Why is a dragon carved on Jain temple in Mangalore,Karnataka? Medieval Africa-China trade has answer

#thinkingmedieval
In a quiet Jain temple at Moodbidri near Mangalore, Karnataka, constructed around 1430 CE, are carvings of giraffes and dragons: a testament to a medieval Africa-India-China trade that played a profound role in South Indian history. Anirudh Kanisetti explains the dynamics of these forgotten exchanges.
Sources:

Beaujard, Philippe. The Worlds of the Indian Ocean: A Global History. Volume 2. Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Schnepel, Burkhard, and Julia Verne, eds. Cargoes in Motion: Materiality and Connectivity Across the Indian Ocean. Ohio University Press, 2022.

Sen, Tansen. "The impact of Zheng He's expeditions on Indian Ocean interactions." Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 79, no. 3 (2016): 609-636.

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