<< Our Photo Pages >> Kilikkallingal Kodakkal stones - Burial Chamber or Dolmen in India
Submitted by coldrum on Monday, 20 December 2010 Page Views: 11250
Site WatchSite Name: Kilikkallingal Kodakkal stonesCountry: India Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Nearest Town: Areekode Nearest Village: Kilikkallingal
Latitude: 9.012850N Longitude: 77.517180E
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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Even when the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is trying to protect megalithic burial sites at Cherumangadu (pictured) near Thrissur and elsewhere, dozens of such sites have been destroyed in Malappuram district.
Several umbrella stones with all their unique features and burial urns have been found at places such as Tirurangadi, A.R. Nagar, Kilikkallingal, Iruvetti and Areekode in the district. But none has come forward to protect any of them.
“When I started my study, I found over two dozen ‘kodakkals' at Kilikkallingal alone. But unfortunately, now we can find remains of hardly half-a-dozen megaliths there,” said V.P. Devadas, associate professor of history at NSS College, Manjeri, who heads a UGC-aided study on ‘Megaliths of Kerala.'
Mr. Devadas wondered why the ASI and lovers of megalithic monuments turned a blind eye on such sites of great historical significance in Malappuram despite the discovery of 20 such sites here by British officials.
“Robert Sewell, a British official, clearly mentioned the megalithic monuments of Malappuram in his ‘Lists of antiquarian remains of the Madras Presidency' way back in 1882,” Mr. Devadas said.
‘Kodakkal' is a unique mushroom-shaped megalithic burial monument of Kerala. “Nowhere else in the world is this kind of megalithic burial site found,” he said.
Till a few years ago, many ‘kodakkals' in the district remained untouched because of the natural curiosity they evoked in people. Treasure hunters began digging for valuables inside the large burial urns underneath the megaliths in recent years. With rampant laterite quarrying, the curiosity of ‘kodakkals' gave in to the demand for laterite blocks.
Lack of awareness among the people and lack of interest among ASI officials contributed for the destruction of the historical sites.
Mr. Devadas said the megalithic burial sites of Malappuram could be dated back between seventh century BC and third century AD. A ‘kodakkal' is a megalithic hemispherical capstone resting on three or four dressed orthostats with convex external surface, a flat interior and a generally conical shape.
A large urn will be buried under the ‘kodakkal.' Studies showed that ‘kodakkals' were used for secondary burial. “We have not found any evidence for a primary burial. All burial urns examined so far indicated secondary burial,” Mr. Devadas
Source, with a photo, The Hindu
Note: Also this week,a kodakkal stone near Cherumangadu is proposed for World Heritage list
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