A stone idol of Sun God (Surya), dated back to 10th century, was found in the farmland of Harijan Vannurappa at Kalagodu village in Gummagatta mandal of Anantapur district on Friday. While Vannurappa’s son Nagendra was tilling the land, his plough hit the two-foot granite stone idol with two lotus flowers in both hands.
He immediately informed Rayadurg Heritage Association secretary Gudekota Siva Kumar, who after inspecting the idol and cleaning it, sent pictures of it to historian Emani Siva Nagireddy, who is CEO of Cultural Centre of Vijayawada and Amaravati. The historian, based on the sculpting style of the idol, confirmed that it belonged to the period of the Nolamba kings, who ruled the region (large parts of Karnataka and some areas in Andhra Pradesh now) for over 300 years.
Situated on the banks of the Vedavathi river, the iconography is similar to some other sculptures found in this region and the locals said there could be some more such sculptures in the vicinity.
The local police and revenue officials were immediately informed about the finding and as suggested by Mr. Siva Nagireddy, the idol would be preserved in the archaeological museum in Anantapur.
Local Bommakkapalli Rajarajeswari temple priests performed puja to the idol.
