Rajakesari Peruvazhi

Tamil inscription mentioning the repair of the highway by the Chola ruler Aditya I (Aiyyasamy Hills, Coimbatore).[1]

Rajakesari Peruvazhi (lit. 'Highway of the Lion King[a]') was an early historic and medieval highway that traversed the present-day states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in southern India. In the historic Tamilakam (the Tamil country), the highway connected the regions of western Chera Nadu (Kerala) and Kongu Nadu (western Tamil Nadu), which were separated by the Western Ghats. The highway passed through the Palghat Gap in the Western Ghats[5] and also through Perur, Vellalur, and Sulur.[6] It formed part of a route linking the port of Muchiri (Muziris) in the western coast (the Malabar Coast) of southern India with Arikamedu on the eastern coast, and was part of an extended trade network connecting the Mediterranean/Middle East and Southeast Asia/East Asia.[7][8]

Tamil (Tamil Script and Vattezhuthu) inscriptions found near Coimbatore (the Aiyyasamy Hills) indicate that the highway was used by the medieval Cholas in the 9th and 10th centuries CE.[6][1] The inscriptions further state that the highway was strengthened or repaired by the Chola ruler Aditya I in the 10th century CE.[6] According to an inscription on a memorial stone (the Thukkachi memorial stone), Rajendra Chola I travelled along this road to reach the Chera country from the Chola Nadu.[5]

Rajakesari Peruvazhi panorama
Rajakesari Peruvazhi (Aiyyasamy Hills, Coimbatore)

Notes

  1. ↑ Rajakesari[2], meaning "lion king" or "lion among kings" in Tamil, was a title used by various Chola rulers.[3][4]

References

  1. 1 2 Vanavarayar, Shankar (21 June 2010). "Scripting History". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012.
  2. ↑ Majumdar, Asoke Kumar (1977). Concise History of Ancient India: Political Theory, Administration and Economic Life. Vol. II. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers. p. 267.
  3. ↑ Seshadri, E. K. (1998). Sri Brihadisvara, the Great Temple of Thanjavur. Vellore: Nile Books. p. 31.
  4. ↑ Manickam, V. (2001). Kongu Nadu, a History Up to AD 1400. Chennai: Makkal Veliyeedu. p. 290.
  5. 1 2 Krishnamachari, Suganthy (12 October 2017). "On How Kongu Nadu was a Jain Bastion". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 Preetha, M. Soundariya (30 June 2007). "Tale of an Ancient Road". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012.
  7. ↑ "Cholarkalin Neer Melanmaiyum, Nathi Neer Inaippu Thittamum". Vikatan. 7 May 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  8. ↑ Miller, J. Innes (1998) [1969]. The Spice Trade of The Roman Empire: 29 BC to AD 641. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-1981-4264-5.
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