2011 project progress report

Hampi, India

2011 Project Progress Report

June 2012

Hampi, India – 2011 Progress Report

Executive Summary The restoration of Chandramauleshwar Temple, Anegundi is the first pilot project in Karnataka for the restoration of a State Protected Monument in the Hampi UNESCO World Heritage Site. Undertaken through an MOU signed between the Government of Karnataka and the Hampi Foundation (that is partnering with GHF in the project) in 2006, this is a pioneering initiative of public private partnership by the Government of Karnataka. This pioneering model of an Indian and International NGO working in tandem with the Karnataka Government towards establishing best practices for restoration and conservation of a cultural property and heritage site is meant to serve as a pilot project for future restoration projects in the area by setting an example through high standards of conservation practice following internationally accepted principles of conservation. The major thrust of the works in 2011 was the completion the stabilization of the upper embankment wall. This was done with a view to stabilize the temple as the shifting embankment wall had caused severe cracking and stresses in the temple with adequate propping. To address these issues, total station survey and monitoring of cracks through MASTRAD tell tales is ongoing in order to determine the extent and pace of the damage that is occurring. The project continues to benefit the local communities through onsite employment of laborers and craftsmen, use of ferry services to reach the island location of the Chandramauleshwar Temple and making improvements to the ashram found at the site that is used by religious pilgrims and sadhus.

Above: Chandramauleshwar Temple at the start of the 2011 season. Photo: A. Lambah

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2011 Project Progress Planning The work season of 2011 was preceded by a site visit with the architect consultant December 25-27 2010. During the site inspection, the architect inspected the work of the upper and lower embankment stabilization intervention that had been complete since January 2010 so as to make decisions for recommencement of site works for the year 2011. The architect issued a detail to the contractor to create a rubble bed (as a site drainage system) to run along the upper and lower embankment walls 1m in depth and 0.5 m in width to allow run off of water and to trap the soil from draining off and facilitate better site drainage. The slopes of the soil fill were also explained so as to create efficient site drainage and reduce the impact of future run off of soil due to monsoons. The works of 2011 were also to include stabilization of soil and soil fill on the lower embankment platform to create adequate site slopes for drainage of water since currently, after consolidation, the lower embankment wall level is higher than the platform soil. It was observed that properly graded fill of murrum and metal of 250mm to 100 mm grade would be needed with proper slopes from SE corner of the lower platform towards NE section of the site. The consultant structural engineer had also previously suggested the use of a geo grid laid beneath the granite paver stones laid along the lower embankment wall for better consolidation of the earth and soil stabilization. The consultants also noted that raising the level of the east landing platform that has been discovered on site in line with the stone bridge would be advisable so that in the soil fill this is again not lost. The platform could be raised 3-4 stone courses following the construction technique of the extant stone courses to bring it to the level of the soil fill. It was decided that the Return Wall on the upper NE corner of the site towards the upper Mandapa would be necessary to hold the soil at the upper level. The line of this was to follow the extant wall seen at the site. The consultants had also previously recommended the replacement of the ad hoc addition of corrugated sheet roofing supported on metal sections that fronts the Hanuman Ashram on the site. The consultants had earlier consulted with the Swamiji at the ashram and obtained his agreement to remove this incongruous addition and replacing the covered verandah with a more appropriate thatch roof structure more in keeping with the ambience of an ashram.

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Above: Site inspection to plan for 2011 work. Photo: A. Lambah

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Conservation In line with the results of the planning meeting, a drainage system was created, and the site was graded to create optimal slopes for water drainage and minimal soil erosion. To raise the level of the walls, new stones were procured only from quarries outside the Hampi Buffer Zone, and the local custom of classifying stones into male and female types by tapping the surface of the stone was respected; this classification was done by Dr.Thippaswamy, the site archaeologist. For the conservation project, only male stones were used since the temple is a Shiva Temple.

Above: Creating the drainage system. Photo: A. Lambah

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Above: Adding new stones. Photo: A. Lambah

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For proper assessment and recording of the structural behavior of the temple and cracking, Mastrad tell-tales brought by the architect were fixed at strategic locations on the temple proper for monitoring. For this, an engineer from JSW was given the task of assessing and recording the tell-tales at standard intervals. It was decided that once the temple had been thus monitored over at least a 6-month period from August 2011 to February 2012 including both flooding and post flooding season, an evaluation would be made of this data before beginning the next phase of work involving the main temple building.

Above: Monitoring cracks for change. Photo: A. Lambah

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Community Development The Chandramauleshwar Temple project could not occur without the help and support of the local community, many members of which are employed directly or indirectly by the project. Their knowledge, skills and labor are truly the backbone of the work, and their involvement is fundamental to success.

Above: Local community members working on site stabilization. Photo: A. Lambah

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The other local stakeholders are the religious pilgrims and the religious sadhus living in the ashram on the site, who have benefited by the steps leading up to the temple being reset and therefore making it easier to access the ashram. However, the ashram is an incongruous corrugated iron shed attached to the original cave in which the ashram dwelling is located. The project team has prepared a proposal to make this structure more appropriate from the point of view of a World Heritage Site, using local materials and vernacular traditional construction; at this time implementation discussions are ongoing.

Above: The current (left) and the proposed (right) ashram front. Images: A. Lambah Partnerships GHF has been working with a number of partners to achieve success in the Chandramauleshwar Temple project at Hampi, including the Hampi Foundation, Cornell University, the State of Karnataka, the Archaeological Survey of India, the New Delhi School of Planning and Architecture, Jindal Vijayanagar Steel Limited and UNESCO World Heritage Centre – South Asia.

Above: Steel shoring providing stability to the temple. Photo: A. Lambah

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About Global Heritage Fund GHF’s mission is to save the Earth’s most significant and endangered cultural heritage sites in developing countries and regions through scientific excellence and community involvement. Founded in 2002 by Dr. Ian Hodder of Stanford University Archaeology Center and Jeff Morgan, GHF is the only non-profit international conservancy working exclusively in developing countries, where there are many threatened heritage sites but few financial and technical resources and little expertise to scientifically conserve them. GHF goals include:

• Preserving structures and physical evidence of cultural heritage • Advancing education about, and protection of, endangered heritage sites • Advancing community involvement and benefits from preservation

Our work takes each selected heritage project through a process called Preservation by Design, encompassing master planning, scientific conservation, community involvement and partnerships to provide enduring protection, management and financial support. GHF currently has 12 projects in 10 countries, including China, India, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru and Turkey. While the nature and depth of each of our projects differ, one theme runs throughout: that the monuments, art and architecture of our ancestors can, if respected, bring lasting cultural, social and economic benefits to civil society. GHF’s mission is to help people realize the value of these assets in places where the sites are all too often neglected – or worse. GHF invests in countries and regions that have seen few financial or technical resources for cultural-asset preservation and development. Holistic and effective preservation of cultural resources requires extreme care and planning to make preservation economically viable to local stakeholders. GHF goes beyond heritage conservation: We provide catalytic funding, site planning and technical training for local people to become capable stewards, giving them the opportunity to contribute more easily to their families and communities. GHF’s projects also have benefits that surpass their primary conservation and development objectives; our work holds particular significance because the monuments that we select are rich symbols of national identity and patrimony. For more information on GHF’s mission and projects, see:

www.globalheritagefund.org

Global Heritage Fund 625 Emerson Street Suite 200

Palo Alto, California 94301 USA Tel: (650) 325-7520 Fax: (650) 325-7511

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2011 project progress report

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