(Fwd) Labelled image of Asoka found

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IndiaArchaeology, Y Malaiya <ymalaiya> wrote:

 

FROM ELLA DATTA

 

New Delhi, June 5:

The first labelled image of King Asoka has been found.

 

 

In what has been described as a "momentous discovery", the

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has unearthed a panel at

Kanganhalli Mahastupa in Karnataka that depicts the emperor with his

queen surrounded by several women. The veneering slab is inscribed in

Brahmi script with the words "Rayo Asoko" (Asoka the Great).

 

An image in Sanchi had earlier been interpreted as Asoka's, but it was

not specifically labelled as such.

 

The archaeological survey stumbled onto the image while examining an

area in Gulbarga district where the government wanted to construct a

barrage on the Bhima river and had sought environmental clearance. The

ASI was brought in as the location of the proposed barrage was close

to Sannathi, an existing Buddhist site with Asokan rock edicts, on the

left bank of the Bhima. The ASI had not even declared the area as

protected.

 

A survey team led by K.P. Poonacha explored the proposed area. The

trial excavations began in 1997 and the digs soon yielded enough

material to undertake excavation on a large scale. The efforts yielded

an archaeological treasure. Says ASI director-general Komal Anand:

"Some 65 big panels carved with bas-relief have been unearthed. These

are thought to belong to the period stretching from the 1st century BC

to the 2nd century AD."

 

The excavations have uncovered the remains of a stupa with a diameter

of 19 m and a preserved lower and upper drum stretching up to a height

of 3.1 m. According to an ASI note, the site spans both the Hinayana

and the Mahayana phases of Buddhism.

 

Apart from the discovery of the inscribed image of Asoka, the

excavation had other immense significance, said senior archaeologists.

One is that the vibrant, robust style of bas-relief sculptures is

close in spirit to the Amaravati sculptures of Andhra Pradesh, now

housed in the British Museum in London.

 

This style was patronised by the regional dynasty of Satavahana kings

of the south. They also share a kinship with the Sanchi and Hharhut

styles of sculptures patronised by the Sungas. The Kanganhalli site is

another prime example of the heydays of Sunga/Satavahana art.

 

The carvings, made of limestone, represent emblems of Buddhist

religion, Jataka stories, seated sculptures of Buddha and so on. The

second key feature of the Kanganhalli excavations is that many of the

decorative features carry inscriptions mentioning names of donors, who

came from a large cross-section of society.

 

More significant, representations in high relief of Satavahana rulers

in procession depict rulers such as Simukha, Pulamavi.

 

The remains of the stupa lie scattered over an area of 2,000 sq m. The

ASI is now working on reconstructing the stupa. Work has stopped now

because of the scorching heat, but will resume in July, Anand said.

 

The organisation is also acquiring some surrounding land and will

create a garden to promote the site as a tourist spot. Needless to

say, it is now a protected site now and one can bid goodbye to the

barrage across Bhima.

 

 

(http://www.telegraphindia.com)