The American College students in Madurai explore 5,000 years old rock art on hills in and around the city

Students revisit history on rocky hills surrounding Madurai and document rock art dating back 5,000 years

Just before the pandemic struck, Ahil Rishi Rajasekaran was birdwatching at Usilampatti when some locals inside the forest area mentioned Chithirikal podavu (cave with paintings).  Little did the 20-year-old student of The American College realise then that the unique motifs would make him embark on a journey of discovering rock art in and around his hometown, Madurai.

Between 2020 and now, Ahil Rishi, along with his friends Hariharan, Praveen and Paul Moses, explored a treasure trove of 16 rock art sites with such passion that the Thanjavur-based Nerunji Literary Movement has now published their documentation of the rock art forms. There are several publications in Tamil, but Rock Art of Madurai: The Pre-history of a Civilisation is the first one in English.

Ahil Rishi, who has just completed MSc (Microbiology) says there are at least 25 rock art sites around the temple town and it is his dream to detail every finding so that they can be protected from future quarrying and mining. “It is important to partner with local landowners to protect these cave sites, and the forests that surround them so that the cultural heritage and wildlife depicted in the drawings are preserved for future generations,” he says.

The college students were initially unaware of inscriptions on rocks. Then, they joined the trek to Samanar Malai Jain caves with Green Walk, a peoples’ initiative based on the concept of trekking and touring heritage sites around Madurai to raise awareness.

“After seeing the two-storey cave with multiple paintings at Usilampatti, this was the first time we saw in detail early paintings adorning cavernous walls and learnt about how rock art, the cultural and natural heritage, is a means of communication,” says Ahil Rishi. It also marked the beginning of a journey for the youngsters who have spent the last three years making multiple excursions to the hills of Madurai.

“Most of the hills around Madurai are not vegetated, and at places like Yannai Malai and Tiruparankundram, it is a gigantic single piece of stone. Many places were laborious climbs but it did not kill our curiosity or excitement to explore,” says Ahil Rishi, who has authored the book.

The boys made multiple visits to Kidaripatti, Azhagar Malai, Karungalakudi, Keelavalavu, Puthurmalai, Kongar Puliyankulam, Thiruvadhavur, Devankurichi, Thummanaickenpatti, Melakuyilkudi, Vikramangalam, Anaipatti, Peraiyur, Keezhapatti, Maanoothu, to photograph and video-record the graffiti, cupules, petroglyphs and pictograms. They sought help from historians and archaeologists to research and identify the key components of rock art forms and themes.