Monuments of Memory: Megaliths to Temples in the Malaprabha Valley. Dr Srikumar Menon. Dec 2, 2023

In his Talk, "Monuments of Memory: From Megaliths to Temples in the Malaprabha Valley", Dr Srikumar Menon of the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, will look at monuments - both prehistoric and later ones - and examine the possibility that the temples of the Malaprabha Valley are carrying forward the commemorative tradition represented by the megaliths. About the Speaker: Dr Srikumar Menon is an architect with a keen interest in the history and archaeology of the Indian subcontinent. After an initial stint in architectural practice at Bangalore as well as research on the design of astronomical observatories at the Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune, he joined the faculty of Architecture at the Manipal Institute of Technology where he taught for fifteen years. At present he is an Associate Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore. Dr Menon's academic interests focus on ancient architecture – prehistoric monuments, as well as later monuments, such as stupas and temples. He was awarded the Prof. D. S. Achyutha Rao Memorial History Research Fellowship for his PhD and the Homi Bhabha Fellowship for studying the “Ancient Landscapes of South India.” He has studied the sites of the Malaprabha Valley in northern Karnataka, leading to deep insights about the continuity of commemorative traditions from prehistoric to later times, and the influence of prehistoric architecture on later monuments. He is the author of two books – Ancient Stone Riddles: Megaliths of the Indian Subcontinent and Comets: Nomads of the Solar System. To join our mailing list: bit.ly/THT-Join