Not sure if this was discussed earlier. Do we have forts / palace of pandya in and around madurai? Is it true that there was something called then madurai which was destroyed in tsunami?
madurai fort must have been rebuilt by the sultanate, the nayaks and we here reports of it during yusuf khan's period.thats as close as 250 years. i remember seeing a 150 year old map of madurai which showed a moat.
I think the madurai which is said to be destroyed by tsunami is the same as we call as kumari kandam? I'm not sure if there was any other madurai which was close to the shore to be destroyed by tsunami.
have read that the tamil sangams were held in madurai of yore. twice the land was taken by the sea ( hence the lack of texts !!) and the pandya kings moved it further inland and is now in the present madurai - the earliest record i think is either 4th or 3rd C.E greek accounts of the latest madurai. so there were 2 more as per folklore
The old fort was dismantled by the british and the stone slabs were used to lay the roads. You can see those slabs even today on pavements of many streets around Meenatchi temple. The west gate is the only part of it still remaining. It is opposite to the town bus station ( periar bus station.)
Nedunalvaadai gives an exquisite write up of the fort and palace of Pandian Nedunceliyan of the 2 century BC.