Copper plates from Vijayanagara Kingdom discovered in Tiruvallur district

16th Century copper plate inscriptions found at Sri Singeeswarar temple in Mappedu village, revealing historical gift by King Krishandevaraya.

A set of copper plate inscriptions with two leaves dating back to the 16th Century CE have been discovered at the Sri Singeeswarar temple at Mappedu village in Tiruvallur district recently.

According to T.R. Prakash, Executive Officer (Additional Charge) of the temple, the inscriptions had been found during a regular check of the lockers on the premises, which are under the administrative control of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR and CE) Department. The two leaves of the copper plates were strung together using a ring that had the seal of the Vijayanagara Kingdom. The official alerted the epigraphy division of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) through the State Archaeology Department.

K. Munirathnam Reddy, Director (Epigraphy), ASI, Mysore, said the inscription was written in Sanskrit and Nandinagari script. It was engraved in 1513 during the reign of King Krishandevaraya. The plates recorded the gift of a village Vasalabattaka, renamed Krishnarayapura, to several Brahmins by the king. The inscriptions also mention the boundaries of the donated village, which was under the control of the Raja of Chandragiri, currently located in Tirupati district in Andhra Pradesh, he said.

Mr. Reddy said such inscriptions were valuable for writing history and appealed to the public to alert either the State Archaeology Department or the ASI if they came across any such inscriptions, copper plates, or hero stones.