The Kailasanatha temple, a 1250 years old temple is located in Utteramerur, Kancheepuram district, Tamil Nadu. The superstructure of the temple is made of brick masonry, which is seated over granite stone basement. The cracks which have appeared in the stone basement were repaired using 'stone stitching method', which is popular under concrete fastening techniques and is implemented on the stone basement. Before the implementation, miniature samples were prepared and tested in the laboratory. They were stitched using steel bars in the normal and inclined to the crack direction. The cracks were bound together and drill holes were made across the cracks. Anchor bars were arranged in the drilled holes after proper cleaning, followed by filling with chemical agent for bonding. After curing, the stitched miniature samples were tested under flexure and shear loading conditions. The test results showed that the stitched miniature samples were found to carry the expected load. Further, as the embedment depth of the anchor bars increased, the load carrying capacity was found to increase. © 2012 Taylor & Francis Group.