KURNOOL: Archaeologist Dr E. Sivanagireddy, also CEO of Cultural Centre of Vijayawada and Amaravathi (CCVA) located ancient quarry sites in Srisailam on Tuesday.
According to him, during his extensive survey conducted in and around Srisailam as part of the ‘Preserve Heritage for Posterity’ program, launched by CCVA, he noticed the quarries lying on the left side along the road opposite Alluri Sitaramaraju Choultry, from where the stone was extracted to build the main and subsidiary temples and the huge compound wall of Bhramaramba Sametha Mallikarjuna Swamy temple complex between the 12th and 16th century.
Dr Reddy said that the cut marks used to insert the iron wedges to split the stone blocks, measuring 3x1x1 inches, are distinctly visible at five spots along the road. He added that he had noticed Kannada inscriptions that date back to the 16th century. He brought it to the notice of Dr K. Muniratnam Reddy, Director, Epigraphy, Archaeological Survey of India, Mysuru for deciphering the historical contents. Based on the historical significance of the finds, Dr Sivanagireddy appealed to the authorities of the Srisailam temple and archaeology and museums departments to protect and preserve the ancient quarries and inscriptions.
