Khiching

Khiching is situated in the eastern Indian state of Orissa and is a famous heritage site. This place is the most important historical and tourist site in Mayurbhanj district.  The architectural and sculptural ruins recovered from this site indicate that it must have been a major center of civilization around the 8th to 12th centuries AD.

The name Khiching is a corruption of Khijjinga or Khijjinga-Kota, the capital of the early Bhaja rulers. The ruins of this ancient magnificent town extend far beyond the limits of the present village from the bank of the Khairabandhan river in the north to that of the Kantakhair river in the south. Due to its geographical situation and political role, it experienced varied cultural influences and contacts. Such influences and contacts guided the course of development of the art of Khiching. Despite the influences, the art of Khiching lived with vitality for centuries and expressed the aesthetic experience and religious sensibilities with an individuality of its own.