Kumarigiri, the first maiden hill of ancient Kalinga, looks graceful with old architectural embellishments. The faded and decaying art attracts historians and archaeologists and reflects the ancient society in decorative detail.

The British occupied Orissa from Marahattas in 1803 and started an archaeological survey of the temple town Bhubaneswar and the hills of Khandagiri, Udayagiri and Dhauli. In 1837, the Hathigumpha inscription was lithoed and made available to the most adept decipherers of the nation. It took fifty long years to get some literal interpretation.

1885 witnessed the publication of the encoded old Brahmi script of the inscription that provided the identity and limits of erstwhile Kalinga. It authenticated the historical record of brave Kalinga vs. Piyadarsi Ashok in the thirteenth rock edict. Written documents from Sri Lanka and the Far East had the ‘Holing’ or ‘Kling’ nomenclature. Deciphering Chinese and
Malaysian documents clarified the fact. The shreds of evidence confirmed that Odisha was then the Kalinga with Ayur Mahameghavahana Kharavela, the Emperor of Kalinga, and the architecture of Kumarigiri lauded the supremacy of his power and strength. Decoding the Hathigumpha inscription maintains the temporal flow chart of ancient Indian history and
uncovers a dark period to a great extent.