Ayyankulam, Thanjavur
Ayyankulam
is an important landmark in Thanjavur. It is a tank which belongs to the Konganeeswarar temple located opposite. Although this a well-known
landmark, similar to other water bodies in Tamil Nadu, this tank is also
ignored and partly used as dump yard by the locals. Hardly few people know
the beautiful stucco images and mural paintings that are found on the walls of
the mandapa on the banks of this tank.
This
tank can be dated back to 16th or 17th century CE (Thanjavur Nayaka Kings
period). The colorfully painted stucco images and mural paintings that are
found here belong to the same period.
Some of
the images/paintings that are found here include Pattabhishekam of Ram, ten avatars
(Dashavatars) of Vishnu, Ravana trying to lift Kailash, Nataraja, Bhairava,
Dakshinamurti, Vishnu and Agni.
References
