Inspectors unearthing priceless treasures from a south Indian temple have had to halt their search because they cannot open the final vault.
Five vaults full of precious stones, gold and silver have already been opened in Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple in Kerala state.
Historians say assessing the treasure’s value will be very hard – estimates run to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Whether the artefacts belong to the temple or the state is unclear.
Inspectors say they are merely taking an inventory of the items in the temple.
They managed to open the outer doors of the sixth vault but found an iron wall inside it. The vault was last opened 136 years ago, according to temple records…
The members of the Travancore royal family entrusted their wealth to the temple because they consider themselves to be servants of its presiding deity. The deity, Padmanabhaswamy, is considered by devotees to be an aspect of the Hindu God Vishnu in eternal sleep.
Categories: India