ARCHAEOLOGY
 

The Archaeological Survey, of India, during the period under report, continued to give its attention to the various fields of activity under its charge, an account of which follows:

Preservation of Monuments

A substantial programme of preservation of monuments, being the primary responsibility cf the Survey, was initiated in, different parts of the country. Special repairs were executed to the following important monuments : Maha-stupa at Amaravati, District Guntur, Mukhalingam temple, Mukhalingam, District Srikakulam, Parameswara temple at Gudimallam, District Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh; Aham Palace in Assam; Nirvana-stupa at Kushinagar and the excavated remains at Vaisali in Bihar; Zafar Mahal, Red Fort, Jantar Mantar and Roshanara Baradari in Delhi; Dwarkadhish temple at Dwarka, and three gates at Ahmedabad in Gujarat; Churches at Old Goa, Goa; Shaikh Chilli's tomb at Thanesar in Haryana; Bijapur monuments in Karnataka; Mattanchery palace at Cochin in Kerala; temples at Martand and Avantipura and Pathar Masjid in Kashmir; tomb of Muhammad Ghaus at Gwalior and Siva temple at Bhojpur in Madhya Pradesh; Raigadh Fort, District Kolaba and rock-cut caves at Ellora and Ajanta, District Aurangabad, Maharashtra; Sun Temple at Konarak and Varahi temple in Bhubaneswar, District Puri, Orissa; Bhatinda fort in Punjab; Ranathambhor Fort District Sawai Madhopur and Bharatpur fort in Rajasthan; Shore temple at Mahabalipuram, District Chingleput, Aivarkovil, and Kodumbalur, District Tiruchirappalli, in Tamil Nadu; Fatehpur Sikri and Taj Mahal complex in District Agra, and Bara Imambara, Lucknow, in Uttar Pradesh.

The celebrated temple of Jaganatha at Puri in Orissa which is an important centre of pilgrimage and known for its architectural style, is being declared a monument of national importance. The final notification is being issued. The repairs, which are to be initiated during this financial year, aim at stopping the leakage through the roof and strengthening the structures, by way of changing cracked and fractured members.

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Expedition Outside India

The Survey continued the work of conservation and preservation of the famous Buddhist rock-cut shrines at Bamiyan in Afghanistan. During this year the work at the shrine of the Big Buddha (55 m. high) was taken up. During the clearance work around the feet of the Buddha, the lower portion along with the pedestal on which Buddha stands, was cleared and stumps of later walls were exposed.

At the instance of the President of Afghanistan, the Survey also took up repairs to the late fifteenth century Timurid mosque, known as the shrine of Khwaja Parsa at Balkh. The structure had developed many cracks due to earthquake-shocks, and its front portion had sunk as a result of stagnation of water in the area around it and inside the underground chamber. The structure has been strengthened by filling in cracks, by providing arches along the intrados of the dome.

Explorations and Excavations

While the Survey has been largely concerned with the archaeology of the historical period, investigations in the prehistoric period were also continued. Of the latter work mention may,be made of the excavation of the palaeolithic site at Yasar, District Dhulia, in Maharashtra, which brought to light tools of the Early, Middle and Late Stone Ages. Sites of the Early and Middle Stone ages were also discovered in the Kurnool and Cuddapah Districts in Andhra Pradesh.

An outstanding discovery during the year has been that of a unique art treasure at Daimabad, in District Ahmadnagar, Maharashtra. It consists of four bronze objects, representing a chariot with two animals yoked to it; a rhinoceros; an elephant and a bull.

Of the historical sites excavated by the Survey, mention may be made of Mathura, where excavations were taken up in the area between Katra Kesava Deva and Mahavidya temple in the western sector of the city. The excavation among other things, brought to light almost complete outline of fortifications of the Saka-Kushan times. The limits of the Kushan settlement outside the fortifications still remain to be established.

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Excavations at Amaravati, in District Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, have unfolded evidence which has been divided into five periods, ranging in date between circa fourth century B.C. and eleventh century A.D. The excavations have further helped in providing a firm basis for the chronological framework relating to the early history of the Maha- Chaity. The occurrence of the sherds of the Northern Block Polished Ware in the lower levels has provided confirmatory evidence of the mechanism of diffusion of the Ware in this part of the country.

