Nayak-era inscription found in Thanjavur

TRICHY: A stone inscription dating back to the Thanjavur Nayak era was recovered from a school complex undergoing renovation work in Thanjavur city last week. The inscription scripted in Tamil mentions the donations made towards a temple and warns people not to misuse the properties.
Measuring 3.5ft in height and 1.25ft in width, the stone tablet was inscribed in 15 lines.
The school management, run by a private trust in Vadakku Veedhi, upon recovering the antique alerted Mani Maran, Tamil scholar, Sarasvati Mahal library, Thanjavur and his team which includes Thillai Govindarajan and K Jayalakshmi for an inspection.
The team studying the script said the inscription dates back to the 16th century Thanjavur Nayak dynasty who had ruled for 140 years. The inscription speaks about a Singaperumal temple that was once situated in the present day’s Srinivasapuram of Thanjavur city.
However, during Sevvappa Nayakkar regime, the temple was relocated to present day’s Vennaru banks in Palliyaagraharam, in the outskirts of Thanjavur.
The inscription also has conch and chakra insignia.
“The scripts described properties such as horticultural land and garden donated to the Singaperumal temple. The same also warns that misusing the donated properties by anyone shall amount to a sin committed as equal to the killing of a cow at the banks of river Ganga,” said Mani Maran.
The stone inscription retrieved was believed to be misplaced during the temple’s relocation during Thanjavur Nayak kingdom and might have been buried over a period of time.