Edakkal Caves are two natural caves located 1000 metres high on
Ambukutty MalaAmbukuthi mala is a mountain in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India. It is 12 km from Sulthan Bathery and near Ambalavayal. Three pre-historic caves are located at a height of 1,000 metres on Ambukuthi mala...
25 km from
KalpettaKalpetta is a city and a municipality in Wayanad district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is a small town surrounded by dense coffee plantations and mountains, is the headquarters of Wayanad district. The town is a major hub to all the tourist destinations in Wayanad.It has standard hotel...
in the
Wayanad districtWayanad District ) in the north-east of Kerala, India, was formed on November 1 1980 as the 12th district by carving out areas from Kozhikode and Kannur districts. Kalpetta is the district headquarters as well as the only municipal town in the district. The region was known as Mayakshetra in the...
of
KeralaKerala , is a state located in southwestern India. The state was created in 1956 on linguistc basis, bringing together those places where Malayalam formed the principal language...
in
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
's
Western GhatsThe Western Ghats also known as the Sahyadri Mountains, is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea...
. They lie on an ancient trade route connecting the high mountains of Mysore to the
Malabar coastThe Malabar Coast, also known as the Malabarian Coast, is a long and narrow south-western shore line of the mainland Indian subcontinent. Geographically, it comprises the wettest region of southern India, as the Western Ghats intercept the moisture-laden monsoon rains, especially on their...
ports. Inside the caves are pictorical writings believed to be from
neolithicThe Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BCE in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age...
man, evidence of the presence of a prehistoric civilisation existing in this region. Such
stone ageThe Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which humans widely used stone for toolmaking.Stone tools were made from a variety of different sorts of stone. For example, flint and chert were shaped for use as cutting tools and weapons, while basalt and sandstone were used for ground...
carvings are very rare and these are the only known examples in southern India.
These are not technically caves but rather a
cleftCleft lip and cleft palate , which can also occur together as cleft lip and palate, are variations of a type of clefting congenital deformity caused by abnormal facial development during gestation. A cleft is a fissure or opening—a gap...
or
riftIn geology, a rift is a place where the Earth's crust and lithosphere are being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics....
approximately 96 feet by 22 feet, a 30 foot deep
fissureIn anatomy, fissure is a groove, natural division, deep furrow, cleft, or tear in various parts of the body.-Brain:...
caused by a piece of rock splitting away from the main body.
Edakkal Caves are two natural caves located 1000 metres high on
Ambukutty MalaAmbukuthi mala is a mountain in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India. It is 12 km from Sulthan Bathery and near Ambalavayal. Three pre-historic caves are located at a height of 1,000 metres on Ambukuthi mala...
25 km from
KalpettaKalpetta is a city and a municipality in Wayanad district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is a small town surrounded by dense coffee plantations and mountains, is the headquarters of Wayanad district. The town is a major hub to all the tourist destinations in Wayanad.It has standard hotel...
in the
Wayanad districtWayanad District ) in the north-east of Kerala, India, was formed on November 1 1980 as the 12th district by carving out areas from Kozhikode and Kannur districts. Kalpetta is the district headquarters as well as the only municipal town in the district. The region was known as Mayakshetra in the...
of
KeralaKerala , is a state located in southwestern India. The state was created in 1956 on linguistc basis, bringing together those places where Malayalam formed the principal language...
in
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
's
Western GhatsThe Western Ghats also known as the Sahyadri Mountains, is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea...
. They lie on an ancient trade route connecting the high mountains of Mysore to the
Malabar coastThe Malabar Coast, also known as the Malabarian Coast, is a long and narrow south-western shore line of the mainland Indian subcontinent. Geographically, it comprises the wettest region of southern India, as the Western Ghats intercept the moisture-laden monsoon rains, especially on their...
ports. Inside the caves are pictorical writings believed to be from
neolithicThe Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BCE in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age...
man, evidence of the presence of a prehistoric civilisation existing in this region. Such
stone ageThe Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which humans widely used stone for toolmaking.Stone tools were made from a variety of different sorts of stone. For example, flint and chert were shaped for use as cutting tools and weapons, while basalt and sandstone were used for ground...
carvings are very rare and these are the only known examples in southern India.
Petroglyphs
These are not technically caves but rather a
cleftCleft lip and cleft palate , which can also occur together as cleft lip and palate, are variations of a type of clefting congenital deformity caused by abnormal facial development during gestation. A cleft is a fissure or opening—a gap...
or
riftIn geology, a rift is a place where the Earth's crust and lithosphere are being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics....
approximately 96 feet by 22 feet, a 30 foot deep
fissureIn anatomy, fissure is a groove, natural division, deep furrow, cleft, or tear in various parts of the body.-Brain:...
caused by a piece of rock splitting away from the main body. On one side of the cleft a rock weighing several tons has fallen over the fissure forming a roof. The carvings are of human and animal figures, as well as of tools used by humans and symbols, suggesting they were created by a highly civilised prehistoric people.
The
petroglyphPetroglyphs are images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, pecking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...
s inside the cave are of at least three distinct types.
The oldest may date back over 8000 years ago. Evidence indicates that the Edakkal caves had been inhabited at several different times in history.
The caves were accidentally discovered by Fred Fawcett in 1890 who immediately understood their anthropological and historical importance. He subsequently wrote an article about them, attracting the attention of scholars.
Tourism information
Approximate time required to climb till top of the hill and down: 3-4 hours.
Entry to the hill closes by 4 PM.
Departmental jeeps can be hired to travel the initial few km till the foot of the hill. A jeep can carry up to six passengers and there are separate rates for one way and return journeys.
Other nearby places - Soojippara water falls, Sultan Bathery, Mutanga Wildlife Sanctuary.
External links