Ancient History and Archaeology

The stone alignment ‘Nilurallu' at Murardoddi is a megalithic monument containing standing stones of 12 to 16 feet high that are arranged somewhat in a squarish pattern. This is one of the stone alignments listed by Allchin (1956) as a non-sepulchal array that might have some astronomical connotations. This impressive stone alignment seems to be similar to that at Vibhuthihalli, that was studied earlier, but constructed with much larger stones. The observations conducted by us show that the rows of stones are aligned to the directions of sunrise (and sunset) on calendrically important events, like equinoxes and solstices. In contrast to Vibhuthihalli, the shadows of stones provide a means of measuring shorter intervals of time.

The navaranga in the medieval stone temple of Vidyasankara at Sringeri, built around A.D. 1350, has twelve zodiacal pillars arranged in a square with the zodiacal signs carved on them. It has been claimed that the morning sunrise lights up the pillar that corresponds to the zodiacal constellation in which Sun is located at that time, so the temple can be used as an instrument to predict calendar days. We carried out observations to investigate this aspect by monitoring both sunrises and sunsets, and found that the correspondence between the illumination of specific pillars and the zodiacal sign of the Sun could only be maintained if the epoch for such an arrangement was around 2000 B.C. The implications of this finding are discussed in this paper.

Animals represent the most primitive and longest imagery of contact and coexistence with man in art. Most of the present day domesticated animals share a common thread of evolutionary pattern with man in similar surroundings and have evolved in parallel with that of mankind. Since the beginning of the human civilization, animals have played a major role in the socio-economic productivity of the human society as seen  through the transition of the hunter – pastoral – agricultural and urban mode of human livelihood.  The animals also became a part of human rituals and imagination as evident from earliest rock art sites such as that of Bhimabetka (Raisen District, Madhya Pradesh), where animals are seen as one of the preferred subject matter. The present paper is a study of the reflection of the changes influencing the 14th century Vijayanagara Society in terms of man-animal inter-relation as well as interdependence, through the sculptural art in the form of high reliefs on the monuments at the site.

The use of digital resources has increased exponentially in recent times and its influence is seen at every level of an institution -library, pedagogical interaction and innovation, distance education and research. The present paper is an attempt to outline the various paradigms of useuser/non-user relation that exist in different aspects related to historical research. This paper refers to the users who teach at graduate and postgraduate levels in colleges and universities across south India. In these institutions, higher academic research is usually carried out by the faculty itself and if one look at the latest trends in this research -it tends be more regional in nature and often in vernacular. This presents us with interesting situation where most of the researchers either shy away from the use of digital resources or are restrained by infrastructural shortcomings. The paper emphasizes the need to change the attitude of the users for a better research approach.

C. Ragoonatha Chary, the first assistant at Madras Observatory during 1864 to 1880 was not only a celebrated observational astronomer but also a person who emphasized the need for incorporating modern observations based improvements into the traditional methods of astronomical calculations. He was one of the first few people who argued for establishment of independent modern Indian observatory for education and training. He was credited with the discovery of two variable stars R Reticuli and another star whose identity is uncertain. The person and his variable star discoveries are discussed.

Introduction-Although the distribution of megalithic monuments spans much of South Asia, with significant traditions in the north, northwest, and central parts of the subcontinent, the greatestconcentration occurs in the south. 1 In the present paper, the author tends to focus on the megalithictradition usually associated with the Iron Age in South India. Many of the monuments arefound along the Godavari and Krishna Rivers and their tributaries (such as the TungabhadraRiver. The present paper discusses an interesting and almost a common phenomenon of cup marks or 'cupule' (cup-shape depression) in South Indian prehistoric context. These man-made marks are usually find on the lateral surface of a bed rock or on the exposed surface of the stoneused as a capstone on a dolmen, on a plane surface of a Menhir or simply on a boulder which is part of an alignment or a circle. These cup marks vary in number as there are some instances of single cup mark to more than twenty to fifty in number. These marks are usually about 2 to 2.5 inches in diameter and vary in depth from 0.5 to 0.25 inches. But some of these are quite shallow and appear like surface abrasions only. For such superficial marks, the term 'ring marks' have been used by the British scholars. The author has not come across any concentric cup marks but the same have been reported from all over the world. Their appearance seems to be random and unintentional in the first observation and there has been a constant discussion among archaeologist about the nature and their probable function. Walhouse 2 was one of the earliest writers to mention these marks or cupule as four small round depressions placed in a regular diagonal pattern on the cap stone surface from Pallicondah site near Vellore, Tamil Nadu. Walhouse 3 also made remarks about the Druidical (early Celtic religion) beliefs related to megalithic structures identifying with 'altars' on which they celebrated bloody rites', and the cup marks were'channels to drain off the blood of victims.' As strange this view may appear to modern day readers, but the problem remains regarding the purpose

The navaranga in the medieval stone temple of Vidyasankara at Sringeri, built around A.D. 1350, has twelve zodiacal pillars arranged in a square with the zodiacal signs carved on them. It has been claimed that the morning sunrise lights up the pillar that corresponds to the zodiacal constellation in which Sun is located at that time, so the temple can be used as an instrument to predict calendar days. We carried out observations to investigate this aspect by monitoring both sunrises and sunsets, and found that the correspondence between the illumination of specific pillars and the zodiacal sign of the Sun could only be maintained if the epoch for such an arrangement was around 2000 B.C. The implications of this finding are discussed in this paper.

The stone alignment 'Nilurallu' at Murardoddi is a megalithic monument containing standing stones of 12 to 16 feet high that are arranged somewhat in a squarish pattern. This is one of the stone alignments listed by Allchin (1956) as a non-sepulchal array that might have some astronomical connotations. This impressive stone alignment seems to be similar to that at Vibhuthihalli, that was studied earlier, but constructed with much larger stones. The observations conducted by us show that the rows of stones are aligned to the directions of sunrise (and sunset) on calendrically-important events, like equinoxes and solstices. In contrast to Vibhuthihalli, the shadows of stones provide a means of measuring shorter intervals of time. Key words: Observational astronomy, megalithic astronomy, stone alignments, equinoxes, solstices, sunrises

A megalithic site at Vibhuthihalli in Karnataka, India, contains alignments of stones that are arranged in a square pattern with rows and columns showing a diagonal arrangement. Such structures are non-sepulchral, and although their purpose is not clear it has been suggested that they have astronomical significance. We investigated this possibility and our observations showed that the rows of stones point to the direction of equinoctial sunrise and sunset. It is likely that calendrical events were monitored at this site.

The town planning of Vijayanagar is important in many aspects. It was the centre of consequential political, cultural, social, religious and mercantile activities in its golden days. In this paper, I will discuss the various aspects of the town planning of Vijayanagar, on the basis of accounts of foreign travellers and archaeological evidences available from the various excavations going on in and around modern village of Hampi at a number of sites. No town can subsist without a good natural supply of water and hence the rivers, lakes, ponds and tanks are fundamental prerequisite for the lying out of a town. An important feature in the town planning of Vijayanagar was the provision of a full and continuous supply of water distributed throughout the entire enclosure areas. Important features of town planning of this capital city like - arrangement of palaces, official and residential complexes, temples, roads and streets, gateways, watch towers, and last but not the least, the water-supply system, are discussed in this research article.

This paper is an attempt to discuss the Place Names of the villages in the Tumkur Taluk of the Tumkur District on the base of hypothesis that these place names trace their origin from archaeological, historical, topographical and mythological as well as religious traditions.