Incredible to think that I used to walk around this place almost every other day while I was in school.
On another note; the kings of the old Travancore (who built this temple) were known for living a very austere life compared to the other Maharajas. They did invest in a lot of infrastructure during their time; mostly during the last half of the 19th century and early 20th century. There was an urban legend in my city (according to my grandmother) that in the event of an emergency the kings of Travancore had enough wealth to pull back the country out of it. This probably was it. I wouldn't really blame the kings for storing this under the vaults; it was intended to be used for famines and such; it wasn't as if they enjoyed any of this. The complicated history of Travancore is probably the reason why it stayed hidden for so long.
What happens to this now is the big question. There's going to be a big argument amongst the secularists, the spiritualists, the archaeologists and finally the government regarding this.
On another note; the kings of the old Travancore (who built this temple) were known for living a very austere life compared to the other Maharajas. They did invest in a lot of infrastructure during their time; mostly during the last half of the 19th century and early 20th century. There was an urban legend in my city (according to my grandmother) that in the event of an emergency the kings of Travancore had enough wealth to pull back the country out of it. This probably was it. I wouldn't really blame the kings for storing this under the vaults; it was intended to be used for famines and such; it wasn't as if they enjoyed any of this. The complicated history of Travancore is probably the reason why it stayed hidden for so long.
What happens to this now is the big question. There's going to be a big argument amongst the secularists, the spiritualists, the archaeologists and finally the government regarding this.
Atleast it made my city famous :)