Author: Mahmood Zaman
Publication: Dawn, Karachi
Date: June 2, 2002
Recent excavations at Taxila have
pushed back the history of the ancient settlement by another six centuries
to the neolithic age.
Earlier, artifacts collected by
Sir John Marshall had dated Taxila back to 518 BC. The new study also indicates
the existence of cities in the valley between 1200 BC and 1100 BC.
Potshreds and other terracotta,
found at the lowest occupational level, 15 feet in depth, is the main evidence
of the latest discovery which establishes that Taxila and the Indus Valley
Civilzation settlements of Moenjodaro and Harappa existed almost simultaneously.
Sir John, who excavated several
Taxila sites between 1913 and 1934, had found four occupational levels.
The latest study has unearthed six occupational levels which have been
listed afresh as pre-Achaemenian, Achaemenian, Macedonian, Mauriyan, Bactarian
Greek and Scythian.
Archaeology Department and the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, have also found
for the first time an integrated drainage system comprising open as well
as covered drains.
The discovery of several wells also
establishes that fresh water was used for cooking and bathing.
Yet another discovery is that of
a hall and adjacent chambers which archaeologists understand were part
of a palace of the then ruler, King Ambhi, who received Alexander the Great
at this palace in 326 BC. The evidence of the hall is based on pillars
and walls which have been found at the Bhir Mound's fourth occupational
level.
The excavation started in September
1998 and is still going on. The preliminary report repudiates some of the
theories propounded in 1934 by Sir John Marshall regarding the age of the
three cities of Taxila - the Bhir Mound, Srikap and Sirsukh - and the Buddhist
monasteries around.
One such theory proposed by Sir
John, who became the first chief of the Archaeology Department in 1913
and immediately started excavating Taxila, was that the Bhir Mound city
was abandoned between the first century BC and the first century AD by
Bactarian Greeks who were the last inhabitants of the city. The latest
excavations have established that the city was not completely abandoned
and that it was later occupied by Scythians.
It has been found that the Taxila
people used to pull fresh water from community wells, of which have three
been discovered so far. Raised walls protected the wells from refuse.
A Mauriyan era drainage network
has also been found. It comprises a number of small drains which are connected
with the main drains which are also covered. This is the second ancient
site (Moenjodaro being the first) where such drains have been found.
Metal and terracotta utensils have
been found in the rooms, bathrooms and kitchens.
The palace where King Ambhi is believed
to have received Alexander the Great in 326 BC, has abundant evidence of
royal living. A kitchen and a bar have been unearthed on the palace site.
More than 600 ancient objects have
also been found from the site. They include terracotta pottery and clay
figurines. Objects made from shells, iron and copper have also been discovered
along with terracotta and semi-precious stone beads.
