VELLORE: A British era cannon on a hilltop, presumably as part of surveillance of Vellore city during the Raj, was unearthed on Tuesday by a team of officials belonging to the Museum Department of Tamil Nadu government.
A few local youngsters, who had climbed the hills located at Sarbanamedu in the city, noticed a part of the cannon popping out on Monday after heavy showers drained the sand that covered the war machine.
After receiving information, forest personnel intimated the matter to the revenue officials. Subsequently, a team of officials led by K Saravanan, curator of Vellore Fort Museum, trekked on the hills to inspect the cannon on Tuesday.
“It is a 9 feet British era cannon. It weighs about two tons. We exhumed it from the sand after a part of became visible after the rains,” Saravanan told The New Indian Express.
The diameter of the mouth of the cannon, whose wheels were heavily damaged over the years, is 15 cm.
Made of cast iron, the cannon resembles the ones unearthed from near the Jalagandeeswarar temple in the premises of Vellore Fort Museum two years ago.
The officials presumed that it belonged to the British era and could have been mounted during the Raj as part of surveillance of the fort city. “Vellore Fort is the only surface fort in the region. So, the British authorities had developed forts atop hills surrounding the Vellore Fort to keep vigil and surveillance on the fort and the city to protect them from enemies attempting to sneak into,” Saravanan noted.
It is the first time that such a weapon was found on a hilltop. The logo inscribed on the weapon could not be deciphered as it was obliterated over the years.
The inspection team had to sweat to reach the hilltop as it took them nearly two hours to trek the difficult terrain. It is going to be a difficult task to bring the cannon down owing to its heaviness.
The officials stated that the matter has to be discussed with the district collector before initiating efforts for bringing it down to the foothills.