VILLUPURAM: A statue of 15th century knight – Potharaja – has been found in Gingee by archaeological enthusiasts from the district. The discovery comes just a day after archaeologists found two inscriptions at Agatheeswarar temple, which belong to the Pandya and Samburvaraya period.
The Potharaja statue was found on Friday at the Illodu Madura Karananthal village by writer K Senguttuvan and an archaeological enthusiast G Saravanakumar.
“Hiltebeitel’s book ‘The Cult of Draupadi’ explains the significance of Gingee and other northern districts of Tamil Nadu in the worship of mythological character Draupadi,” says Senguttuvan.
“In the book, the Melacheri village in Gingee is considered as the prime worship place for Draupadi in South India. It also explains why Draupadi Amman is celebrated across several places in Tamil Nadu.”
“Potharaja is said to have been a knight of Draupadi, and he is also worshipped in several parts of the district,” says Saravanakumar. “Even today, the mud used to built a Draupadi temple in any part of the State is taken from the Melacheri village.”
The four-feet-tall statue shows Potharaja with a weapon on one hand and an animal in the other hand. Research scholar Dharmapuri Parthasarathy, who has done extensive research regarding the worship of Draupadi, estimates the statue could be from the 15th century.
On Thursday, experts found an inscription believed to be from 1312 AD, during the reign of Pandya king Jadavarma Sundarapandian.