Padmanabhapuram Palace, Fort & Town

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This huge wooden palace, Padmanabhapuram Palace is, in fact, the biggest wooden structure in Asia. It is an erstwhile palace of the kings of Travancore who ruled from here between 1552 – 1790 CE. That includes the rule of its famous king Marthanda Varma of dynasty. Today it technically falls in the state of Tamil Nadu.

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Wooden windows of the Padmanabhapuram palace
View of the wooden windows of the palace from inside

One can visit it on the way if you are visiting Kanyakumari from Trivandrum. It is still managed by the Kerala circle of ASI. Historically and heritage wise it belongs to Travancore state that is now a part of Kerala.

Padmanabhapuram Palace & Fort

The huge pillared entrance of Padmanabhapuram Palace
The huge pillared entrance of Padmanabhapuram Palace

A huge pillared entrance greeted us as we entered the gates of the palace. The stone pillars with carved wood ceilings were enchanting. The guide pointed to the lotus carved in the square wooden panels on the ceiling. There are no two designs of the lotus though it is the lotus in each and every panel. I could not compare all of them. The ones I could were definitely a different artistic representation of the favorite flower of the kings of this palace. The floor was made of natural material. I think in an attempt to preserve it, shoes are not allowed inside.

A brass lamp was hanging in the middle that had a horse with a rider carved on it. Now I would have passed it as another metal piece. But the guide explained its ball-bearing mechanism that keeps the horse and the rider facing in one direction irrespective of the way the wind blows. It was interesting. This was followed by Maghony wood paintings in natural colors of none other than Padmanabhaswamy in his lying down pose at Padmanabhaswamy temple.

Mantrashala – Padmanabhapuram Palace

Mantrashala or the meeting place of the King
Mantrashala or the meeting place of the King

A narrow flight of stairs took us to the first floor. That is where the Mantrashala or the meeting place of the king. Again completely made in dark teak wood, this had Chinese-style windows with a bench-like structure all around to sit. Seats for landlords were earmarked as per their status in the state at those times. The lower panel of wooden windows can be opened in such a way that it would naturally cool the interiors. Also, they could be sprinkled with perfumed water. The ceiling of the king’s meeting room had 9 lotus flowers exquisitely carved. We were told that 9 was considered an auspicious number by the family.

Ottupura or Dining hall

Ottupura can seat up to 2000 persons for eating on the premises
Ottupura can seat up to 2000 persons for eating on the premises

At the back of this structure was a huge dining hall called Ottupura that can seat up to 2000 persons for eating. There were huge utensils for things like pickles. I wondered how the kitchen was operated and how big the cooking utensils would be to serve such large gatherings. But then, can we really go back in time when these things would have been the norm and not an exception as they appear today?

Mother’s Palace

Opposite the Ottupura, Mother’s palace is the oldest part of this palace. This is where the foundation of the palace was laid using a jackfruit tree trunk as a pillar. This is the only pillar that is not teak wood in the palace. A meditation hall here interestingly had a bookshelf. The inner courtyard is typical of the old south Indian houses with a recessed center. That I assume was a water harvesting mechanism.

Wooden corner of the Padmanabhapuram palace
Wooden corner of the palace

King’s Bed

In the rest of the palace what is worth noticing is the king’s bed. That was gifted by the Dutch but is made of 64 types of medicinal woods. The backrest of the bed even has the emblem of International Medicine. The rest of the palace in its various parts has old Belgium glasses, miniature paintings, ivory carvings, especially on a Japanese-style dining table, and royal paintings. Indravilasam is a place for guests of the palace. It has an international feel to it.

Navratri Mandapa

Navratri Mandapa at the Padmanabhapuram palace
Stone carved pillars at the Navratri Mandapa

A stone structure called Navratri Mandapa stands in the middle of the palace. It is a place for cultural performances, especially dances. A small museum displays excavated stone sculptures along with some metal ones.

I somehow found the place too dark and a bit depressing. But the woodworks are worth appreciating.

Part view of the wooden Padmanabhapuram palace
Part view of the wooden palace

Recommend you to read the following Places to visit in Kerala on my Travel Blog.

Ayurveda for the Travelers

Rendezvous with Popular Kerala

Whirlwind Trip to Kozhikode

4 COMMENTS

  1. I work in Trivandrum for sometime now so has visited the palace few times. Its a good place to know some history about Kerala and its Kings 🙂 Have you had a chance to visit the Padmanabhapuram temple (Lord Vishnu) in Trivandrum which is now the wealthiest temple leaving behind Tirupathi. Also, did you visit Kanyakumari?

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