Pandya era stone houses unearthed

A team of archaeologists, while excavating the ancestral property of a villager at Pattikulam near Pottampatti, stumbled upon stone inscriptions and houses dating back to 4th Century AD on Sunday.

The team, led by V Narayanamoorthy, secretary of Tamil Nadu Archaeological Research Institute, and P Kannimuthu, historian and archaeologist, found these relics in Palani. The inscriptions bore characters resembling Tamil and Sanskrit scripts. Around three stone houses were found by the team. The team said that the inscriptions were seldom found in Asia. With a big temple nearby, the team said that the findings could not be an isolated incident, and might shed some light on the role played by Palani in ancient times.

V Narayanamoorthy said that Palani was the hub of economic activities during the Pandya era. He said that many of the inscriptions found, extolled the architectural style of temples.

The team said that the findings gave some clues  about the method of administration in the Pandya era.  According to archaeologists,  the place would have been put to use as a funeral ground till around the 4th century AD, after which the practice was discontinued. Narayanamoorthy said that some human skulls bearing scratches were found giving weight to the theory that the place was a funeral ground.