Ketavaram is a prehistoric rock-painting site in Orvakal mandal, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, where red-ochre figures of animals and people survive on open basalt surfaces in the semi-arid Rayalaseema country. It sits close to Kurnool’s Orvakal airport, yet it stays off most itineraries, and much about it, including its exact age, is still unsettled. This guide separates what is verified from what is not, and untangles Ketavaram from the better-known Jwalapuram Palaeolithic area nearby.
Ketavaram (also spelled Kethavaram) is a cluster of open-air prehistoric rock paintings near Orvakal, in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh’s Rayalaseema region. Its red-ochre figures sit on basalt rock surfaces about a kilometre from Kurnool airport. Published dating is contested, and the site is not a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Key takeaways
- Ketavaram (Kethavaram) rock art lies in Orvakal mandal, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh; the Deccan Chronicle reports the paintings sit about one kilometre from Kurnool’s Orvakal airport.
- The figures are drawn in red ochre and, per press reports, number more than 100, showing deer, bulls, foxes, rabbits and human forms on flat basalt rock.
- Dating is not settled: reports range from a Palaeolithic claim to a Mesolithic-to-megalithic span of roughly 6,000 BC to 200 AD, so treat any single age as provisional (as of November 2026).
- Ketavaram is not the same place as the Jwalapuram Palaeolithic site in the Jurreru River valley, which lies in Banaganapalle mandal of the new Nandyal district, carved from Kurnool on 4 April 2022.
- Kurnool’s Orvakal airport (KJB), about 18 km from the city on NH-40, has IndiGo flights to Bengaluru, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam per its Wikipedia airline listing; reconfirm schedules before you travel.
About Ketavaram
Ketavaram is an open-air prehistoric rock-art site near Orvakal, in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. On first mention it is worth pinning down precisely, because several similarly named places in the region cause confusion. This is the Kethavaram of Orvakal mandal, in the Rayalaseema uplands south-east of Kurnool city, not a shelter in the Jurreru River valley.
According to the Deccan Chronicle, the paintings lie about one kilometre from Kurnool’s airport at Orvakal, and the approach road is rough and not reliably motorable. The report describes more than 100 figures drawn on the flat surface of basalt rocks, and notes the site has suffered from neglect and graffiti.
The archaeological interest is long-standing. A 2009 report in The Hindu, archived by Stone Pages, records that a team from the Andhra Pradesh Department of Archaeology and Museums, led by then-director P. Channa Reddy, examined the site and collected more than 20 stone tools, including scrapers, borers, blades, backed blades, lunates and points, made mainly of jasper and chert. That tool scatter is what ties the painted rocks to a wider prehistoric presence.
| Where | Kethavaram, Orvakal mandal, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh (Rayalaseema) |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Kurnool |
| Nearest airport | Kurnool (Orvakal) airport, about 1 km away per Deccan Chronicle |
| Type | Open-air rock paintings on basalt surfaces |
| Pigment | Red ochre (per The Hindu, 2009) |
| Dating | Not firmly established; reports range from Palaeolithic to roughly 6,000 BC–200 AD |
| Protection / ticketing | No known entry fee or ticket counter; not a UNESCO site |
What the paintings show
You see red-ochre figures painted directly onto open basalt rock, not a curated gallery. The Deccan Chronicle lists deer, bulls, foxes, rabbits and human forms among the more than 100 figures, with the pigment described as iron-red oxide applied to the flat stone.
The 2009 report in The Hindu adds a useful detail on colour: only red paintings were found at Ketavaram, whereas at some other sites in the region green pictures were drawn using leaf juice. So at Ketavaram you are looking for a single palette of weathered red against grey-black rock, which takes a patient eye.
Because the figures are exposed to sun, rain and visitors rather than sheltered deep in a cave, condition varies and some panels are faint or damaged. Soft, raking light early or late in the day picks out the pigment far better than the flat glare of midday.
Ketavaram vs the Jwalapuram–Jurreru valley sites
Ketavaram near Orvakal is frequently confused with the Jwalapuram Palaeolithic area, but they are different places in different districts, and keeping them apart matters. Ketavaram is the Orvakal rock-painting site in Kurnool district; Jwalapuram is an excavated Stone Age locality in the Jurreru River valley, in Banaganapalle mandal of the new Nandyal district.
The district line itself changed recently. Andhra Pradesh reorganised its districts on 4 April 2022, carving a new Nandyal district out of Kurnool; Banaganapalle and the village of Jwalapuram fall within Nandyal, while Orvakal and Ketavaram remain in Kurnool district. Older write-ups that place everything in “Kurnool district” predate this split.
