The Elephanta Caves are caves located on Elephanta Island in the Arabian Sea near Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. These caves contain Shaivistic high reliefs in stone of Hindu deities important to worshipers of Shiva. Elephanta Island was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 to preserve 
the artwork. The original name of this epitome of temple art is Agraharpuri(Agrahar stands for the necklace or most important neck ornament). The sculptures here were created around some time in the late Gupta Empire.
The Agraharpuri slowly became Gharapuri; still retaining the original meaning as the focal point of Gharapuri Island, which was renamed Elephanta Isl
and by the Portuguese and is located in Mumbai harbour off the coast of Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay), India. In 1987, the caves were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ardhanarishvara (half male-half female God) at Elephanta caves. Note the sculpture’s left is female and the right is male, depicting Shiva and his consort Shakti/Parvati.
These caves were continuously visited by many of the domestic as well as foreign tourists. But it had been complaint that these visitors mistreat these caves and Most of the sculptures here were defaced by the Portuguese, who used the sculptures as target practice in the 17th century. The Portuguese also gave the island its modern name, Elephanta from Gharapuri.
This important cultural and historic site caves are thought to date back to the Silhara kings of the 9th through 13th centuries (810–1260). Some of the sculptures of this site are also attributed to the imperial Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta (in present day Karnataka), the Trimurti of Elephanta showing the three faces of Shiva 
almost akin to the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh. This was also the royal insignia of the Rashtrakutas. Other Rashtrakuta sculptures here are the reliefs of Nataraja and Sadashiva and the splendid sculptures of Ardhanarishvara.
The historic rock-cut temple complex cover an area of 60,000 sq ft (5,600 m2) consisting of a main chamber, 2 lateral ones, courtyards and subsidiary shrines. The site of these magnificent caves contained beautiful reliefs, sculptures, and a temple to the Hindu god Siva. The caves are hewn from solid rock. The temple complex is said to be the abode of Shiva.
More at : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephanta_Caves
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