Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams Central Library and SV Digital Library have started digitizing the manuscripts and collections in the famous Thanjavur Maharaja Serfoji’s Saraswathi Mahal Library. The library is a treasure house of knowledge with manuscripts on art, culture and literature.
Most the manuscripts belong to the dynasties of Nayaks and Marathas of Thanjavur. The library was started during the rule of the Nayak dynasty in the 16th century and was later developed by Maratha kings of Thanjavur. The library has over 45,000 manuscripts and around 39,000 of them are in Sanskrit.
The library contains important Ayurvedic manuscripts in the form of prescriptions and case studies by the then Ayurvedic doctors. Apart from the manuscripts, it also has a vast collection of paintings and maps from the medieval period.
The Indian Express reports
Following request of the Government of Tamil Nadu to TTD Central Library and Digital Library to digitise the collection at the Saraswathi Mahal Library, TTD approved the proposal. Raj Reddy of Carnegie Mellon University, USA came forward to sponsor 25 computers, 10 scanners, software and hardware for the project. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) will spend Rupees 5 million.