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Vedic colony unearthed in Uttar Pradesh

The remains of an ancient settlement dating back to the Later Vedic Age have been discovered near Makarbai village in Uttar Pradesh's Mahoba district.

Unearthed by Dr D Paliwal, professor in the department of applied mechanics at Motilal Nehru Engineering College, Allahabad, this indicates that human settlement here continued from the Chalcolithic Age to the Mediaeval Period.

The recoveries date back to a period between 1000 BC and 200 AD, Prof Paliwal said.

The site is situated along the hills of Kali-Leek, north of the Vindhya and Kaimur ranges. It is confined to a triangular area, with a man-made stone rampart forming one of its three sides. Such mud-brick ramparts were also constructed for security in 600 BC in Kaushambi, Ujjain, Rajghat (old Varanasi), and other cities of ancient India built under the Magadha kings.

Polished red pottery and large bricks used in the wells at the site indicate that the settlement continued to exist during the reign of the Satavahanas and Kushans.

Other items found include iron arrowheads, clamps, glass and bangles of a variety of shapes and colours, a brass ring and copper coins. The arrowheads and clamps are dated 1000-600 BC, similar to those found at Hastinapur and Rajghat.

At least five abandoned wells have been sighted in and around the site. One of these has a square cross-section and is built of stone-slabs. Another, made of bricks, has a diameter of just one metre or so.

Some graves with stone-pillars also existed at the site. Figures of couples are engraved on these pillars, the men invariably shown in hunting poses, armed with bows, arrows and knives.

Prof Paliwal said that according to legends, when Hastinapur was flooded, the members of the Kuru clan moved to Kaushambi. A clan had its capital at Kaushambi and ruled over the region around Makarbai (180km from Kaushambi) in 600 BC.

"It is quite possible that the clan might have named this place as Makarvahini (Ganga), the mother of Bhishma," he said. "With the passage of time, it got distorted to Makarbai."

UNI

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