A date with Prehistory and History

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Overview: I had heard a lot about the pre-historic site of Arabikothanur near Bangalore. The site is a bit difficult to find as the roads are very narrow and there are no proper signboards.
We reached Kendatti-Garudapalya road at first and were amazed to see Menhirs of different shapes pretty close to one another. These Menhirs which we spotted were anywhere between 6 feet to 12 feet in height. These are mostly megalithic structures, roughly dating back to 1000 BC, which are found in many parts of India, as well as other countries. For more details on Menhirs, please refer to the wiki page - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menhir
There were also some rocks arranged in a a circular shape, and also a few Dolmens.
We then proceeded towards Arabikothanur, around 5kms from Garudapalya. I saw one big Dolmen there, popularly known as Pandavara Gudi. This dolmen can be seen right in the middle of the village, totally ignored and not protected.
Menhir near Kendatti

Menhir near Kendatti

Dolmen at Arabikothanur
Apart from the prehistoric findings, we had a chance to visit a few ancient temples too, like the Kanneshwara (Shiva) temple in Bellur, initially built in the 12th century, was later expanded by the Hoysalas. At Kendatti, we visited the ancient Shiva temple, interiors in complete ruins, but the exteriors are re-assembled. One can see some wall inscriptions in Kannada and Tamil.
At Arabikothanur, we saw some incredible Hero Stones, with great details. The temples which were around these stones seem to be completely renovated now.
Shiva temple at Bellur

Shiva temple with wall inscriptions at Kendatti

Hero Stones at Arabikothanur
How to reach: From Bangalore, take the Bangalore-Kolar highway. At Narsapura, turn left towards Bellur. From Bellur, take the road towards Garudapalya which joins the Kendatti road. After visiting Garudapalya and Kendatti, cross the NH to the other side of the highway to reach Arabikothanur.

References: http://www.teamgsquare.com/2013/04/a-date-with-pre-historic-time.html

Comments

  1. GST Refunds Delhi29 March 2018 at 17:25

    very informative post for me as I am always looking for new content that can help me and my knowledge grow better.

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