5/5 Ms Sarah W. 2 years ago on Google
Mallamu,
also
referred
to
as
Mallam,
is
a
historic
site
documented
in
the
Pallava
period
(pre-9th
century).
It
has
several
temples,
of
which
the
Subrahmanya
temple
is
the
oldest.
Almost
all
of
the
existing
temple
architecture
is
from
the
11th
to
16th-century
period
with
some
structures
from
the
Vijayanagara
period,
but
there
are
inscriptions
here
that
record
an
older
temple.
It
is
likely
that
the
older
temple
was
repaired
or
replaced.
One
inscription
records
the
completion
of
a
Vijayanagara
period
mandapa
and
temple
tank
here,
along
with
repairs
to
the
temple
ruined
in
the
14th
century.
Subrahmanya
(also
called
Kartikeya,
Murugan,
Skanda)
is
the
son
of
Parvati
and
Shiva,
considered
as
the
god
of
war
in
Hinduism.
This
is
one
of
the
large
South
Indian
temples
dedicated
to
him.
The
mandapa
is
elaborately
painted
with
murals,
while
the
artwork
painted
and
carved
in
stone
include
Shaiva,
Vaishnava,
Shakta
and
Vedic
legends.
A
particularly
beautiful
sculpture
here
is
the
stone
chariot
pulling
a
mandapa.
The
horses
and
wheels
are
carved
with
numerous
details.
In
the
temple
compound,
you
will
see
many
hero
stones.
These
are
unusual
because
many
show
themes
of
self
immolation,
where
the
warriors
(male
and
female!)
are
shown
cutting
off
their
own
head.
Some
are
inscribed.
Scholarly
translations
and
maintenance
records
of
the
Archaeological
Survey
of
India
confirm
that
these
hero
stones
were
not
at
this
temple
originally,
but
were
found
in
this
region
of
Andhra
Pradesh,
brought
over
and
displayed
here
like
a
museum.
Most
of
these
hero
stones
are
from
the
14th
and
15th
century.
The
oldest
is
from
889
AD.
Some
of
these
hero
stones
are
dedicated
to
soldiers
who
preferred
not
to
surrender,
instead
chose
death
at
their
own
hands.
The
temple
premises
and
artwork
also
provides
a
window
in
the
culture
of
Telugu
warriors
and
heros
who
defended
their
people
against
invasions
particularly
the
Deccan
Sultanate
period.
Mallamu
has
other
nice
temples,
but
this
is
the
largest
and
historically
most
interesting.
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