1.1. Western India: Spatial Analyses of Trade Routes

Western India happened to be a busy arena of Indo-Mediterranean trade. We have discussed in chapter IV the evidence for port-sites on the Gujarat-Maharashtra coast. The Periplus enumerates the various Indian, Roman, Arabian and Persian commodities traded at the entrepot of Barygaza \ Bharuch. The seaguide also mentions the inland market-towns of the region such as Paethana\Paithan, Tagara\Ter and Ozene\Ujjain and refers to the various goods (semiprecious stones and cloth esp.) sent from these places for export to the west. The ports of the Indus\Gujarat trade zone can be best appreciated from our point of view as being the termini of several maritime commercial "segments" on the one hand and on the other, functioning as conduits\exchange centres not only for the immediate hinterland but equally for commodities arriving from the far Gangetic zone and Central Asia. Earlier we have discussed the maritime connections between western India and the ports of the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Persian Gulf. In particular, the harbour of Barygaza (modern Bharuch) functioned as a regular port of call for Arab and Mediterranean traders. One major reason for the prosperity of ports such as Barbaricum and Barygaza was the vast hinterland that they served. The Indo-Mediterranean searoute from Egypt constituted a faster, cheaper and safer channel of trade than the overland Silk Routes connecting Central Asia and Gandhara-Bactria with the Eastern Mediterranean. Besides the prolonged state of hostilities between the Romans and the Parthians (who controlled the overland routes through Iraq-Iran) did create difficulties for the movement of trade-goods across West Asia. All these factors must have worked to the advantage of the 'nuetral' Indo-Parthian\Kushan and Kshatrapan ports on of exportthe Lower Indus\Gujarat which received a heavy flow commodities from the northern regions. Added to the long-distance inland markets

TO TAXILA PANGMAHAL NAGARA SOPPARA A D KALA CHALL KUDA DABHOL TO SANSHOLA A BILLINO MATHURA VID 4 SHAMALA B MAHESHWAR ADAM KANZ SHOKARDARA PAUNAR KAUSAM KARNAJA SISUP GARM F ADHULMATTA PEDJA ANAL PALUR PAITHAN NEVA SA & TER KONDAPURA 4 KANARIA EMARAD MADGAON MADHANPLA KUDAVELLI ANABAR AJUNAKONDA ESMARAM KODUMANAL NODUNGALLUR LOCATION OF MUDRES G DHARANIKOTA OHANTASALA H SHATTIPROLU & ARKAMEDU AKAVERSPATT LAGANULAM ANI TO SOKTA A CHANDRA KE TUGARH 1. BHAGAVANPURAM 2. SALIHUNDAM 3. VINUKONDA 4. GUMADA 5. KOTAPAD 6. BIMLIPATNAM 7. LINGARAJUPALEM 1. RAJAHMUNDRY FIG. 39 DISTRIBUTION OF MEDITERRANEAN ARTEFACT ALONG EARLY HISTORIC LAND ROUTES IN INDI LEGEND SITE YEILDING MEDITERRANEAN ARTEFACTS EARLY HISTORIC SITE EARLY HISTORIC LAND ROUTE A MAJOR LAND ROUTE REACHING COAST 251 251

252 was the rich local/regional hinterland producing export-goods. The area of the Lower Indus produced fine cotton (Periplus Maris Erythraei 39). Also, the Periplus (sec. 41) informs that the Saurashtra region produced abundant foodstuff like wheat, rice, sesame oil and clarified butter. These were precisely the edibles imported into Moscha, the island of Socotra and the Somali "far-side" ports (Periplus Maris Erythraei 14, 31). Iron and semi-precious stone were other major export-commodities produced in western India (discussion in Chapters. III & IV and below; Figs. 16 & 17). We have traced trans-oceanic contact between western India and Indian Ocean lands (Persian Gulf, South Arabia, East Africa) and the Red Sea region (Ethiopia, Egypt, Israel/Palestine) in Chapter IV. In this section, the focus is upon stratigraphic analysis of important excavated sites of western India revealing archaeological evidence of early Indo-Mediterranean commerce However, before approaching the stratigraphic data the major land routes of western India and their 'role' as facilitators of Indo-Roman commerce are discussed. Route A One of the important routes connecting trade-ports on the Gulf of Khambhat with resource-areas in Gujarat and further north is plotted as Route A in Fig. 39. This route is visualised as starting from the coastal settlement of Nagara at the head of the Gulf of Khambhat and leading upto passes in the Aravalli ranges immediately north of the fortified Early Historic settlement at Shamalaji The efficacy of this route for coastal/sea trade is made clear by the excavators of Shamalaji To quote from the Shamalaji excavation report: "The river Meshvo probably helped the traditional traders, who moved along its banks, and reached the interior from ports of the Arabian Sea. This route entered hilly track from Shamalaji, so this industrial habitation might have acted as an intermediate station for these traders, and this function probably led to further development of this town' ° (Mehta and Patel 1967:51). Mediterranean amphorae pieces have been found at the inland trading station of Shamalaji as well at Devnimori, an Early Historic Buddhist stupa-site situated a few kilometres from the former. Devnimori has also yielded a bronze statuette of Atlas (see Chapter II). The spread of Mediterranean artefacts along the river Meshvo route (Nagara Shamalaji - Devnimori) continue further. North of Shamalaji, the land route from the Gujarat coast must have touched major Early Historic settlements in southern Rajasthan Specifically, we can envisage a major crossroad in the Chittorgarh area, represented by the sites of Gilund and Nagari. Gilund, in particular, seems to have dominated the passage to Gujarat (Fig. 39). Exploration of the site conducted by me -

