8th century linear drawing of fish found

Vijayawada: An eighth century CE linear drawing chiselled on a piece of rock, along with an old inscription, was found at Srinivasapuram village near Piduguralla in Guntur district, said Cultural Centre of Vijayawada and Amaravati (CCVA) CEO Dr E Sivanagi Reddy.

Dr Reddy said here on Saturday that under ‘Preserve Heritage for Posterity’ launched by CCVA, they explored Palnadu area and discovered the fish on rock related to Jalapeswara temple of the village, located eight km away from Piduguralla town.

He said the fish on a rock was measuring 90 cm X 10 cm and might have been chiselled during the Eastern Chalukyan era by two sculptors viz., Maindarama and Chamoju.
Dr Reddy said the village Srinivasapuram was located on the right bank of the River Krishna. He recalled that Chalukyas could have named God after the river water (Jala) as Jalapeswara and the village Jalapeswarapura.

The team of archaeologists also noticed the ruins of two temples nearby, he said and pointed out that they need immediate attention from the department of archaeology for the preservation. Dr Reddy also observed limestone pillars of local Buddhist Vihara dated back to third century CE (Ikshwaku period) were found at the site. He said temple once up on a time could have Buddhist site.

Subhakar Medasani of Vijayawada Buddha Vihara and Chandu Kartheek of CCVA also participated in the excavation work.