Page 576 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - India

574  SOUTH INDIA

9 Mylapore &
San Thomé
S of Triplicane. Kapaleswarar Temple:
Open daily. Basilica of San Thomé:
Open daily. Luz Church: Open daily.
The site of a great Pallava port
in the 7th and 8th centuries,
Mylapore is today one of the
busiest parts of the city. This
traditional quarter, with its
religious organizations, tiny
houses and lively bazaars,
is dominated by the
Kapaleswarar Temple, the
Fruits on sale at Triplicane Market largest in Chennai. The main
deity, Shiva, is symbolized
8 Triplicane once part of the kingdom as a peacock (mayil), thus giving
of Golconda (see pp670–71), the area its original name,
Off Kamarajar Salai (South Beach Rd).
Parthasarathi Temple: Open daily. and as a result this quarter has Mayilapura, the “Town of the
_ Neeratu Utsavam (Dec). the largest concentration of Peacocks”. According to legend,
Muslims in the city. The Nawab Shiva’s consort, Parvati, assumed
The crowded suburb of of Arcot, Muhammad Ali the form of a peahen to worship
Triplicane was among the first Wallajah (r.1749–95), an ally Shiva, represented here by his
villages to be acquired by the of the British in their struggle linga. A sculptural panel in a
East India Company in the for power against the French, small shrine in the courtyard
1670s. It derives its name from contributed depicts the legend.
the sacred lily tank (tiru-alli- generously to the The pre sent temple
keni) that once stood here. One construction of a was built after the
of the oldest temples in the large mosque here original was
city, the his toric Parthasarathi in 1795. Known destroyed by the
Temple, is situated in Triplicane. as the Wallajah Portuguese during
Built in the 9th century, the (Big) Mosque, the 16th century.
temple is dedicated to Krishna this beautiful grey Mylapore’s links
(or Partha) in his role as Arjuna’s granite structure with Christianity
divine charioteer (sarathi) in with slender date to the 1st
the epic, the Mahabharata minarets is situated century AD, to the
(see p30). The temple festival, in on Triplicane High time of St Thomas
December, attracts thousands Road. The adjoining (see p577). In the
of devotees. At one time, the graveyard contains 10th century, a
residences of the priestly the tombs of The Gothic-style Basilica group of Nestorian
Brahmin caste were clustered various Muslim of San Thomé Christians from
in the narrow lanes around the saints. The nawab’s Persia (Iran)
temple. Among them were descendants still live in discovered the saint’s burial site
the homes of the mathematical Triplicane, in a stately and built a church and tomb.
genius, Srinivasa Ramanujan mansion known as Amir The Portuguese, following the
(1887–1920), and the early Mahal. Constructed in 1798, trail of the saint, established
20th-century nationalist it became their residence after the settlement of San Thomé
poet, Subramania Bharati the Chepauk Palace (see p572) in the early 16th century. The
(1882–1921). Triplicane was was taken over by the British. present Basilica of San Thomé,
over the tomb of the saint, is an
impressive Gothic-style structure
built in 1898. It has an ornate
interior with magnificent
stained-glass windows and a
towering steeple. The crypt
is said to contain a small bone
from the saint’s hand and the
weapon that killed him.
Nearby is the Luz Church,
which was built by a Franciscan
monk in 1516, making it the
Graceful façade of Wallajah Mosque, with its flanking minarets oldest Catholic church in Chennai.
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p702 and p717

574-575_EW_India.indd 574 26/04/17 11:48 am
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.6)
Date 12th July 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm