the ardent followers of the Vedic religion.

The history of the families and works of the Pallavas can be traced back as far as from the 3rd century. But the clear information and inscription about them were available only from the monuments and the stone carvings of the 6th century. The eastern coastline around the cities of Kanchipuram and Mahabalipuram were the centres of their rule. Mahabalipuram was the place of the famous carved-stone cliff crafted by the Pallava kings in the 7th century.

There are less known facts about the Pandya rulers. They ruled further south in the vicinity of Madurai. The Pandayas also used the rock-cut medium in addition to building brick and wooden temples. These Hindu temples were the dwellings for the gods and a place where they make themselves visible and accessible to the devotee. These temples were therefore significant places and various big structures made for this from the 7th to 14th centuries A.D. These temples had several stone sculptures embellished in both the interiors and the exteriors of them. Later, these temples were completely covered with various stone sculptures. All these stone sculptures found in these temples had a specific iconographic meaning. These have an important role in identifying and celebrating the principal deity of the temple as well as, in signifying the Hindu cosmos.

In the medieval South India, the 7th century sculptures of Mahabalipuram were discovered. These were very elegant and impressive. One of them was a very large sculpture depicting the religious ceremony of Arjuna (previously identified as an illustration of the mythical descent of the Ganges). This one was carved on the face of a granite boulder with a deep fissure in the centre that represented a river down which water actually flowed from a reservoir placed above. There are numerous carved figures of divinities human beings, and animals made of stone on both sides. There is also a hermitage shown, where Arjuna was practicing penance and was visited by Lord Siva. The tall, slender figures, with agile tubular limbs, remotely bring into mind the proportions of Amaravati, which are now greatly changed. Again the various animals, including the elephant herd with its young represent the same intimate feeling for animal life that distinguishes all South Indian sculpture. But these were shown in a manner that has rarely been surpassed.

In the later centuries, the light, aerial forms gained stability and strength. During the late 9th century when the Chola dynasty was uniting its power, the wonderful sculptures adorned with small and elegant shrines were built. The temples at Tiruvalisvaram, Kodumbalur, Kilaiyur, Srinivasanallur, Kumbakonam, and lots of other places of this period had very few stone sculptures but they were of excellent quality.

The South Indian stone sculptures of the 10th and 11th centuries were more indigenous in look and represented the fresh and blooming life. The example of this can be seen in the stone sculptures of the Chola dynasty depicting numerous temples of Tanjavur and Gangai kondacholapuram.

The 13th century South Indian stone sculptures represented mainly the works of Darasuram and Tribhuvanam. These stone sculptures became increasingly firm and often captured the outer movement with great skill. The creation of the stone sculptures continued in southern India even when artistic activity was disrupted in the north by the Islamic invasions. But instead of technical intelligence, these stone sculptures of South India gradually became lifeless.

The artistic activity in the form of stone sculptures of South India continued into the 17th century also. There are several elaborately sculptured halls at Madurai. These contained the collections of stucco sculptures embellished with the huge entrances or gopurams. These are the evidences of the extraordinary and the undistinguished quality of the stone sculptures of that period. There were several grand images and the finest of them was probably the great image at Brihadishvara temple at Tanjavur, which is still worshipped.

In the 7th and the 8th century, the Karnataka state had a flourishing school of sculpture as seen in the examples from Aihole, Pattadakal, and Alampur. In the architectures of these stone sculptures, the influence of North India was apparent but style was basically southern. These stone sculptures emphasised on harsh strength and power compared to the more elegant and delicate forms of the Tamil country. This phase of sculptures can be seen in the cave temples at Ellora in Maharashtra. The tradition of carving big size sculptures and images continued here also with their primitive strength, which was contributed by the nature of the rock out of which they were carved. In the Ramesvara cave, a series of large, splendid panels of 6th century AD can be found which depicts incidents from Hindu mythology. One of them represents an awesome dancing form of Kali, the goddess of death. The Kailasa temple at Ellora shows a remarkable group of elephants struggling with lions all around the pedestal. Among the many large sculptures of Kailasa temple, the one, which depicts Ravana shaking Kailasa, is a composition of considerable grace and charm.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Hoysala dynasty was ruling in Karnataka. They developed a very distinctive style of stone sculptures there, which became very popular then. At that time, they used varieties of stone that were soft when freshly excavated but harden on exposure. These represent the extreme richness of the work. These stone sculptures were often undercut and literally covered with the most elaborate ornaments and jewellery from top to bottom.