Carvings Hint At Ancient Temple At Kandur

Hyderabad: Rare Rashtrakuta-era sculptures and carvings on a hillock near a lake indicate the presence of an ancient temple at Kandur village of the Mahbubnagar district. The sculptures — discovered by Kavali Chandrakanth, a member of the Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam — carved on one side of the rock include the Saptamatrikas (Seven Mother Goddesses), along with Vinayaka, Surya, and Bhairava idols.

The four sculptures identified are Chaturbhuja Ganapati (Four-armed Ganesha), Surya (Sun god), carved in two lines/grooves, Saptamatrikas (Seven Mother Goddesses), and Dvibhuja Bhairava with a sword and bowl on the other side of the rock boulder.

Sreeramoju Haragopal, convener of KTCB, said, “Based on their artistic style, these sculptures belong to the Rashtrakuta period (8-9th centuries CE). Until now, no one knew about the existence of these sculptures. Researcher Chandrakant has identified them and brought them to light,” he added.

Historians said Kandur was once the capital of the Kanduru Chodas. The Kanduru Choda rulers served as feudatories to the Kalyani Chalukyas and the Kakatiyas, and at times ruled as independent kings. These sculptures now push the history of Kandur further back to the Rashtrakuta period.

“I came to know about this while discussing earlier findings at the site. Former Sarpanch Srikanth mentioned that there are a few more sculptures on the hillock rocks in the village. I further visited and explored the area and found these rare findings,” Kavali Chandrakant told Deccan Chronicle.

He added that there might still be a few more findings that need to be studied.

The village, which was once the capital of the Kanduru Chodas, has a prominent Ramalingeshwara Swamy temple, a post-Kakatiya carving of Ganesha, and Mahishasuramardini rock sculptures.