A viral image of a carved-out temple in a dome shape is doing the rounds on social media. Many social media users have shared the image claiming the temple to be about 5,000 years old and found in India.
A Facebook user posted the viral image with a caption: Found in India, 5,000 years old, made from a single rock!
You can check the image here.
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the viral picture, and found it to be misleading.
Running a Reverse Image Search of the picture, we found many reports linking the image to Vettuvan Koil, a rock-cut temple in Kalugumalai, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. According to an article, titled VETTUVAN KOIL – THE TEMPLE OF THE SLAYER, published in Heritage Daily, “The temple was constructed in 8th century AD, during the reign of Pandya dynasty (also known as the Pandyas of Madurai) in dedication to the Hindu god Shiva, one of the principal deities of Hinduism.” The temple was, indeed, carved from a single granite rock and the complex was made in a Dravidian style.
Conducting a Google Keyword Search, we traced a website of the Department of Archaeology, Government of Tamil Nadu. The historical background section on the website informs that the temple was constructed in 8th century ACE by Pandya Maranchadayan king, by carving a single granite rock. It is also nicknamed the ‘ELLORA OF SOUTH’.
An opinion piece by R H Kulkarni in The New Indian Express, titled: Vettuvan koil, abode of Siva that is a sculptor’s paradise, informs that the temple was built around 760-800 CE.
While the temple was carved out from a single rock, we could not find a single credible source of information linking the construction of the temple to 5,000 years. The temple is believed to be built around 800 CE and which would be about 1,400 years ago.
Therefore, we can conclusively say that the viral image claiming a Hindu temple was built out of a single rock 5,000 years ago is misleading.
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