History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c32.s2.t8.15

v1.c32.s2.t8.15

Among the numerous extant wells in the South, the best preserved example is the Mārpiḍugu-perun-kinaru (ANRIE, No. 541, 1905; 1905-06, pp. ii. para 4, p. 63; SII, XII. No. 40, p. 16; EI, XI, p. 145) at Tiruvellarai (Fig.4), 14 miles to the north-east of Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu). The well, now popularly known as the Nālumūlaik-keṇi (four-pronged well), is very interesting from the point of view of history and antiquity. The construction work was commenced in the fourth year and completed in the fifth year of the Pallava Dantivarman (A.D. 799-800). The shape of the well is in the pattern of a Svastika with four entrances facing the four directions. From each entrance a flight of steps leads to the interior of the well. The inner face of each of the portals, the outer wall and the margin of the well are constructed out of dressed granite blocks. The capacity of the well is judged by the time taken for its construction. Its size, 37 sq. feet, suggests that it was used both for supplying water to the temple and irrigating the devadāna lands. The well was repaired in the thirteenth century as it had suffered considerable damage from floods and other natural causes. Though the inscriptions record the repairs done to it, the well does not appear to have undergone any major structural change. Even now the well is being used for irrigation and domestic purposes.