Muniyara is part of Marayoor which is 40 km from Munnar, in Idukki district, central Kerala.Belonging to the early Neolithic Age, most of these aboveground burial chambers are built with large stone slabs, called megaliths, laid on its edge vertically and covered with other smaller stones on the top. Some of these Dolmenoids contain several burial chambers, others have a quadrangle scooped out in laterite and lined on the sides with granite slabs. These are also covered with cap stones. A few of the burial chambers belong to the Iron Age too, here the stone slabs have been smoothened using tools. A fascinating place for anthropologists and archaeologists, these burial chambers will also catch the attention of the lay man.
Muniyara is
part of Marayoor. Marayoor occupies a vast area on the slopes of the Western
Ghats in Idukki district and is an important pre-historic site in Kerala. Apart
from the Dolmenoid cists in Muniyara, Marayoor is famous for its natural
sandalwood forests and pre-historic rock paintings.
Maryoor
contains a number of sandalwood forests, and is the only place in Kerala where
natural sandalwood forest is present. Processing of sandalwood and its
associated oil forms part of local economy, a depot near Marayur town
supporting this industry. Sandal wood or Santalum album is a parasitic tree
having fragrant and close-grained yellowish heartwood. Sandalwood oil, also known
as ‘liquid gold,’ is extracted from the roots and wood of sandalwood. This oil
is a costly item marketed at a few choosy outlets all over the state. A climate
with low rainfall is suitable for the growth of choice sandalwood trees from
which good quality oil can be extracted. The 93 sqkm Marayur reserve forest is
believed to have about sixty thousand naturally grown sandalwood trees, of
which nearly 2,000 trees had been allegedly plundered in just one year since
January 2004, when the last survey was conducted. The auction rate for first
quality Marayur sandal is quoted at 1,100 per kg.
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