The massive granite blocks of the fort wall at Thiruvananthapuram have withstood the ravages of time. Though the original granite walls in the East and Southeast were later replaced with laterite and brick, the western side of the fort can tell us a lot about the old security measures adopted to defend the temple and the settlements surrounding it. Pachu Moothathu, in his Thiruvithakoor Charithram (1867) states that the construction of the fort wall and the renovation of the Padmanabha Swamy temple were carried out simultaneously. V.V.K. Valath, the eminent historian, in his epic work ‘ Keralathile Sthalacharitrangal – Thiruvananthapuram Jilla ’, quotes extensively from the Mathilakam records and presents before us, a vivid description of the old fort and the bastions.
According to the original layout, the fort had four bastions on each side, secured with a moat running through its outer perimeter. The granite for the renovation works of the temple and for the construction of the fort came from different parts of erstwhile Travancore. Good quality stone for the construction activities was procured from Thirumala, Nedumangad, and Neyyattinkara.
Popular lore has it that 4,000 stone carvers, 6,000 labourers and about 100 elephants toiled for the renovation works. The stone masons were from Madurai, Tirunelveli, and ‘Trishnapalli’. Apart from the shilpins involved in ornate stone works, there was another set of artisans who were stationed in the stone quarries. Their job was to hew blocks from the huge boulders and to shape them into blocks of required size.
Thirumala and the surrounding regions were once famous for its several rocky outcrop. The famed Trichakrapuram Sree Krishna Swamy temple, a.k.a. Parakoil and the nearby Manippara are the few remaining vestiges of the older skyline. Parakoil is famous because it was from this massive stone hill was the huge monolith extracted in 1731 for the construction of the Ottakalmandapam. The construction works started by Marthanda Varma was carried forward by his successor, Karthika Tirunal Rama Varma. According to Mathilakam records, in 1768 AD, Ezhava labourers were employed for bringing to the temple, 28 Mantra Moorthy pillars made in Thirumala. The record ascertains that Thirumala in those days was the abode of skilled craft guilds. Traces of these craft guilds can be still seen in Thirumala.
Located near the Trichakrapuram temple at Thirumala is the old Vettamukku Vilakathu Veedu, a.k.a. Shiva Bhavanam, the family of the traditional shilpins associated with the region. This family was established by some craftsmen who settled near the Thirumala quarry to hew stones for the construction activities initiated by Marthanda Varma. The senior residents of the Thirumala recall that there were three Tamil shilpin families in the region, who were associated with the renovation works at Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. Later, these guilds evolved to become the village artisans. Thirumala and the surrounding areas such as Edappazhanji and Vattiyoorkavu, had large granite deposits that helped in sustaining these families.
According to the present family members, their ancestors were stonemasons from Rameswaram who relocated to Thiruvananthapuram for the renovation works of Padmanabha Swamy temple. Initially they were concentrated in Karamana and Choorakattupalayam, with other migrant craft guilds. In due time, the area occupied by these guilds came to be known as ‘Kalpalayam’, meaning the abode of stonemasons. The tutelary deity of the craftsmen, Goddess Amman is still worshipped at Kalpalayam.
(The author is a conservation architect and history buff)
