Sittannavasal – A proposal for preserving its paintings

Significance of the Pudukkottai district; Importance of preservation of Sittannavasal monuments; state of its paintings; aims od Project Sittannavasal – building a replica od cave shrine and designing pavilions to showcase development of paintings (Chitram), temple architecture (Mandiram) and Indian scripts (Aksharam) and Jaina contribution to Tamil culture. A presentation by Prof. Subramanian Swaminathan

1. PROJECT
SITTANNAVASAL
By
S. Swaminathan
([email protected])
With
Murugapandian & MV Kiran

2. PUDUKKOTTAI
occupies a significant place
as a cultural centre
With its wealth of
temple archaeology,
sculpture and
painting,
it is of interest for the
historian, the archaeologist
and the connoisseur in the
field of art.

3. Pudukkottai is famous for its cave temples
and those in
Sittannavasal,
Kudumiyamalai,
Tirugokarnam and
Tirumayam
are cultural monuments

4. Pudukkottairegion has a
great Jaina tradition
It was
one of the most important Jaina centres
in Tamilnadu, in the past
There are a number of Jaina vestiges
found scattered
throughout the district
The district can boast of
having the highest number of centrally protected
Jaina relics/monuments in Tamilnadu

5. World-famous for its mural paintings
in a Jaina cave temple
Next to Ajanta paintings,
these paintings hold an important place
in the art history of India
These are
some of the earliest frescoes in South India
and only examples of early Jaina frescoes
SITTANNAVASAL

6. Originally,
the entire cave temple
was plastered and painted,
except the floor
But today,
we can see only patches,
here and there
thanks to the ravages wrought by time and nature
and vandalism
Even these arebarely visiblenow

7. The most painful fact is that
most damage was man-made
and in the last 50 years or so.
Here is a photograph of the painting
taken in black and white in 1940s.
Now,
only traces remainThen

8. Man made markings have obliterated
many of the precious inscriptions and marred the rest
The complex can boast of TamilInscriptions
from 3
rd
century BC to 13
th
century AD

9. If this rate of decay continues,
these priceless treasures,
which withstood for about 1200 years,
will be completely lost for ever
in the next few decades.

10. We,
the inheritors of a great heritage,
need to protect ours from further deterioration
We also need to create awareness among people

11. PROJECT
SITTANNAVASAL
is conceived towards this.

12. The project aims at
building a full-scale replica of
the cave temple with its
painting recreated to its
original state
to offer an opportunity to appreciate
our lost glory and
to preserve the monument, particularly
the paintings, from further damage
by keeping the original cave
under controlled conditions
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: Objectives

13. And,
building thematic pavilions
around the recreated Arivar Koil
that highlights those features of Indian heritage
for which the Sittannavasal monuments are
famous for
to improve awareness of our heritage
among the public
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: Objectives

14. Also,
setup in the complex
a Centre for Jainology
for undertaking
research,
documentation and publication
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: Objectives

15. And,
incorporating features for attracting
tourists
cultural troupesand
corporatehouses
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: Objectives

16. Recreated Arivar Koil
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View

17. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
In-door pavilion

18. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The recreated temple and the
pavilions

19. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
the recreated temple
Recreated
Arivar Koil

20. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
Our-door pavilions

21. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
the recreated temple
in-door and out-door
pavilions

22. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
the recreated temple
in-door and out-door
pavilions
Chithram –
In-door pavilion

23. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
the recreated temple
in-door and out-door
pavilions
Gnanam –
In-door pavilion

24. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: An Artist’s View
The complex with
the recreated temple
in-door and out-door
pavilions
Souvenir Sales

25. Recreated ARIVAR-KOIL
Recreated Arivar Koil, with its paintings done
as much as possible true to the original
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

26. Mandiram: Temple Architecture Pavilion
for Arival Koil is a link in this
Chithram: Indian Paintings Pavilion
for the cave temple houses
one among the precious paintings of the country
Aksharam:Indian Scripts Pavilion
for the complex contains inscriptions
from the 3
rdcentury BC to the 13
thcentury AD,
a unique feature
Gnanam: Jain contribution to Tamil Culture
for this aspect is scarcely appreciated
and Sittannavasal is an appropriate focus
Thematic Pavilions
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

27. PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex
MANDIRAM
Temple Architecture Pavilion
Tracing the development
from cave temples
through monoliths
to structural temples
Exhibits in bold relief,
in stucco on granite blocks
positioned in open air
along a winding path

28. Cave
Temples
Structural
temples
Monoliths
Lomas-rishi Ajanta Tirugokarnam
Mamallapuram Kodumbalur Thanjavur
Mamallapuram Ellora
Temple Architecture Pavilion; Bold Relief and Model

29. CHITHRAM
Indian Paintings Pavilion
Exhibits forming a rich pageantry of paintings
from rock-art till date
Representative specimens
laminated, framed, mounted and put up in-doors
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

30. Indian Paintings Pavilion
Pre-historic rock-art
Ajanta
2c.BC-6c.AD
Kanchipuram
(Pallava/ 7c-9c. AD)
Sittannavasal
(Pandya/ 7c-9c. AD)
Moghul
15-19c. AD
Nayak
17-18c.AD
Bengal
School
20c. AD
Lepakshi
14-17c. AD
Thanjavur
(Chozha/
9-13c. AD)
Jain miniature paintings on palm
leaves (11-15c. AD)

31. AKSHARAM
Indian Scripts Pavilion
Tracing the history of Indian scripts
from Indus Valley
through Brahmi,
to scripts for modern Indian languages
and many Asian languages
Samples written in stucco on granite block
with suitable legends
organised as an open-air pavilion
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

32. Indian Scripts Pavilion
Indus Script Brahmi
Asoka
Brahmi
Samudragupta
Nagari
Pallava
Southern
Brahmi/
Battiprolu
Brahmi
Sittannavasal
Vattezhuththu
Anaimalai
Grantha
Mamallapuram
Tamil
Tirugokarnam
Brahmi
Bhattiprolu

33. GNANAM
Jain contribution to Tamil Culture
Focussing on the theme through suitable means
arranged in-doors
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

34. Incorporation of
A CENTRE FOR JAINOLOGY
for research, documentation and information
equipped with
library, DTP, reprography
lecture/talk/meditation halls
office
boarding-lodging
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

35. Development of such a heritage complex
along with tourists attractions like
heritage garden
camping and picnic areas
retreats for corporate houses
and cultural troupes
arranging heritage tours
souvenir sales
is expected to make the project commercially viable
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL: The Heritage Complex

36. The Project Sittannavasal is to be executed jointly by
Research Foundation for Jainology, Chennai,
an organisation of the Jaina community,
which is assisting research on Jainology and
spreading the message of the Faith
and
Sudharsanam,
a Pudukkottai-based centre for arts and culture
that is documenting the legacy of Pudukkottai and
offering opportunities to the youth
in appreciating Indian culture.
PROJECT SITTANNAVASAL

37. Thank You

38. Sudharsanam
A centre for Arts and culture
2 Palace Nagar
Pudukkottai 622005
Tamilnadu, India.
Tel:[phone]
A presentation by…
www.pudukkottai.org
www.sudharsanam.org
[email protected]