Th century coastal uplift in Peninsular India – The Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu

Bibliographic Data

ID14976368
AuthorsMiklós Kázmér (0000-0003-1092-1316), Siddharth Prizomwala (0000-0002-4027-5266), Krzysztof Gaidzik (0000-0003-3286-0833)
Year2022
Volume638-639
Pages140-147
Publication date2022-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueQuaternary International (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1040-6182 • E-ISSN: 1873-4553
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.quaint.2022.02.014
OpenAlexW4213203906
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited27

The Shore Temple in Mahabalipuram (Tamil Nadu, Southern India) exists since the late 7th century. Historical sources suggest that it was built on an island in honour of the gods Vishnu and Shiva. A former bridge over the canal, which separated the island from the mainland, and a seawall, which protected the shore from the waves are dysfunctional now, as they are located too high above the present day sea level. A holy well, part of the temple complex, reaches down to the modern freshwater lens. We suggest that about 1 m uplift occurred after the construction of the temple, the canal and the seawall, but before the construction of the well. This event during the reign of King Rajasimhan in the early 8th century most likely was caused by an earthquake of magnitude M > 6.5 that led to the uplift of the island. There are thick walls of a ruined masonry building in the former, sand-filled canal, tilted in various directions. These are evidence for liquefaction of subsoil, caused by a second earthquake of intensity IX-X. The east coast of India has remained prone to destructive earthquakes: archaeoseismology proves to be useful tool which can help to identify these areas

Ancient history · Archaeology · Geography · Intraplate earthquake · Mainland · Seawall · Seismology · Shore · Tamil · Tectonics · Coastal and Marine Dynamics · earthquake and tectonic studies · History · Maritime and Coastal Archaeology · Geology · Oceanography