The Epigraphy Division of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is working to replicate a fragmented Chola-era Tamil inscription found on a stone in an agricultural field near the Someshwara Mandir at Kammasandra village in Bengaluru rural district.
Director of ASI’s Epigraphy division, K Munirathnam Reddy, said that a villager had informed the ASI about an inscription discovered near the centuries-old Someshwara Mandir. The inscription was engraved on a stone that was partially buried.
“We only have the details of the front side of the inscription, as the other side remains buried. Preliminary analysis suggests that the inscription, written in Tamil, dates back to the 11th century during the Chola period. It appears to record a donation of 12 kandagams (a unit of land) to the Someshwara temple for the purpose of conducting pujas,” he said.
K Munirathnam Reddy further mentioned that ASI records show several Tamil inscriptions from the same village and nearby areas were copied in 1946. These inscriptions, also from the Chola period, contain references to Raja Raja Chola. He added that the ASI is now taking steps to copy the other side of the inscription to uncover more details.
