Mathilakam is a village in Kodungallur taluk, in the Thrissur district of Kerala, southern India. It is located approximately 5 miles north of Kodungallur along National Highway 66. Nearby localities include SN Puram and Panangad. The village is situated on the route leading to Triprayar or Irinjalakuda.
Mathilakam is generally recognized by historians as the site of a medieval Jain vihara known as the Thirukkunavay or Thrikkana Mathilakam Temple. Thirukkunavay Temple, in turn, is often identfied with Kunavayir Kottam, the monastery of Ilamko Adikal, the author of the medieval Tamil epic Chilappathikaram. It appears that by 15th century, the Thirukkunavay Temple had been converted into a Shiva temple (Kokasandesa; slokas 45-48). The temple was probably completely destroyed during the late medieval period.
Excavations were carried out by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at Mathilakam in 1967. Further excavations by the ASI in 1970 revealed an 8th–9th century AD foundation in the traditional temple compound at Mathilakam, structurally distinct from typical Kerala Hindu temple foundations in its design. Two coins of the Chola emperor Rajaraja were also discovered there.
In 2014, the Kerala State Archaeological Department conducted a field survey at Mathilakam. In 2020, the Archaeological Survey of India granted a licence to a non-profit trust to undertake further excavations at the site. The first phase of these excavations began with the opening of six trial trenches, and the trial phase was completed later that year.
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