KOLKATA : Rich historical artifacts dating back to 3,000 years have been unearthed from the Jajmau mound on the bank of the Ganga in Kanpur where archaeologists belonging to Uttar Pradesh State Archaeology Department (UPSAD) have been doing excavation work for the last two and half years.
Evidences of ancient and medieval India, including Pre-Mauryan, Mauryan and Kushana periods, have been found and the archaeologists are confident that further excavation at the site can help in collecting the remains of a 4,000 year-old civilization.
The UPSAD team is presently working on a 1,700 sq metres area of the mounds, which extend up to 4,500 sq metres. For the construction of a parallel river bridge at Jajmau on National Highway route number 25 (Lucknow-Jhansi), a part of the famous mound is also being demolished.
The team of archaeologists has found well planned town structures that include drains, streets, granaries, house complexes comprising kitchens and bathrooms that are made of mud and burnt bricks.
The excavation of copper coins, seals, terracotta beads, pieces of pottery and utensils, bone arrow head, Northern Black polished ware, semi precious stones and glaze ware pottery along with the findings of a well-planned town structure point to a major change in the living and planning standards of people during the Kushana period which dates between 130 BC and 185 AD, experts said.
“The findings at Jajmau Tila reveal that people during Kushana period became more organised,” an official of the UPSAD said and illustrated it with the presence of a huge storage jar having the capacity to store one tonne of grains.
The articles found from the excavation site are being taken to Birbal Sahani Institute of Palaeobotany in Lucknow for the radio-carbon dating process.
“We are making efforts to contact coin and seed experts to know details of the findings,” said Rakesh Tiwari, Director, UPSAD.
“The findings at Jajmau will have an important role in following the country’s history,” an UPSAD official said. Most of the articles bear the trademark of Mauryan period (322 BC to 185 BC).
“Semi precious stones indicate that ornaments became an important part in the dressing of a male or females during the Mauryan period,” the official said. Lakhauri bricks used for construction of house complexes and glaze ware pottery are the two important evidences of medieval period recovered from Jajmau mound.
