PEDDA PAVURALLA BADDE GAVI
15.433300,78.166700
Description
An unspecified »cave« (KENNEDY 1977: 101) or rock shelter (?) of palaeontological and archaeologial importance (MURTY 1975) yielded excavateable relics (bones) ascribed to the Late Pleistocene fauna (MURTY 1985: 198). On the other hand, it is said that much younger »neolithic-type pottery of wheel-made pattern and some Iron Age points were removed from deeper deposits within the cave at Pedda Pavuralla Badde« (KENNEDY 1977: 101). ETYMOLOGY: The adjective "pedda" means not only »great, big, large, long, tall, old, senior, chief, respectable« but also is the word for »an elder, superior, head man« (KALYANARAMAN, S 1998 Indian dictionary) and "bodu" (Gondi) is said to mean »crest, ridge« but the so-called »Pedda Pavuralla Badde« (MURTY 1975: 136; 1985: 198; KENNEDY 1977: 101) is possibly a fabricated field name and not known as such to anybody in the area. SITUATION: At a travelling distance of about 3 km approximately east-south-east from Betamcherla (N15°26'59”: E78°08'51”) and about a kilometre west-south-west of a place called »Kottala« (MURTY 1975, 1985), which seems to be the village of Kanumakini Kottala, in short »Kottala K«, which is indicated near N15°26'20”: E78°10'45” (Everest 1830) on the Survey of India sheet 57-I/03 (edition 1983). POSITION: It is difficult to reconstruct what MURTY (1975: 136) wanted to derange when he positioned both of the »two caves known as Muchchatla Chintamanu Gavi and Pedda Pavuralla Badde« at »Lat 15°25', Long 78°8'« (precision error ±3.1 km) and thus about halfway between the railway station at Betamcherla (±150 m N15°26'50”: E078°08'55” Everest 1830) and the Muchchatleswara Temple (N15°24'30”: E078°06'45” Everest 1830). CULTURAL HISTORY - archaeology: KENNEDY (1977: 101): »Continued digging at the Billa Surgam and other caves in Kurnool District has revealed that their most ancient use is no earlier than Neolithic times. We revisited this region in the spring of 1972 and had the opportunity to see excavations in progress at Pedda Pavuralla Badde … Neither my co-worker Gudrun Corvinus, who is a geologist, nor I saw any evidence at these caves [note 1] to convince us that they had been occupied by man before the time when agriculture and herding were introduced in this region around 2000 B.C.«
NOTE 1: I can find no evidence which would allow identifying »these caves« (KENNEDY 1977: 101) either with –>Billa Surgam, the unspecified »cave« (?) at the –>Pedda Pavuralla Badde or any »other caves in Kurnool District.«
History
EXPLORATION HISTORY: 1972 spring: Kenneth A.R. Kennedy and Gudrun Corvinus visited (KENNEDY 1977: 101) when a team of archaeologists from Deccan College, Poona (Pune) excavated (MURTY 1975, 1985). 1996 December: When H. D. Gebauer, Rosari "Saro" Ruggieri and friends revisited the region, M. Narayana Reddy found nobody who could identify a cave or a ridge known as »Pedda Pavuralla Badde« (or so). 2010.01.03: Perrin, Jerome (2010.02.02 Mss) found »no indication on the possible location of … Pedda Pavurella Badde Gavi.«
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.6 | NAGIREDDYBADDE | ||
| 0.8 | NAGIREDDYBADDE CAVE (Perrin 2010) | ||
| 1.1 | KOTTALA GAVI | ||
| 1.4 | KOTTALA (Cave near) | ||
| 2.0 | BILLA SURGAM 6: Chapter House | ||
| 2.0 | BILLA SURGAM, cave under present study | ||
| 2.0 | BILLA SURGAM | ||
| 2.0 | BILLA SURGAM 4: South Chapel | ||
| 2.0 | BILLA SURGAM 5: North Chapel |