Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level : About the site
Mains level : Cave architecture in India
- Sittannavasal, a small hamlet in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukottai district, is a muse for historians, archaeologists, anthropologists and art lovers alike.
About the site
- Located 50 km from Tiruchi, the Sittannavasal rock-cut cave temple, with its beautiful frescoes, sculptures of Jain Theerthangaras and stone beds atop of a hillock.
- It is believed to be an ancient abode for Jains when Jainism flourished in the region till the 10th century A.D.
- While the numerous dolmens, stone circles and other forms of megalithic relics in its vicinity indicate the prehistoric and proto-historic antiquity of the region.
- The village itself dates back to the 1st century B.C.
- The temple is now a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India.