Thanjavur, is known as the : Rice Bowl" of Tamil Nadu. the city earlier called Tanjore, rose to glory during the Chola period - between 10th and 14th centuries A.D. it became a centre of learning and culture and is also known for Handicrafts, Bronze Statue Castings and South Indian musical instruments like Veena and Mridangam. The city is famous for its ancient temple wonders - such as Brihadeeswara or the Big temple of God built by the great Chola king. The tower over the inner sanctum, sanctorum rises to a height of 15 meters from a square and then tapers to make a total height of 65 meters. The tower is capped by an 80 tons monolithic stone slab. A spherical dome tops this block of stone. A massive, monolithic Nandi, the bull mount of Shiva, chiseled out of the single rock, guards the portals of the inner shrines. Traces of Chola paintings can be seen in some 15 chambers of this temple.

The places near the temple is a vast building built by a Nayaks around 1550 A.D. and partly by the Marathas. In the Art Gallery of the palace, there are a number of granite and bronze statues of the Chola period. Near the palace is the Sivaganga Tank, known for its sweet water.