A stone sculpture of a seated tiger belonging to the 3rd century A.D. was found near Maaravalli village of Shikaripur taluk recently.
Shejeshwara R., assistant director of the Department of Archaeology, Heritage and Museums, told The Hindu that the sculpture was found on a hillock near the village during field work undertaken by him recently. The teeth, nose and eyes of the tiger are clearly visible.
Mr. Shejeshwara said that the region was ruled by the Kadamba kings. Mathikote, in the vicinity of Maaravalli, was referred to as Mariyasa in the inscription issued by the Kadamba ruler Shivaskanda Varma near Malavalli. He said that worshipping tigers was part of the tradition in Malnad under the Kabamba rule.
The sculpture was locally called Huli Siddeshwara and Narasimha, and a small temple was built for it 200 years ago, he said.