- Jwalapuram, Jurreru valley (Nandyal district): Petraglia and colleagues, writing in Science in 2007, associated the Youngest Toba Tuff (the ash from the roughly 74,000-year-old Toba super-eruption) with Middle Palaeolithic stone assemblages here, and argued hominins persisted across the eruption. Later studies, including work by Haslam and colleagues, debated and revised parts of that picture. This is a buried, excavated site, not a gallery of paintings.
- Katavani Kunta, Yaganti and Jurreru rock art (near Banaganapalle): a 2010 survey in the journal Antiquity by Taçon, Boivin, Korisettar, Petraglia and colleagues reported 63 rock-art sites across these three valleys, with Katavani Kunta alone holding at least 50. The name “Katavani Kunta” is easily muddled with “Ketavaram,” but it is a separate complex.
- Ketavaram (Orvakal, Kurnool district): the open-air red-ochre paintings this guide covers, near Kurnool airport.
In short, the Kurnool region holds several prehistoric rock-art clusters plus a famous Palaeolithic dig, and travel listings sometimes blend them. Where a source attaches a confident date or a Toba-eruption story to “Ketavaram,” check whether it is really describing Jwalapuram or the Jurreru-valley survey instead.
How old is Ketavaram rock art?
The honest answer is that Ketavaram’s age is not firmly established, and sources disagree. The Deccan Chronicle has variously described the art as dating “back to the Palaeolithic age” and as spanning the Mesolithic to the megalithic period, roughly 6,000 BC to 200 AD. No peer-reviewed scientific dating of the Ketavaram panels themselves appears in the sources available for this guide.
That spread is wide, and the labels are not interchangeable: a Palaeolithic claim implies a far greater antiquity than a 6,000 BC–200 AD range. Rock paintings are also notoriously hard to date directly, which is part of why figures given in news reports should be treated as provisional rather than settled fact.
The safest reading is that Ketavaram is a genuinely prehistoric site, supported by the associated stone-tool finds, but that any single precise age you see quoted is not yet confirmed by published scientific study. If you want firm chronologies for the region, the Jwalapuram excavations and the Antiquity rock-art survey are the better-documented reference points.
Best time to visit
The comfortable window is roughly October to February, when Rayalaseema’s heat eases and the rock is dry underfoot. Kurnool district is hot and dry for much of the year, so the cool months are far kinder for walking over open basalt to reach exposed panels.
| Season | Months | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Winter | Nov–Feb | Best for visiting; cool mornings and pleasant days. Clear light for photographing faded red figures. |
| Summer | Mar–Jun | Very hot and exposed on the rocks; go at dawn if at all, carry plenty of water, avoid midday. |
| Monsoon | Jul–Oct | Rain can make the basalt slippery and the rough approach road worse; greener but less comfortable. |
Whatever the season, aim for early morning or late afternoon. Low, angled light lifts weathered ochre off the rock in a way that harsh noon sun simply flattens.
How to reach Ketavaram
You reach Ketavaram via Kurnool, the district hub; there is no direct public transport to the rock-art site itself, so plan on a hired car or taxi for the last leg. The paintings sit near Orvakal, close to the airport, but the final approach road is rough.
By air: Kurnool’s airport at Orvakal (IATA code KJB, named after freedom fighter Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy) began commercial operations on 28 March 2021. Its Wikipedia airline listing shows IndiGo flights to Bengaluru, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam as of this guide’s last update; treat routes as changeable and reconfirm. If you route through the coast, our Visakhapatnam travel guide and Vijayawada travel guide help you plan the connecting leg.
By rail: Kurnool City railway station is the practical railhead, on the line between Guntakal and Secunderabad, with connections across the south. From the station, hire a taxi towards Orvakal for the site.
By road: Kurnool lies on National Highway 44 (the old NH-7), the main Hyderabad–Bengaluru corridor, so it is well served by state and private buses. The airport is about 18 km from the city on NH-40; the Ketavaram paintings are near the airport, but ask locally for the exact turn-off, as there is no signed tourist route.
| From | To Kurnool (approx.) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Kurnool (Orvakal) airport | ~18 km | On NH-40; nearest airport, close to the rock-art site |
| Nandyal | ~65 km | Headquarters of the new Nandyal district |
| Hyderabad | ~210 km | Larger metro airport and rail hub to the north |
| Bengaluru | ~340 km | Southern gateway; direct flights to Kurnool |
Distances are planning estimates; confirm with a live map and current timetables before you set out.
