Iron Age, Satavahana era remnants found in AP: Archaeologists

Updated on: Saturday, February 11, 2012

A team of archaeologists and historians have discovered remnants of the Iron Age and Satavahana era from Mahabubnagar district of Andhra Pradesh, a senior official said.

"A series of 20 megalithic burial cairn circles was discovered on a hillock in Madugula village of Mahabubnagar region yesterday," AP Archaeology and Museums Department Director P Chenna Reddy said.

"It's an important and first time discovery in Mahabubnagar," he said.

An Archaeology team, headed by E Sivanagi Reddy, officer on special duty, discovered the site. The burials are encircled by 14 to 20 huge boulders, in which the actual cist burials are topped by a huge capstone that are datable to 1000 BC, Chenna Reddy said.

The team, during its exploration, also discovered a huge Satavahana site spanning 100 acres, littered with bricks, red polished ware (pottery of different sizes), shell bangle pieces, iron slogs and stone millers, datable from 1st century BC to 2nd century AD on the north-east corner of the village, he said.

"An earthen rampart with a moat was also found, confirming it as a Satavahana fortified settlement. More study on the site may yield valuable material on the culture of the Satavahanas," Chenna Reddy said.

The team also explored two other megalithic sites, located at Irwin and Charagonda in the district, wherein, about a hundred cairn circles were discovered by the team that are datable to 1000 BC, he said.

Iron Age, Satavahana era remnants found in AP: Archaeologists

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