Possible Buddhist Monastery Uncovered in India

News June 20, 2016

SHARE:

GUJARAT, INDIA—The Indian Express reports that structures resembling a Buddhist monastery have been unearthed in the ancient city of Vadnagar in western India. In the seventh century A.D., Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang wrote about ten Buddhist monasteries in India, including in the city of Vadnagar. “We have unearthed six or seven monastic cells but the entire planning can only be ascertained after extended excavation,” said archaeologist Madhulika Samanta of the Archaeological Survey of India. She thinks the entire complex was square-shaped and had an entrance and a verandah on its northern side. Traces of a water management system and metallurgical workshops were also found. More than 4,000 artifacts, including religious sculptures, pottery, and silver and copper coins, have been recovered. The earliest building phase of the complex could date back to the first century A.D. Modern structures built by locals on the site have prevented further research. For more, go to “Letter from India: Living Heritage at Risk.”

  • Features May/June 2016

    An Overlooked Inca Wonder

    Thousands of aligned holes in Peru’s Pisco Valley have attracted the attention of archaeologists

    Read Article
    (Courtesy Charles Stanish)
  • Letter from Florida May/June 2016

    People of the White Earth

    In Florida’s Panhandle, tribal leaders and archaeologists reach into the past to help preserve a native community’s identity

    Read Article
    (Mike Toner)
  • Artifacts May/June 2016

    Medieval Spoon Finial

    Read Article
    (© Suffolk County Council)
  • Digs & Discoveries May/June 2016

    Dressing for the Ages

    Read Article
    (Courtesy Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology)