The southern state of Kerala in India is renowned for its endowment of natural beauty. With a scenic coastline along the Arabian Sea that stretches for over 580 km and the green paradise of the Western Ghats on its eastern side, Kerala is true ‘God’s own Country. Its unique traditions and cultural practices that have been passed down over the generations further add to the attraction that has been drawing people to its coasts for many millennia.
Its capital city, Trivandrum, has been associated with the royal kingdom of Travancore for many centuries and still bears witness to several monuments of their rule. Aside from the numerous colleges, art galleries and theatres constructed by them, the grand Padmanabhaswamy temple bears sway over everything else in the city. Located in the East Fort area, it attracts tourists in lakhs every year and is the richest temple in the world with a vast treasure trove of over a billion dollars.
Unknown to many, there is another ancient monument on the eastern side of this temple. It is known as the Methan Mani clock tower and was built in 1833 during the rule of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma. This historical landmark is crafted in mahogany by an artisan called Kulathooran.
The clock still strikes on the hour and visitors wait to witness this momentous occasion as the clock has a unique face. At the top of the clock face, above the 12th hour, there is a bearded and mustached man’s face along with two goats on each side of it. At the stroke of the hour, the bearded face opens its mouth and the gong sounds as the goats strike the sides of its cheeks, forcing it to close its mouth! This magnificent clock is historically significant as it was installed after the victory over Tippu Sultan’s attempted invasion of Travancore. Legend has it that the face on the clock represents Tippu Sultan.
It’s amazing how this technology was achieved centuries ago with the clock working continuously ever since then, and the chimes being heard within the locality every hour. Of recent, however, the mechanism for the clock has been changed and it now runs on software developed by the Center for Development of Imaging Technology (CDIT).
Trivandrum is indeed a great city to live in with its functional infrastructure, premier educational institutions, cultural heritage and easy availability of jobs with its ever-expanding IT hub. Artech Realtors have a number of beautifully architected apartments in Trivandrum for those on the lookout for homes in strategic locations. Get more details about them here: https://artechrealtors.com/.
