When history professor C Manickaraj got a call from his friend C. Chellapandian of Peraiyur couple of days ago about objects belonging to ancient period strewn all over an agricultural field near T. Kallupatti, he went without any big expectation. But when he visited the site in Agrahara Medu in Kavasakottai, five kilometres east of T. Kallupatti, he was pleasantly surprised to see Tamil Brahmi script on potsherds and fish symbol engraved on broken mud pots.
“It is an agricultural field for millets ploughed to sow the seeds. The potsherds and urns must have resurfaced when the plough made deep furrows on the ground. Though the objects were in damaged condition, one could easily identify the potsherds and urns as ancient artefacts,” says Manickaraj, assistant professor, Department of History, Cardamom Planters’ Association College, Bodi.
He immediately swung into action with his team including T. Muneeswaran, M. Kanagaraj and M. Lakshmanamurthy to find Tamil Brahmi script inscribed on few potsherds. “We could find letters ‘Tha’ and ‘Ra’ and could not read much from the other potsherds as they were damaged. I also confirmed it with archaeologist C. Santhalingam,” he says.
“The Tamil Brahmi letters on the potsherds throw some light on the period these objects belonged to. It must be around 1st century A.D,” says Santhalingam.
Also the team found urns, mud bricks and terracotta figurines. Interestingly, couple of mud pots had fish symbol crisply engraved on them. “Similar symbol was also identified on the relics unearthed in Keezhadi excavation,” says Manickaraj.
Though fish is the emblem of Pandya Kingdom, the fish carving found here is different and it signifies prosperity. The urns and mud pots have decorative works on them. “There are two different kinds of drawings. Some must have been drawn after the mud pot was baked in the kilns as they are precise while some must have been drawn before,” says Manickaraj.
Similarly, acting on information from one of his former students, Manickaraj took a team from the college to Ova Malai near Chithrevu Village in Athoor to identify a prehistoric rock art site.
It is located in Perumal Podavu. ‘Podavu’ is a cave. There are several pictorial depictions in the site. In one art there is a human body with the head of a fowl and a long beak. There are drawings of tiger, deer, birds and people dancing with raised arms. “Most of the art is painted in white while some are in red ochre colour. Ours is predominantly a hunting society is clear from the rock art,” says Manickaraj.
Reflecting on the art, K.T. Gandhirajan, an art historian and an expert in rock arts, says that though the exact period of the art work cannot be ascertained, it belonged to prehistoric period with the clear depiction of the leader of the pack.
There are around 90 rock art sites in Tamil Nadu including Vellari Kombai in Nilgiris, Thiruvathavoor, Chithirakal Podavu near Usilampatti, Sirumalai and Palani Hills, Anamalai, Keezhvaazhai and Alambadi in Vizhuppuram. “The first rock art site discovered in Tamil Nadu is in Mallambadi in Krishnagiri district,” says Gandhirajan.
These findings offer insights into the lifestyle of ancient Tamil Community and plenty of scope for archaeologists and historians for further research in the area.
