Telangana: 1000-year-old ‘dwarapala’ sculpture found in Siddipet; biggest seen so far

After examining the sculpture, he said the sculpture of Vijaya, the doorkeeper of Lord Vishnu, was the biggest reported so far from Telangana and was bigger than the ones of the Kakatiya period unearthed at Ghanpur in erstwhile Warangal district.

Siddipet: One of the biggest Dwarapala (door keeper of Lord Vishnu) sculptures in the State was discovered in Siddipet district.

Based on information given by Ahobilam Karunakar and Mohd. Naseeruddin, members of Telangana Kotha Charitra Brindam led by Sriramoju Haragopal, archaeologist Sivanagireddy examined the sculpture that was found in the paddy fields of Malyala village, Narayanraopet in Siddipet on Sunday.

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After examining the sculpture, he said the sculpture of Vijaya, the doorkeeper of Lord Vishnu, was the biggest reported so far from Telangana and was bigger than the ones of the Kakatiya period unearthed at Ghanpur in erstwhile Warangal district.

The sculpture, carved out of granite stone in relief, measures six feet above the ground level and three feet below the ground level with a thickness of 9 inches, wears an elongated ‘kirita ‘(crown) on the head, profuse ornaments on the body and holds a ‘gadha’ and ‘Suchi mudra’ in the original two hands and ‘Sankhu’ and ‘Chakra’ in the additional two hands. It belongs to the period slightly later than the Rastrakuta and early Kalyana Chalukyan period, he said.

Dr.Sivanagireddy appealed to the villagers to install the idol on a pedestal at an appropriate place in the village with proper labelling and details on its historical significance and iconography for the benefit of research scholars and future generations.