Tamil Nadu: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman To Inaugurate On-Site Museum In Adichanallur On 5 August

The on-site museum built by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in Adichanallur of Thoothukudi district will be inaugurated by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tomorrow (5 August).

She will also lay the foundation of another ASI museum, which would be located 1 kilometre away.

The on-site museum is located on a hillock near the Thamirabarani river spread over an area of 114 acres.

The items excavated such as pottery, urns, utensils, tools etc. are in trenches that have been covered by toughened glass. Visitors can walk on top of the glass to have a look at the artefacts.

Adichanallur is one of the five places where the ASI is building on-site museums. The others are Rakhigarhi in Haryana, Hastinapur in Uttar Pradesh, Shivsagar in Assam & Dholavira in Gujarat.

Regarding the museum for which Sitharaman would lay the foundation stone, historian S Krishnan wrote that it would contain some of the finest bronze objects (2500-2800 years old) and that many of them would have 'fish' in them.

Further, he said that it was because fish is the symbol of the Pandya kingdom and Adichanallur was a part of it.

He added that this indicated that there was a thriving civilisation on the banks of the Tamirabarani river and the people knew fine worksmanship and metallurgy techniques.