10th century inscription found in T’malai village

First spotted by history teacher K Selvakumar, the Tiruvannamalai District Centre for Historical Research was informed of the inscriptions. Members from the group, including TM Prakash and S Balamurugan, subsequently visited the site and deciphered the inscriptions, sources added.

The first inscription stone, dating back to the time in the tenth century when it is believed to have been Chola dynasty king Rajarajan’s second year of reign, was found near a local Pillayar temple in the village. The inscription reportedly mentions an incident of 45 goats being donated to the temple by a person named Nakkan Madaniyan. It also stated the location to be Venkundrakottathu Erumbur-possibly showing how Erumbur village—where the inscriptions were found--has continued to be known so even after 1000 years.

The other inscription, that reportedly dates back to the fifteenth century, states the presiding deity in the local Sivan temple to have been called Brahmeeswara Udayar and its consort as Kamakottamudaya Pereia Nachiar. It also read that a person named Kananra Mudapattan looked after various works in the temple.

Members from the historical research centre remarked that it was surprising that the locality where the inscriptions were discovered still used the same name for more than a thousand years now. Renovation works, which resulted in stones being shifted, cemented and being painted over, however, stood as impediments to accessing the full history of the area, they added.