Further excavations at Piprahwa, District Basti, in Uttar Pradesh, which has been identified with ancient Kapilavastu, brought to light the remains of a large house-complex with as many as sixteen rooms. Excavations were further continued in the eastern monastery, where burnt clay sealings had been found earlier, and revealed that it was quadrangular in plan with thirtythree cells around a central courtyard. Nearly a dozen burnt clay sealings bearing inscriptions were found besides other antiquities.

Excavations were continued at Antichak, in District Bhagalpur, Bihar, which is identified with the famous university-site of Vikramsila. During the course of the work, besides other structures, a 3.63 m. wide passage, rammed with kankar, was exposed to a length of 15.25 m. to the east of northern gate of the monastery. Among the important finds, mention may be made of a small bronze image of Avalokitesvara; to terracotta sealings, one of which has an inscription and the other having two triangular symbols; a torso of Buddha in black stone; ivory dice; a copper bell; iron objects and terracotta animal figurines.

Excavations at Virabhadra, Rishikesh, District Debra Dun. Uttar Pradesh, brought to light remains of two brick temple-, belonging to the Gupta and post-Gupta periods, besides unfolding important evidence regarding the antiquity of the site.

Chemical Preservation

Chemical preservation was done at the following monuments; paintings in the Buddhist monasteries at Tabo, District Lahul and Spiti, Himachal Pradesh; polychrome enamel decorations in Lotan Mosque, Gaur, District Malda, West Bengal; Sun Temple, Konarak, District Puri, Orissa; paintings at Ajanta in District Aurangabad, Maharashtra, in terms of the recommendations of

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the Experts Committee, paintings and reliefs in the Kailasanatha temple at Kanchipuram, District Chingleput in Tamil Nadu; paintings on the ceiling of Rang Mahal, Red Fort, Delhi and Churches at Old Goa, Goa.

Biography

An important inscription of the Satavahana Period (second century A.D.), discovered recently in Banvasi (ancient Vaijayanti), was copied. Besides, inscriptions in the area around Khandagiri in Orissa were copied.

More than three hundred Arabic and Persian inscriptions found at various places in Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh were copied and examined. Among the outstanding inscriptions the following deserve mention; QutabShahi inscription from District Nalgonda, Andhra Pradesh; an epitaph of Shamsi nobleman, found at Mehrauli, near Delhi; new record of Ghiyathu'd-Din Balban, reported to be originally, from Narnaul, District Mahendragarh, Haryana, and now in Patiala. Museum; inscription of the Tughlaqs and Sultans of Gujarat and other inscriptions of the fourteenth century from Districts Kaira and Mahesana and eighteenth-nineteenth century inscriptions from Cambay in Gujarat; records of Humayun and hitherto- unnoticed sixteenth century inscriptions from Haryana; records of Shah Jahan from District West Nimar in Madhya Pradesh; 16th, 17th century inscriptions from District Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan, etc.

Publications

During the year, considerable progress was made in regard to the publications programme of the Survey : Ancient India, No. 22. Indian Archaeology 1965-66 and 1970-71, Epigraphic Indica Vol. XXXVIII, pt. 4, were published; New editions of the guide-books to Ajanta and Sanchi were reprinted. Picture post-card sets of the following sites were printed, Konarak, Set A, Gingee, Thanjavur; Sringeri, Warangal, Hanamkonda and Palampet; Halebid and Somanathpur.

Indian Archaeology 1971-72 has already been sent to press, while the issues for the years 1972-73 and 1966-67 are being made pressready. Ancient India, No. 23 and a next double number are also being taken up for editing. The guide to Old

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Goa; Kanchipuram; Martand, Avantipur, and Pandrathan; Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum; Vol. VI, Inscriptions of the Silaharas, by Prof. V.V. Mirashi and the Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Inscriptions of the Paramaras by Dr. H.V. Trivedi are being made press-ready.

The following publications were in different stages of printing; guide-books to Sanchi, Rajgir (both in Hindi), Delhi and its neighbourhood, Khajuraho and Mandu, South Indian Inscriptions, Vols. XVIII, XXI and XXII, and Annual Report on Indian Epigraphy for the year 1973-74,