Things to see and do
The main activity is finding and reading the red-ochre panels on the Ketavaram basalt, ideally with someone who knows the ground, since the site is unmarked. Because it is a short, informal visit, most travellers pair it with Kurnool’s mapped attractions to make a full day.
| Spot / experience | What it is | Time needed |
|---|---|---|
| Ketavaram rock paintings | Open-air red-ochre figures of animals and humans on basalt; informal access, no ticketing known | 1–2 hours |
| Orvakal rock garden | Dramatic natural rock formations and a tourism park near the airport (check current timings and fees) | 1–2 hours |
| Kondareddy Buruju, Kurnool | A historic fortified watchtower in the city centre | About 1 hour |
| Konda Reddy fort / riverfront | Old-city heritage and the Tungabhadra–Handri riverfront at Kurnool | Half day |
Carry binoculars or a hand lens to pick out faint figures without touching the rock. Never trace, wet or chalk a panel to “bring it out” — that permanently damages the pigment.
A suggested short itinerary
One full day based in Kurnool is enough to see Ketavaram and the main city sights; a second day lets you add Orvakal and reach further out. Adjust for the season and daylight.
- Day 1 — Ketavaram and Orvakal: Drive out early to the Ketavaram paintings near the airport for the cool morning light. Continue to the Orvakal rock formations, then return to Kurnool for lunch and the city’s fort and riverfront in the afternoon.
- Day 2 (optional) — wider Rayalaseema: Use Kurnool as a base for a longer drive towards Nandyal and the Nallamala hills, or line up a visit to the Jurreru-valley archaeological country if you have arranged local guidance.
With only half a day, do Ketavaram at dawn and keep Kurnool’s indoor and shaded sights for the hotter middle of the day.
Where to stay
Stay in Kurnool city, which has the full range of accommodation; there is no lodging at the Ketavaram site itself. Book ahead during festivals and wedding season, when city rooms tighten.
- Budget: roughly ₹800–₹1,800 a night for simple lodges and basic hotels (indicative planning estimate — reconfirm; November 2026).
- Mid-range: roughly ₹2,000–₹4,500 a night for business-style hotels with a restaurant (indicative — reconfirm).
- Upper / premium: roughly ₹5,000 and up for the city’s better hotels (indicative — reconfirm).
Andhra Pradesh Tourism (APTDC) properties and private hotels along the main roads are worth checking directly for current tariffs, as rates move with season and demand.
Food to try
Eat the Rayalaseema-Andhra repertoire in Kurnool; there are no eateries at the site, so carry water and a snack for the rock walk. The regional cooking leans spicy, with plenty of chilli and tamarind.
- Ragi sangati (steamed finger-millet balls eaten with spicy curry or sambar) — a Rayalaseema staple.
- Natu kodi pulusu (country-chicken curry in a tangy, peppery gravy).
- Andhra meals (a rice thali with rasam, pappu/lentils, pickles and a fiery chutney) from city canteens.
Carry refillable water and a few snacks. On the walk to the rocks there is no reliable place to buy food or drink.
Budget breakdown
A one- to two-day Kurnool-based trip to Ketavaram is inexpensive, because the site has no entry fee and the main cost is local transport. The table assumes one person, two days, mid-range choices, excluding the long-distance fare to Kurnool.
| Item | Estimate (₹) | Assumption |
|---|---|---|
| Accommodation (1 night) | 2,000–4,500 | Mid-range hotel in Kurnool |
| Local taxi / car | 1,500–3,000 | Half to full day for Ketavaram and Orvakal |
| Food | 500–1,000 | Two days, local eateries |
| Guide (optional) | 500–1,500 | Local driver-guide who knows the site |
| Rough total | 4,500–10,000 | Excludes long-distance fare to Kurnool |
These are planning estimates only; confirm live rates before you travel.
Permits, access and rules
No inner-line or special-area permit applies to Kurnool district, so Indian and foreign visitors do not need one for Ketavaram. There is no known ticket counter or published entry fee for the paintings as of November 2026, and the site is not formally developed for tourism; access appears informal and the approach road is poor.
Because the panels are exposed and have already suffered graffiti and weathering, treat them with museum-grade care: do not touch, wet, chalk or trace the pigment, do not scratch names into the rock, and carry out all litter. The Deccan Chronicle has repeatedly reported the site’s neglect, so responsible visitors genuinely help by leaving no trace.
For photography, natural-light stills for personal use are fine. For drones or any commercial shoot, confirm current rules with the district administration and note that India’s drone regulations restrict flying near airports — relevant here, given how close the site is to Kurnool airport.
Practical tips
- Go with a local: the site is unmarked and the road is rough. A Kurnool-based driver or guide saves time and protects the paintings.
- Timing: start early; open basalt gets very hot by late morning for much of the year, and low light shows the figures best.
