Road crew digs up 12th century pot of gold in Chhattisgarh village

  • | Sunday | 15th July, 2018

There were 22 large and 35 small gold coins, plus a silver coin and a gold earring, the Kondagaon collector said. Last year, on June 20, the archaeology department unearthed a 4th Century gold coin from Rajim with a unique ‘repose technology imprint’, exclusively found in Chhattisgarh. Archaeologists are studying the coins and believe they were minted by the Yadav dynasty, dating back to 12th and 13th century. Curious, she dropped the shovel and dug with her bare hands — only to unearth a pot of gold. The script inscribed on the coins was prevalent during the time of Yadav dynasty, which ruled over Vidarbha (Maharashtra).

RAIPUR: A woman digging the ground for road work in Bastar's Kondagaon district hit something metallic on July 10. Curious, she dropped the shovel and dug with her bare hands — only to unearth a pot of gold. Archaeologists have dated the treasure to the 12-13th Century.Other workers on the road crew swarmed around but no one dared touch it. The belief is that anyone who dips their hand into buried treasure is cursed. Gingerly, they upturned the soil covered pot and out tumbled 57 gold coins, a silver coin and a gold earring.For villagers, it’s an auspicious moment to find ancient treasure so they cleaned the soiled coins and performed rituals, symbolizing it as part of God and handed it over to collector Neelkanth Tekam, said an official, denying the possibility that some villagers may have kept any of the coins.“Their belief system doesn’t allow them to steal buried wealth. They worship it and hand it over to administration. They believe if they steal, their family would be cursed,” the officer said.The spot where the pot was unearthed is in Keshkal block, about 60km from the district headquarters. Officials of Kondagaon administration said that sarpanch Nehrulal Baghel informed them that a woman road worker, named Gainti, has dug up an earthen pot of treasure. There were 22 large and 35 small gold coins, plus a silver coin and a gold earring, the Kondagaon collector said. Archaeologists are studying the coins and believe they were minted by the Yadav dynasty, dating back to 12th and 13th century. The script inscribed on the coins was prevalent during the time of Yadav dynasty, which ruled over Vidarbha (Maharashtra). The Yadav state expanded to Dandakaranya, which includes seven districts of Bastar in present-day Chhattisgarh , said experts.A retired professor of archaeology, Dr L S Nigam, told TOI, “I have seen photographs of the gold coins found in Kondagaon and they definitely seem to be coins of Devgiri from Yadavas between 11th and 13th centuries.It’s essential to identify the ruler to know the exact date the coins belong to. During ancient days, these coins used to be exchanged during trading and mutual relations between states and gold was — and has always been — superior to all other metals, which is why it encouraged hoarding.” These coins are also popularly known as Padmatanka and they have been recovered from Chhattisgarh earlier, too. They vary in sizes because of difference in their weight and denominations. Explaining the significance of the find, veteran archaeologist of state archaeology department Rahul Singh said that a large number of gold coins were found about 30 years back from Adenga, about 10km from where this discovery was made. “This location and nearby areas have a lot of archaeological potential as large-scale excavation was done at Gardhanora, 5-6km from Adenga, in 1991 under state government orders. Unique pieces of art and structures were recovered, dating back to the 5th Century,” Singh said, adding that on the basis of relics found in archaeological surveys, it’s known that Dandakaranya’s history begins with Nal dynasty in 5th Century.However, it's also been revealed in studies that Devgiri’s Yadavs on Maharashtra border had trade relations with north western part of Bastar and adjoining part including the location around Keshkal, Singh elaborated. In a similar incident on July 22, 2015, three ancient gold coins were unearthed by labourers building a toilet under Swachh Bharat Mission in Dhobni region of Baloda Bazaar district. The coins dated to Sarabhapuriya dynasty of early 6th Century. Last year, on June 20, the archaeology department unearthed a 4th Century gold coin from Rajim with a unique ‘repose technology imprint’, exclusively found in Chhattisgarh. While more than 400 such coins have already been found from different parts of state, this one belongs to the era of Mahindraditya.

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