According to the Kalasan inscription dated 778 AD, written in Sanskrit using Pranagari script, the temple was erected by the will of Guru Sang Raja Sailendravamçatilaka (the Jewel of the Sailendra family) who succeeded in persuading Maharaja Tejapurnapana Panangkaran (in another part of the inscription also called Kariyana Panangkaran) to construct Tarabhavanam, a holy building for the goddess (boddhisattvadevi) Tara.

Despite being renovated and partially rebuilt during the Dutch colonial era, the temple is currently in poor condition.

Each of the four cardinal points has stairs and gates adorned with Kala-Makara and rooms measuring 3,5 square meters.

The Kala Face above the southern door has been photographed and used by several foreign academics in their books to give an idea of the artistry in stone by Central Javanese artists of a millennia ago.

The lower one is still according to the polygonal shape of the body and contains small niches with statues of bodhisattvas seated on a lotus.

Each of these eight sides adorned with niches contains a statue of a Dhyani Buddha flanked by two standing bodhisattvas.

According to the Kalasan inscription, the temple once houses the large (probably reaching 4 meters tall) statue of the Boddhisattvadevi Tara.