Tamil Heritage Trust - The winner of the THT-Prof. S. Swaminathan Heritage Award 2023 - Prof. P. Devi Arivu Selvam.
The Award was presented on Saturday, September 2, 2023 at 5.30 PM at
Nahar Hall, Deshabandhu Plaza, Whites Road, Chennai 600014
followed by the Award Lecture by Prof P Devi on the topic "Hero Stones of Madurai" in Tamil.
At 5.30 pm IST on Saturday, September 2, 2023.
Event online
The Award, instituted by THT, aims to honour the work of individuals
under the age of fifty who have made significant contributions to
deepening the general public’s knowledge of Indian heritage, widening
the audience for heritage appreciation, and in the process strengthening
our existing knowledge base of heritage assets and resources.
The award is named after Prof S. Swaminathan, retired Professor from
IIT-Delhi and co-founder of the Tamil Heritage Trust, whose books,
monographs and talks on many facets of India’s heritage continue to be a
source of inspiration for heritage enthusiasts.
The winner was picked from over 25 nominations received, by an
accomplished Jury consisting of Dr. A. Srivathsan, Head, Centre
for Architecture and Urbanism, CEPT Ahmedabad, Padma Shri awardee Prof.
Sharada Srinivasan, Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies,
Bangalore, Smt. Sujatha Shankar, Convener, INTACH Chennai and Shri. T.S.
Subramanian, Author, “The Wonder that was the Harappan Civilization”
and Journalist.
Prof. P Devi Arivu Selvam, M Pharm, is the Head of the Department of
Pharmacognosy, Dhanalakshmi College of Pharmacy, Perambalur. She
also holds a Diploma in Temple Architecture and is an instructor in
sculpture to Temple Sivacharyas and Bhattacharyas.
Prof. Devi has published 110 research papers in the field of herbal
medicine in research journals and over 50 research papers on temple
architecture and sculpture in daily, monthly, e-journals, seminars etc.
She has uncovered inscriptions of ancient temples in and around Madurai,
helped the locals understand their significance and arranged to protect
them.
She has discovered 33 hero stones in 23 places in the Madurai area
through field research and published their details in her book “மதுரை
நடுகற்கள்” (Hero Stones of Madurai), published through the Madurai
Archeological Society Facebook group. In addition, she has documented
over 70 hero stones, inscriptions and archaeological artefacts through
her field research.
Prof. Devi has also been involved in the restoration of and protection
of heritage structures and artefacts. She was instrumental in reviving
the worship of Jyeshta Devi in the Tiruparangunram temple and the
“vishamurivu” inscription in Periya-ur cheri Kamakshi temple as Garudan.
She has helped to identify the Perumal temple at Maravapatti as a later
Pandyan temple and helped organise its renovation. She has taken steps
to safeguard the Chola era inscription of 940 AD at the Yoga Narasimha
Temple with wire fencing.
She has been teaching archaeology and history to school and college
students through an evidence- and field research-led pedagogical
approach and giving talks about historical monuments around Madurai
through seminars, heritage tours and online for free.
Tamil Heritage Trust
tamilheritage.in
tamilheritage.in@gmail.com
919444823681
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