The last temple in our morning prowl was the Shore Temple. Much of  has been excavated, but only one of seven temples is visible because the rest are under sea level. The Shore Temple overlooks the shore of the Bay of Bengal. It is a structural temple, built with blocks of granite, dating from the 8th century AD. It was built on a promontory sticking out into the Bay of Bengal. 

The Shore Temple is a five-storeyed structural Hindu temple. It is the earliest important structural temple in Southern India.  Its pyramidal structure is 20m high and sits on a 17m square platform. There is a small temple in front which was the original porch.  It is made out of finely cut local granite. Recent excavations have revealed new structures here under the sand.

At the time of its creation, the village was a busy port during the reign of Narasimhavarman II. Chinese and Roman coins from the 4th century CE have been found revealing the port as an active hub of global trade in the late classical period. As one of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, it has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It is one of the oldest structural (versus rock-cut) stone temples of South India.