Thanjavur Palace

About Thanjavur Palace

The rice bowl of Tamil Nadu, Tanjavur is a bustling country town situated 55 kms east of Trichy. Tanjore, also known as Thanjavur, was the ancient capital of the Chola kings and later of the Tanjavur Nayaka and Maratha rulers. Tanjavur rose to glory, during the later Chola reign, between the 10th and 14th centuries, and became a centre of learning and culture. The Cholas, who were great patrons of art, built most of the 93 temples. It was the practice of the kings to donate part of their wealth to the temples, for spiritual gain, and the Chola kings lavished their wealth to build these as well as other temples nearby. Tanjore's crowning glory is the Brihadishwara temple built by Raja Raja. This is listed as a World Heritage site and is worth a visit.

Near the temple are huge masonry structure which were partly built by the Nayaks in 1550 and partly by the Marathas. The Tanjavur Palace, as it is Known, has huge halls, spacious corridors, observation & arsenal towers and a shady courtyard. Though many sections of the palace are in ruins restoration work has been taken up. The palace houses a library, a museum and an art gallery. The Royal museum displays many items from the kings who ruled the place in past. The eclectic collection of royal memorabilia can fascinate any visitor. The Royal cloths, hunting weapons, the head gears and many more such items are enough to catch the attention of any one. There are two Durbar halls where the rulers held public meetings. Though they have not been renovated, they are in good shape. The Nayak hall of the palace is occupied by the Art Gallery. This gallery has an excellent collection of artifacts from the Chola dynasty during the 8th and 9th century. The bronze and granite statues reflect the height of craftsmanship obtained during those days. The bell tower which was put under restoration work, has emerged very different from the rest of the structure after renovation. But it is worth going up the tower to have a good view of the surrounding area. Next to the art gallery is the Saraswathi Mahal Library with an amazing collection of manuscripts on palm leaves and paper. The library is not open for the public. But one can always go in the museum to have a look at the full Ramayana written on Palm leaf or a set of explicit prints of prisoners under Chinese torture.