A ‘pushkarni’ (temple tank) was excavated on the premises of the Virupaksha temple at Hampi in the taluk on Sunday.
The tank, of medium size, has ornate carvings on the rocks on all its sides.
There is a Nandi figurine on one side, with steps to climb down into the temple tank on the other side. The tank was discovered while levelling the ground and laying stone slabs after demolishing the tourist accommodation rooms. As the digging continued at the spot, the temple tank came up, a junior conservation officer of the Archaeolohgical Survey of India told DH.
Various construction works are being undertaken at the below-ground-level Shiva temple and the Virupaksha temple.
The officer said an ancient pipeline system dating back to the Vijayanagar era was discovered near the queen’s bathing house in the heritage city some time ago.
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