COIMBATORE: A
stone
bearing Vattezhuthu inscriptions has been discovered on a pond bund at
Kovilpalayam
.
Archaeological enthusiasts, who made the discovery, said that the inscriptions refer to the gifts given to a temple. It could have belonged to the 11th century, they told TOI.
Members of the Pond Safety Association had discovered the 2.5-foot-long stone when engaged in cleaning work at Kalingarayan pond at Kondaiyampalayam of Sakarsamakulam town panchayat.
Assistant professor of the epigraphy department at PSG College of Arts and Science S Ravi inspected the stone. “As it is broken, the inscriptions are incomplete. We found four incomplete lines,” he told TOI. “The inscriptions read ‘Swasti Sri Kokkali Moorka Sri Vi, Saara Naattu Kavaiyamputtur, Aa Kai Kondu Paalamudu Padikum, and M Chandrathithavar Sevakavum.”
Vattezhuthu inscriptions are found only in a few places in Coimbatore, Ravi said. “Despite its state, we studied the script and believe that it refers to gifts given to a temple. The first line Swasti Sri Kokkali Moorka Sri Vi could be referring to ruler Vikrama Chola, one of the Kongu Cholas. It was an ancient practice to use father’s name as prefix to one’s given name. Here, Vikrama Chola could have prefixed the name of his father Kokkali Moorka (Kalimoorka). During Vikrama Chola regime, cows were gifted to the god of Kavaiyamputhur in Vada Parisaara Naadu Temple. Palamuthu or milk must be supplied to the temple till the sun and the moon exist,” Ravi said.
“If we are able to discover the missing part of the inscription, we would come to know about the period of Vikrama Chozha and categorically say when these gifts were given. With the limited inscription, we could not ascertain the temple for which the gifts were given,” he added.
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