Diamond-studded gold idols found in Tirumala hundi

October 12, 2012 03:24 am | Updated October 18, 2016 01:06 pm IST - Tirumala

Diamond studded golden idols of Lord Venkateswara, goddess Padmavathi and Lakshmi found in the Tirumala hundi. Photo: Special arrangement

Diamond studded golden idols of Lord Venkateswara, goddess Padmavathi and Lakshmi found in the Tirumala hundi. Photo: Special arrangement

Three diamond-studded gold idols have been found in a hundi of the Lord Venkateswara temple here.

While the gold idol of Lord Venkateswara measured 24 inches in height and weighed 2.571 kg, the idols of goddess Padmavathi ammavaru and Lakshmi weighed about 81 and 101 gm respectively.

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams Joint Executive Officer K.S. Srinivasa Raju said the idols were dexterously crafted and studded with over 552 rubies, 197 emeralds and a sapphire. The estimated value of the offering, which was deposited in the hundi on September 28 and for certain administrative reasons was not made public, has been put at more than Rs. 1.25 crore. Mr. Raju said the idols would be placed at the SV Museum here for public display along with other unused jewels of the presiding deity.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.