Mr. Deba Nayak, i request u to send an article for the quarterly bengali magazine ANANYA published from Dhanbad. Your article will be published in English. Pl give me ur postal address so that i can send our mag to you. Historical article with 4-5 a4 size page will be appreciated. Thanks.
Prof.(Dr) D K Sen EDITOR 3-D, 4th Floor, Luby Circular Road, DHANBAD 826001 JHARKHAND Mo: 9431169108 ------------------------------------------------------- --- deba nayak <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > If one asks what does Bhubaneswar have in common > with archaeological sites such as Giza, Tikal and > Lepcis Magna, the answer would be Sishupalgarh, > located 12km from the capital, the remains of an > ancient city containing evidence of a life both > urban and economically strong. > Located 45km inland from the Bay of Bengal, the > city existed approximately between the 3rd century > BC to the 4th century AD. > Professor B.B. Lal, who found the western > gateways, first excavated the site in 1948 and 1950. > Work again began in 2000 with R.K. Mohanty of the > department of archaeology of Deccan College > Postgraduate and Research Institute (Pune) and > Monica L. Smith of Cotsen Institute of Archeology in > University of California. > Excavations began oce more in 2005 and continue to > be carried out in phases. > The project is being conducted under a research > permit from the Archaeological Survey of India. So > far, excavations have unearthed an urban core zone > graced with an earthen rampart, stone columns and > stone-lined water reservoirs. The present team has > also exposed 18 pillars and associated structures on > a mound within the fortification wall. > “This 2,500-year-old city was huge and is one of > the best preserved public places in India,” said > principle investigator Mohanty. The project goal is > to comprehend how ancient cities grew and developed > from the perspective of the ordinary inhabitants. > That the city was an important site is > comprehended from its location — its within a > walking distance to a Buddhist monument (Ashokan > edict at Dhauli — the site of the Kalinga war) and a > series of elaborate carved caves of the Jain > religious tradition (Khandagiri and Udayagiri > hills). > “We were confused when the pillars were first > exposed as to why they were there as they were > placed so haphazardly. Now we feel it was probably a > large hall or a meeting place. The pillars must be > part of a gigantic structure, used for public > gatherings Sockets in the top of the pillar indicate > they might have some wooden rod running into it,” > said Smith. > Every year the researchers work for a month or two > according to the time available. > One of the rewarding aspects of the project has > been the inclusion of students and research scholars > from all over. Nearly 50 graduate students and > professionals from US, India, Mauritius, Bangladesh > and Cambodia work on the project. The excavations > are scheduled to continue for the next two years. > The team that arrived here in the first week of > January 2008 found remains of ordinary houses made > of brick and stone footings that would have > supported buildings of compacted mud. > Excavations also revealed a variety of objects, > not just pottery, but bangles, beads, pendants and > earrings. > “Although we tend to think of excessive > consumption as a modern trait, investigations of > ancient cities show that people enthusiastically > produce and discard goods in mass quantities > whenever they can. At Shishupalgarh a large number > of bowls and jar fragments were found which were > used once or twice and then thrown away, much like > today’s disposable cups,” said Smith. > > >
