A broken 14th-century Telugu inscription at Kondaveedu Fort points to Reddy-era grants for worship at a hilltop Siva temple, offering fresh evidence of the Reddy rulers’ patronage of temple worship and religious institutions in Andhra Pradesh.
The inscription is engraved on a partially broken pillar of a dilapidated Siva temple atop Rudrapada Peak, the highest of the 42 hills that form the Kondaveedu hill fort complex. Kondaveedu Fort Development Committee Convener Kalli Siva Reddy and his team found it during an exploration on Saturday.
K. Muniratnam Reddy, Director (Epigraphy), Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Mysuru, said the inscription is in Telugu, in a script characteristic of the 14th century. Though damaged and incomplete, the surviving text appears to record the grant of four vrittis (shares of endowed revenue or land assignments) to certain Bhattulu and two vrittis to Virupaksha Dikshita for conducting worship in a Lord Siva temple at Kondaveedu.
The inscription also contains the invocation “Sri Kailasa Sivaya Namah” and mentions that it was engraved by “Parvatam Oubhalam Pancharamulu.” Based on palaeographic features and the content, experts believe the record belongs to the period of the Reddi dynasty, which ruled large parts of coastal Andhra during the 14th century.
Mr. Siva Reddy said the inscription was on the pillar of a Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) in front of the sanctum of a ruined Siva temple. Of the two Siva temples on Rudrapada Peak, one has been almost completely destroyed, leaving only the sanctum standing. He alleged that illegal digging and vandalism over the years had contributed to the deterioration of the monuments.
Based on historical references and the nature of temple endowments mentioned in the inscription, researchers suspect the grant may have been issued during the reign of either Anavema Reddy or Pedakomati Vema Reddy, two prominent rulers of the Kondaveedu Reddi kingdom. Historical records describe Anavema Reddy as a devout Saivite who promoted regular temple worship and restored the Pancharama temples.
ASI experts said the exact ruler and the date of the grant can be established only after the missing portion of the inscription is examined. The script style still points to the Reddy period.
This discovery highlights the Reddy dynasty’s devotion to Lord Shiva and their significant contributions to temple worship in 14th-century Andhra Pradesh.
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