Source: www.hindu.com
THRISSUR, INDIA, August 24, 2010: An ASI study of 600 panels of murals in Kerala has revealed paintings that were hitherto covered, and also new details of the existing ones. Notable among them are the two rare paintings which are about 350 years old — a reclining Shiva and also a Shiva Nataraja with 20 arms found on the walls of Vadakkumnathan temple at Thrissur.
“For long this painting was thought to be a reclining Vishnu, since it was partly covered with soot. Another reason is that a reclining figure is usually associated with Vishnu and it is common in Kerala to paint Vaishnavaite themes in Saivaite temples. When we cleaned the painting, the details became evident and we could establish that it is a reclining Shiva [Panivarai Siva] with Parvati, Ganga and other attendant deities. This is a rare panel,” said M. Nambirajan, Superintending Archaeologist of the Archaeological Society of India, Thrissur circle.
“Adjacent to this panel, another one depicting Nataraja also held a surprise. This panel is considered unusual since it is portrayed with 16 arms. Our study has revealed that there are more arms to it than what were known before. This Nataraja actually has 20 arms and carries various objects,” says Mr. Nambirajan.