Now Reading: Rare Rashtrakuta Gajalakshmi sculpture found neglected in Medak
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Rare Rashtrakuta Gajalakshmi sculpture found neglected in Medak
A rare ninth-century Rashtrakuta period Gajalakshmi sculpture has been found lying neglected at Yanagandla village in Kulcharam mandal, Medak district, Telangana. Heritage activists and historians from the Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam (KTCB) examined the black granite carving on Saturday, 10 October 2026.
The sculpture depicts Goddess Lakshmi seated in Padmasana, anointed by elephants, with a depiction of Samudra Manthan (the churning of the ocean) above her. Historians said this feature has not been reported in Telangana or Andhra Pradesh. The reverse side bears a carving of a 12-armed Shiva-Nataraja performing Ananda Tandava, flanked by Brahma and Vishnu.
The team comprising E. Sivanagireddy, Sriramoju Haragopal, Gottipati Srinivasa Rao and A. Raghu appealed to villagers to install the sculpture on a pedestal for preservation.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both The Hindu and The Times of India carried nearly identical straight news reports on the discovery, with no editorial slant or political framing. The Hindu led with the Gajalakshmi figure and its Samudra Manthan detail, while The Times of India led with the Sagara Mathana scene and explicitly named the source of the tip-off, Burra Santosh. Neither outlet attributed neglect to any government agency or demanded action from the archaeology department, both simply quoted the experts' appeal to villagers. The uniform coverage reflects a heritage story reported as a straight find, with the shared next step being the villagers' decision on erecting the sculpture.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): thehindu.com (neutral report), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
