India News | Fresh Excavation to Begin Soon at Purana Qila in Delhi to Preserve Old Trenches
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. Archaeologists are all set to carry out a fresh round of excavation at Delhi's 16th century Purana Qila with an aim to expose and preserve the trenches that were excavated in previous such exercises, officials said on Tuesday.
New Delhi, Jan 17 (PTI) Archaeologists are all set to carry out a fresh round of excavation at Delhi's 16th century Purana Qila with an aim to expose and preserve the trenches that were excavated in previous such exercises, officials said on Tuesday.
During this season's excavation, the focus would also be on accomplishing the "traces of painted grey ware finding in stratigraphical context", they said.
"The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is all set to begin excavation at Delhi's Purana Qila again. The excavation will be led by Vasant Swarnkar and would be the third season of excavation at Purana Qila after excavations in the year 2013-14 and 2017-18," the Culture Ministry said in a statement.
The objective of the latest excavation is the exposure and preservation of the trenches that were excavated in the previous years, it said.
Also Read | Uttar Pradesh: Minor Boy Killed by Unidentified Person in Prayagraj, Body Found With Throat Slit.
"Preliminary work like removal of grass, etc has begun, and excavation work will begin shortly," a senior official of the ASI said.
During the closure of the previous season's excavation, "evidence of layers predating the Mauryan period was found," the statement said.
Identified as ancient settlement of Indraprastha, a continuous habitation of 2,500 years at Purana Qila was established in earlier excavations, it said.
"The findings and artefacts unearthed in earlier excavations comprises painted grey ware, belonging to 900 BC, an earthen pottery sequence from Maurya to Shunga, Kushana, Gupta, Rajput, Sultanates and Mughal periods," the ministry said.
"Excavated artefacts such as sickles, parers, terracotta toys, kiln-burnt bricks, beads, terracotta figurines, seal and dealings, excavated earlier are now displayed at the Archaeological Museum inside the fort complex," it said.
Purana Qila was built by Sher Shah Suri and Mughal emperor Humayun. The fort stands on a site nestling thousands of years of history.
Padma Vibhushana Prof B B Lal also carried out excavation works inside the fort and its premises in the year 1954 and 1969-73, it said.
Archaeologist Lal, a stalwart in the field of Indian archaeology, had died in September 2022 aged 101.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)