Image: 3rd century BCE to 7th century CE Sannathi Sannati Sonti ancient city archaeological site, Karnataka India - 65

Description: Sannati – also referred to as Sannathi or Sonti or Sonthi in literature – by River Bhima is now a small remote village about 60 kilometers south of Gulbarga in northeast Karnataka, India (Hwy 149). It was the site of an ancient city by the Mauryan era (c. 3rd century BCE) and remained significant through the 1st-millennium CE and early 2nd millennium CE. It was completely destroyed, with mounds and natural growth covering the remains of history. Accidentally discovered in 1954 by Kapatral Krishna Rao but little studied, its significance was fully established in the 1980s after a series of archaeological excavations in and around the area. The local farmers and people had begun excavating the ancient bricks, polished slabs and panels they found in their farms, using them as construction material to build their homes and local temples. One such inscribed panel was found in Chandralamba temple, which led to the discovery of this site and ultimately the excavation of mounds in the region in the 1980s. The archaeological discoveries include pottery, many different types of coins, jewelry, bangles, terracotta figurines, and red ware. The larger items found are mostly Buddhist but include some Hindu such as the large statue of early Ganesha also found buried. The Ganesha and few other Hindu arts found here are damaged and defaced, while the older much larger collection of Buddhist arts and panels are in excellent form without any defacement but in fragments. These findings have been dated to between 3rd-century BCE to late 1st-millennium and early 2nd millennium. Included with the Buddhist stupa items discovered here are Ashoka edicts I, II, XII and XIV confirming the sites significance by about the 3rd century BCE. Some items found at this site are now in Gulbarga museum, while a local village museum hosts the other pieces under the protection and management of the Archaeological Survey of India.
Title: 3rd century BCE to 7th century CE Sannathi Sannati Sonti ancient city archaeological site, Karnataka India - 65
Credit: Own work
Author: Ms Sarah Welch
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication
License: CC0
License Link: http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en
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