PANAJI, April 7 -- A recent Goa government notification seeking to protect 15 ancient monuments in the state has run into a wall of protest over the naming of a 16th-century pillory in Old Goa. Historians have objected to the state using the unofficial Konkani name Hat Katro Khambo (hand-cutting pillar) in the gazette instead of Pelourinho Novo, or New Pillory, alleging that the Department of Archaeology was institutionalising a "misleading narrative".

The solitary pillar of black basalt stands at a busy intersection near the Basilica of Bom Jesus, now in the literal shadow of a concrete flyover in the old city of Goa. The structure, resting on a weathered circular pedestal, bears a stone plaque identifying it as the Pelourinho Novo.

Bu...