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The ASI digs up evidence of dynasties settlements in 45 villages
The ASI digs up evidence of dynasties settlements in 45 villages

www.arqueologiadelperu.com/the-asi-digs-up-evidence-of-dy...

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has stumbled upon thousands of archaeological specimens in around 45 villages falling within the 80-km stretch of the Girija valley in Aurangabad.

The Ellora Caves, near Khulabad, India [Credit: Panoramio]

Archaeologists said that the antiquities indicate the existence of rural settlements of the Satvahana dynasty, Vakataka dynasty, Yadava dynasty, Bahmani and Mughal, Maratha dynasties. They said that this stretch and the 51 villages in it have hitherto remained unexplored and were earlier thought to contain no archaeological remains of historically important dynasties. The find is therefore the first of its kind in Marathwada, indicating the existence of the rural settlements of these dynasties here.
An ASI archaeologist said that the recent explorations were undertaken along the Girija river valley. The Girija river originates from the hill station Mhaismal in Aurangabad and flows towards the east, meeting the Purna river. "The valley stretch is about 80km and has close to 51 villages, out of which 45 villages were found to have archaeological remains. The earliest sites whose evidence was found from here date back to the Satavahana period, from 2nd century BC to 2nd century AD. The remains we found also indicated that these sites continued to flourish as Vakataka dynasty sites as well. The Vakataka dynasty originated from the Deccan in the mid-third century of the current era and is responsible for the excavation of the Ajanta caves," he said.
The river stretch explored lies between the Ajanta and Ellora caves. The Ellora caves are on the western face of Mhaismal plateau. "Till now, we have only known about the kings of the Vakataka dynasty, but the dynasty did have a population of what one could call common folk. There is also evidence of the Yadava dynasty having lived here. There is, however, less evidence of the Yadava dynasty (9th century AD to 12th century AD) site here. Remains of the temples point to the Yadava dynasty having existed here. In one of the villages called Dongargaon, the remains of the Yadava temples have been used by the villagers to build another temple," he said.
The explorations also indicated the existence of the rural settlements of the Bahmani period, which spanned the 13th to 15th centuries.
Explaining the significance of the finds, archeologists said that earlier, apart from sites such as Paal and Bhokardan in the stretch, there have been no reports on the existence of any historical or archaeological remains. The recent finds are significant as they indicate the existence of the rural settlements of these dynasties in this region.
"The explorations were part of ASI's recent focus on ancient rural settlements. Earlier, archaeologists would focus more on urban settlements and would look for old cities or their remains. Rural archaeology has as much to say about dynasties as urban settlements," he said.Author: Neha Madaan | Source: The Times of India [May 24, 2015]

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The ASI digs up evidence of dynasties settlements in 45 villages

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