| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
KAIGARA Toru Lect. Dept. of Foreign Language, Kansai University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 専任講師
FURUKAWA Masahide Division of Environmental Health, National Institute of Radiological Science, 放射線医学総合研究所, 技官
YONEDA Fumitaka Lect. Dept. of Literature, Kansai University, 文学部, 非常勤講師
HASHIMOTO Seiji Prof. Dept. of Literature, Kansai University, 文学部, 教授 (50067633)
YAMAOKA Taizo Prof. Dept. of Literature, Kansai University, 文学部, 教授 (50067576)
TANJI Teruyoshi Prof. Dept. of Literature, Kansai University, 文学部, 教授 (00067555)
SONODA Koyu Prof. Dept. of Literature, Kansai University, 文学部, 教授 (40067492)
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| Research Abstract |
Kansai University, in collaboration with the Archaeological Survey of India, had conducted a series of excavations at Saheth site, a famous Buddhist site, from 1987 to 1989. With a view to reveal the relationship between the results of the excavation at Saheth site, we started another excavation at Maheth site which was a city site in neighbor with the Buddhist site.
As a result of excavation, chronologically, four phases were established according to the dominant potteries, viz. Phase I : the Black-and-red ware and Black Slipped Ware period(earlier than 7th or 8th centuries B.C.), Phase II : the fine Northern Black Polished Ware period(6th to 4th centuries B.C., including the lifetime of Buddha), Phase III : the coarse Northern Black Polished Ware period(3rd to 1st centuries B.C.), Phase IV : Red Ware period(later than A.D. 1st century ; roughly contemporaneous with the period of Saheth site).
As to the horizontal distribution of the remains, we discovered a number of pits in 5th or 6th centuries or so. Among them, some were fire places, including a pottery kiln, and the others a series of post-holes.
In concluding the results, it should be noted that the site had been inhabited stably during the Buddha's era(Phase II), and that in those days people had not used burnt bricks as the constructing material in contrast to the later period(Phase IV), which was revealed amply at Saheth site.
Historically speaking, Indian subcontinent in the 1st millennium B.C. witnessed a large scale social reform into the state formation including the emergence of city. Of course, it should reflect in the material aspects of society, which we can recognize archeologically. Although Maheth site has great potentiality to enable us to solve the part of this problem, the knowledge obtained from this excavation is so little that we shuold owe to further excavations to say anything.
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