Keladi Museum

Located next to the Rameshwara temple in Keladi in Sagar Taluk of Shimoga District, the Keladi Museum is a rich repository of copper inscriptions, palm leaves, coins and several interesting antiques of the Keladi period. Recovered idols of Hoysala and Chalukya period from the early 16th century to the late 18th century are displayed here.

Keladi Museum is a rich storehouse of copper inscriptions, palm leaves, coins and many more interesting antiques of the Keladi period. The museum also has the recovered idols of Hoysala and Chalukya period from the early 16th century to the late 18th century. There are about one thousand paper and palmleaf manuscripts written in Kannada, Sanskrit and Telugu, besides four hundred palmleaf manuscripts in Tigalari script. They relate to Literature, Art, Dharmasastra, History, Astrology, Astronomy, Medicine, Mathematics and Veterinary Science. Survey of other Mss is going on.

Among art objects betelnut crackers, locks and keys, weights, combs, artistic domestic vessels, arms and more than one thousand coins of Portuguese, Mysore Wodeyars, Haider Ali and Tippu regimes deserve mention.

Stone sculptures include Hero Stones, Sati Stones, Nisidi Stones, Jaina tirthankaras, Kalamukhas, kalabhairva, Chennakesava etc. The copper plate inscriptions belong to Vijayanagara and Keladi times. The museum has a library.

Keladi Museum
Affiliated to Kuvempu University,
Sagar Taluk, Keladi, Shimoga Dist.,
Karnataka - 577 401
Phone Number: 91-8183-2077

Keladi Museum and Historical Research Bureau
Keladi, Karnataka 577430

Nayakas of Keladi

Keladi is a temple town in Sagara Taluk of the state of Karnataka in India. Keladi was once the capital of the Keladi rulers also called as Keladi Nayakas, a feudatory of Vijayanagara Empire. After the breakdown of Vijayanagara Empire in the Battle of Talikota, the Keladi Nayakas formed an independent kingdom and it remained until it was captured by Hyder Ali.

Keladi is located about 8 km from the town of Sagara. Nayakas of Keladi, also known as Nayakas of Bednore and Kings of Ikkeri (1499–1763), were an Indian dynasty based from Keladi in Shimoga district, Karnataka, India. They were an important ruling dynasty in post-medieval Karnataka. They initially ruled as a vassal of the famous Vijayanagar Empire. After the fall of the empire in 1565, they gained independence and ruled significant parts of Malnad region of the Western Ghats in present-day Karnataka, most areas in the coastal regions of Karnataka, and parts of northern Kerala, Malabar and the central plains along the Tungabhadra river. In 1763 AD, with their defeat to Hyder Ali, they were absorbed into the Kingdom of Mysore. They played an important part in the history of Karnataka, during a time of confusion and fragmentation that generally prevailed in South India after the fall of the Vijayanagar Empire. The Keladi rulers were Nayakas (Beda's) but they were tolerant towards followers of other faiths. The Haleri Kings of Kodagu who ruled over Coorg between 1600 A.D and 1834 A.D. were an offshoot of Keladi Nayaka dynasty.

Rameswara temple at Keladi

In the outset as you enter the Rameshwara temple it appears like a building with a normal covered roof structure looming out in the middle of the street. It seems like another traditional residence in coastal Karnataka by Mangalore tiles covering the roof.

On entering inside the complex you notice transformation into a very old structure. The temple houses three deities, Lord Rameswara (Linga and Nandi), Lord Veerabhadra and Lord Ganesh. The pillars are superbly adorned with legendary gods as well as animals. At the ceiling you can find the legendary (imaginary) two headed bird called Garudabande.

You can also find the statue of Rani Channamma. You can observe Rani Chenamma is riding a horse. Underneath Lord Ganesh, Rani Chenamma is paying respect accompanied by her consorts. At the back of the temple complex that is more or less facing the entrance a picture of vaastu sketched on full wall panel. There exists a massive manasthamba at the backyard of temple. This indicates the temple could have been altered subsequently in accordance with vaastu guidance.