Tryst with stone

On the discovery of a memorial stone that pre-dates modern day Bengaluru

Bengaluru is believed to have been founded in the late 1500s. However, the chance discovery of a memorial stone, Veeragallu near Hebbal, dating back to the seventh century recently, points to the existence of a big settlement in the region during that time period as well.

It all began a year ago when after an encounter with historian BL Rice’s Epigraphia Carnatica, IT professional Udaya Kumar and consultant Vinay Kumar began a project of documenting inscriptions mentioned in the book.

When the duo chanced upon a

veeragallu (a memorial stone) on a stormwater drain in Hebbal, they did not read too much into it. “We had been tracing inscriptions across the city and at first glance, the stone did not seem to hold any secrets,” says Vinay.

They took a few photos and also noticed that a few locals were occasionally offering prayers to the memorial stone. “It was on the side of the road. We did not think too much about it and continued with our project.”

However, a road widening project a few months later piqued their interest in the inscription. Vinay points out, “In the course of the road widening, some of the local residents noticed the veeragallu and decided to prevent its demolition by the authorities. Since both me and Udaya were travelling, we asked for help from the Revival heritage hub headed by Rajeev Nrupatunga and a small group managed to dig out the veeragallu from its location, mostly by hand. They were pleasantly surprised to discover a seventh-century inscription at the base of the veeragallu, dating to the Ganga era. We soon discovered that on the basis of the information on the inscription that it can be dated to around 750 AD.”

How does this discovery change our understanding of the history of Bengaluru? Vinay explains, “The inscription establish the existence of a settlement in the Ganga period in the heart of the modern city of Bengaluru. Hebbal was known as Perbolu in that period. Many later inscriptions from the 10th century do mention lakes in the area. Moreover, it was not mentioned in BL Rice's Epigraphia Carnatica. This is by far the oldest inscription that has been found in Bengaluru till date.”

What does it tell us

Vinay says, “The stone is believed to be from the reign of the Ganga King Sripurusha. During this period, a local chieftain Pelnagathara died in a fight to protect his territory. This stone was installed in his memory. The figurines in the inscription are also important since they depict the death of the chieftain and offer details about the fashion, costumes and weapons of that era in this region.”

He adds, “A lot of credit in finding out more about this particular stone should go to the Revival Heritage Hub. There are a few groups in the city that focus on heritage and we tend to help each other out. The stone has been moved to a nearby garage. The people in the neighbourhood are keeping it safe.”