- Footing and sun: wear grippy shoes for uneven rock; carry a hat, sunscreen and more water than you think you need.
- Money and network: draw cash and rely on UPI in Kurnool city; carry some notes for the trip out, where options thin.
- Health: Kurnool has a government general hospital and private clinics; the site itself has no facilities, so take a basic kit.
- Solo women: Kurnool is a busy district city; for the unmarked, isolated rock site, going with a known local guide or a small group is the sensible choice.
- Respect the site: photograph, do not touch. The pigment is fragile and the paintings are unprotected.
Nearby places
Ketavaram pairs naturally with the rest of the Kurnool–Nandyal belt, so build a short loop rather than a single out-and-back.
| Place | Distance from Kurnool (approx.) | Why go |
|---|---|---|
| Orvakal rock garden | ~18 km | Striking natural rock formations near the airport |
| Nandyal | ~65 km | District town and base for the Nallamala hills and Jurreru-valley country |
| Belum Caves | ~105 km | Long underground limestone cave system (check timings and tickets) |
| Yaganti | ~100 km | Temple and hill setting; part of the wider regional rock-art landscape |
Frequently asked questions
Where exactly is Ketavaram rock art located?
Ketavaram (Kethavaram) rock art is at Orvakal mandal, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, in the Rayalaseema region. The Deccan Chronicle reports the paintings sit about one kilometre from Kurnool’s Orvakal airport. The site is unmarked and the approach road is rough, so local help is useful to find it.
How old are the Ketavaram paintings?
The age is not firmly settled. Press reports range from a Palaeolithic claim to a Mesolithic-to-megalithic span of roughly 6,000 BC to 200 AD. No peer-reviewed scientific dating of the Ketavaram panels appears in available sources, so treat any single figure as provisional and cross-check before repeating it as fact.
Is Ketavaram the same as Jwalapuram?
No. Ketavaram is the Orvakal rock-painting site in Kurnool district. Jwalapuram is a separate excavated Palaeolithic site in the Jurreru River valley, in Banaganapalle mandal of Nandyal district, created from Kurnool in 2022. They are often confused but lie in different districts and are different kinds of sites.
Do I need a permit or ticket to visit Ketavaram?
No special permit is required, as Kurnool district has no inner-line restrictions for Indian or foreign visitors. There is no known ticket counter or published entry fee for the paintings as of November 2026. Access is informal and the site is undeveloped, so visit responsibly and never touch the fragile pigment.
How do I reach Ketavaram from outside Andhra Pradesh?
Travel via Kurnool. Kurnool’s Orvakal airport has IndiGo flights to Bengaluru, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam per its Wikipedia listing; reconfirm routes. Kurnool City station and NH-44 buses from Hyderabad and Bengaluru also work. From Kurnool, hire a taxi towards Orvakal for the final rough-road leg.
What do the Ketavaram paintings depict?
The figures are painted in red ochre and, per the Deccan Chronicle, number more than 100, showing deer, bulls, foxes, rabbits and human forms on flat basalt rock. The Hindu reported in 2009 that only red paintings occur at Ketavaram, with stone tools found nearby pointing to a prehistoric presence.
Last updated and sources
Go if prehistoric rock art and quiet, undeveloped sites appeal to you, and you are content to travel with a local guide and tread lightly. The cool, dry months from November to February are the time to do it.
Last updated: 2 November 2026. Fees, timings and permits change — reconfirm with official sources before you travel.
Sources: Deccan Chronicle (Kethavaram at Orvakal mandal, ~1 km from Kurnool airport, 100+ red figures of deer/bulls/foxes/rabbits/humans, dating range, UNESCO pitch); Stone Pages, citing The Hindu (Jan 2009) (red-ochre paintings, stone-tool finds in jasper and chert, AP Department of Archaeology and Museums team under P. Channa Reddy); Taçon, Boivin, Korisettar, Petraglia et al., “New rock art discoveries in the Kurnool District” (Antiquity, 2010) (63 rock-art sites across Katavani Kunta, Yaganti and Jurreru valleys near Banaganapalle); Petraglia et al., Science (2007) (Jwalapuram, Jurreru valley, Youngest Toba Tuff and Middle Palaeolithic assemblages); Wikipedia, Nandyal district (district formed from Kurnool on 4 April 2022; Banaganapalle and Jwalapuram within it); Wikipedia, Orvakal (Orvakal mandal in Kurnool district); Wikipedia, Kurnool Airport (Orvakal airport, IATA KJB, opened 28 March 2021, IndiGo routes, NH-40 distance). Accessed November 2026.
