These temples were forgotten because of natural calamities. Trees and vines(climbing trees) overgrew and covered them for centuries and local people forgot that they ever existed until a British officer found one room under the trees. He gatheres local villager's with money and ordered them to cut the vegetation until he realised it was too big. He went back and came again with a large group of British explorers. The slow recovery/restoration work began in the early 1800s.