2. Rayas , Nayakas and Sultans

According to tradition and epigraphic evidence two brothers, Harihara and Bukka, founded the Vijayanagara Empire in . This empire included within its fluctuating frontiers peoples who spoke different languages and followed different religious traditions. On their northern frontier, the Vijayanagara kings competed with contemporary rulers – including the Sultans of the Deccan and the Gajapati rulers of Orissa – for control of the fertile river valleys and the resources generated by lucrative overseas trade. At the same time, interaction between these states led to sharing of ideas, especially in the field of architecture. The rulers of Vijayanagara borrowed concepts and building techniques which they then developed further. Fig. . Mackenzie and his assistants This is a copy by an unknown artist of an oil painting by the portrait painter Thomas Hickey. It dates to c . and belongs to the collection of the Royal