The Arma Malai, a hillock on the Eastern Ghats, which houses the Eighth Century Jain cave at Malayampattu village near Ambur town in Tirupattur district, will soon be declared a monument by the State government.
The Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology (TNSDA) officials said that at present only the cave was a monument for its natural formation and paintings on its walls. The cave paintings resemble those found in Sittanavasal, a rock-cut cave in Pudukottai district, especially with regard to the style of using colours. “I inspected the ancient cave in the hills. Efforts have been made to protect the hillock and the cave to conserve its rich past,” D. Bhaskara Pandian, Collector, Tirupattur, told The Hindu.
Mr. Pandian inspected the cave and found the structure and murals on the walls to be intact. An expert team, led by M. Rajesh, assistant engineer (AE), conservation wing (TNSDA), accompanied the Collector. The team apprised the Collector of the importance of preserving the murals and the cave. S. Valarmathi, District Revenue Officer (DRO), Tirupattur, who also accompanied the Collector, briefed him about the hillock, which comes under the Department of Revenue.
Subsequently, Mr. Pandian ordered a detailed spatial survey of the hillock to assess the exact area covered by the hillock to recommend to be declared as a monument by the State government. The survey will be completed in a week. As per records, the hillock is spread over 74.94 hectares with thick reserve forests.
At present, the TNSDA has 93 monuments in the State with Madurai having the highest number of 16 monuments, followed by Kancheepuram and Villupuram (12 monuments each). Of these, 26 monuments are hillocks, including Jagadevi Fort (Krishnagiri), Kabilar Hill (Villupuram), and Kazhugumalai (Tuticorin), the officials said.
Archaeologists said the ancient cave, the only monument in Tirupattur district, is located around 100 ft from the foothills with 100 granite staircases. The cave has been divided into several rooms, made of mud and unbaked brick structure, that can accommodate at least 70-80 persons. Spread over 3,000 sq. ft., the cave has beautiful murals on its roof and walls. These paintings depict the stories of Jainism and Astathikpalakas (eight corners) with their mounts.
Most of the paintings have parrots and a variety of flowers in them.
Restoration of Arma Malai cave was taken up by the TNSDA a few months ago at a cost of ₹20 lakh. Broken granite staircases were replaced with new ones. Steel fencing around the monument was erected to prevent trespassing and vandalism of the structure. Sign boards on its rich heritage and penal laws for causing damage to the site were placed. Villagers were roped in to provide security to the site.
