Thanjavur Palace Blog: Exploring beyond the Big Temple

Thajavur Palace, locally known as Thanjavur Aranmanai,  is located with in the Big Fort complex, and was constructed by the last Nayak ruler Vijayaraghava Nayakka. The original palace structure was built between 1633-74 CE, though many additions were made later by the Maratha rulers of Thanjavur. This also lends a very unique architectural blend within the complex, with buildings from different eras merging into each other all over the palace.

Thanjavur Palce - intricate work in the Durbar hall

A courtyard in the palace

The British forces captured the city as well as the palace from the Maratha rulers in 1855 and most the valuables from the palace were shifted to the nearby city Tiruchirappalli in 1863. Post independence, it's preserved by ASI as a heritage site.

Due to the presence of the UNSECO World Heritage site, the Big temple in Thanjavur, the palace is often ignored by travelers. This is actually a shame because the entire complex is huge and there is much to be discovered here. In fact, if you are a history buff, you can easily spend an entire day here.

One of the temples on the way to the palace

Another temple on the way

An alley within the Thanjavur palace

I also had no plans of visiting the palace after spending hours at the Big temple, but when I interviewed a few locals there, everyone mentioned that I must see the palace. It was a very hot day and I was already exhausted, but decided to give it a try. With no 3G, I was only left with the option of using my non-existant Tamil and ask for directions - all I could figure out was that it was really close and just after the next turn. As it turned out, it took me about half an hour of walking in hot sun to reach the gates.

I loved the colorful art work inside the Thanjavur Palace

And these delicately lit passages...

Even before I entered, I was sure that I would spend only little time here and quickly head back to my temporary home at Srirangam. Buying the ticket was confusing as well. I got the ticket but was told that it was valid only for some sections and not for the others, I felt as if the palace was ruled by two warring brothers and each wanted to keep a part of the money with him. This was even more weird because the ticket cost was very less and I still see no reason why not just have one ticket for the entire complex. Keep change with you as you will have to buy tickets of small values at many other places later on.

Anther beautiful ceiling at the Thanjavur Palace...

Notice the ticket collector at the end of the passage..

More ceiling beauty...

Within the complex, there are a few must-see places like the Durbar Hall with Ramayana paintings, Saraswati Mahal Library Museum, Art Gallary, the Royal Palace Museum and Saarjah Madi.

Another interesting part of the complex is Madamaligai or the 'Bell Tower' which was built so that the Nayal ruler could worship Sri Ranganatha of Srirangam every day. Lightning destryored the tower and now only six levels survive.

Practical details:

Fee: Indian/foreigner ₹30/150, camera ₹50/100 (keep change for buying more tickets inside)
Opening hours: 9am to 6pm
Address: East Main Street, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India ( 1.2 K.M from Brihadeeswarar Temple )

A panoramic view of one of the courtyards at Thanjavur Palace