253 in company of colleagues from the Deccan College showed high mound formations spread approx. 500 x 250 m. A handle of a jar picked up from the site could be that of an amphora fragment (Pl. VIII.a). Similar handle-fragments were picked up by Mr. Kurush Dalal of the Deccan College from the site of Marmi in Udaipur District (personal observation). To these suspected amphora pieces we may add the discovery of a Hellenistic clay lamps from the Early Historic levels at Balathal in Udaipur District (Misra et al. 1995: 57-80; section under Lamps in Chapter II). The first signs of Mediterranean material in southern Rajasthan indicates that Roman commerce was penetrating the Aravalli barrier. Besides tracing the progression of the trade route, the spread of Mediterranean trade indicators on the GujaratRajasthan border suggests an another significant commercial dynamic. The area of southern Rajasthan is rich in resources which were sought by traders from the Mediterranean. Three major items of export from this region can be confidently listed: iron, semi-precious stone and forest products. In his ethnographic reconstruction of tribal trading patterns with the entrepot of Barygaza in the early centuries A.D., Stiles (1993: 153-167; 1994 b) includes southern Rajasthan as the active hinterland area from where Bhils supplied semi-precious stone and forest products to overseas traders. Raw ore and nodules of agate must have been sent from southern Rajasthan to the beadmaking centres of Khambhat. No evidence of stone beadmaking industry has yet come to light in this region. However, the antiquity of a rich iron industry is attested. Current excavations at the site of Balathal (Udaipur Dist) by the Deccan College have brought to light a rich ironmaking centre dated to the early centuries of the Christian Era. Specifically, the evidence constitutes of a line of furnaces, copious amounts of slag and cowdung fuel stocks (personal observation). The evidence of ironmaking at Balathal is not isolated Remains of furnaces and slag have also come to light at Shamalaji (Mehta and Patel 1967: 51-54). A rich metallurgical tradition in southern Rajasthan is attested by the development of copper extracting in the Udaipur area going back to Harappan times (Hegde and Ericson 1992:59-69). Good quality iron from industrial centres like Balathal and Shamalaji must have constituted part of the Ariacan iron exported to the west from Barygaza Bharuch (Periplus Maris Erythraei 6, see section under Iron & Steel in Chapter III). The spread of Roman trade indicators across the Aravalli barrier signify contacts further north. In particular, the routes branching out from Gilund and Nagari must have traversed across Rajasthan to touch the settlement of Rangmahal in the Bikaner District of Rajasthan. Excavations at Rangmahal by a Swedish expedition have brought to light Red Polished Ware 'sprinklers' of the type excavated in western

254 India as also chank from the Kathiawar region of Gujarat (Rydh 1959:147-149, 189- 195). The ceramics and other material from Rangmahal also show affinity with finds from Taxila (Rydh 1959:155-156). The archaeological evidence suggests that a major land route was in existence through Rajasthan in the Early Historic period connecting the ports of Gujarat with north-west of the subcontinent. ! Route B: This specific the line of communication, beginning at the great port of Brgukaccha Barygaza (modern Bharuch), charts its way upstream to Maheshwar on the Narmada and then turns north towards Ujjain The Ujjain-Bharuch stretch is mentioned in the Periplus (49) as the conduit for a range of northern (Gangetic) goods reaching the coast. As Route B in Fig. 39 shows, the conduit from Bharuch can be plotted through Maheshwar - Ujjain Vidisha - Mathura on the basis of Mediterranean artefact distribution. Maheshwar, in particular, seems to have been a major inland crossroad. Maheshwar, or ancient Mahismati also received men and goods on the way to northern India from ports of the Western Deccan. The Suttanipata describes the journey of Sage Bharavi's disciples from an area south of Paithan to northern India through Maheshwar and Ujjain (Deo and Gupte 1974:3). Paithan can be identified with the ancient Pratisthanpur, the capital of the Imperial Satavahana dynasty (Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology Vol. II: 325; Figs. 39, 40). Paithan is also the same as the settlement of Paethana mentioned in the Periplus (51), which calls it an inland market-town exporting semi-precious stones. The remains of Early Historic Paithan are represented by large mound formations spread over 4 sq. km on the banks of the river Godavari near the modern township. Small scale excavations at the site have revealed an Early Historic horizon underlaid by Chalcolithic levels. Explorations. at Paithan have yielded imitation Roman coins and coins of Augustus and Tiberius (Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology Vol.II: 325). A fragment of Roman glassware has also been recovered from the site (Stern 1992:115-117) Ancient Paithan lay at the crossroads. of two arterial highways leading to important trade-ports of western India. Both these highways were major conduits of Indo-Mediterranean sea trade. Route C A major overland channel for overseas trade passing through Paithan was the trans-peninsular route described in the Periplus (51). The Periplus states that Paithan was twenty days journey from the port of Barygaza Bharuch and a further ten days journey eastward from Paithan lay the market-town of Tagara Ter. Onyx (onyx coloured glassware?) was exported from Paithan, cloth from ancient Ter and merchandise from further east, i.e, the eastern Deccan (Casson 1984:212-213). This trans-peninsular route is plotted as Route C in Fig. 39 The extension of this route into the eastern Deccan is plotted as Route G in Fig. 39 The points of

255 - - Mediterranean artefact distribution on Route C are represented by the sites of Bharuch - Kamrej Paithan Ter Kondapur. Each of these settlements were closely integrated into Indo-Roman commodity-exchange. The Periplus (49) vividly details the imports and exports of the great harbour of Barygaza Bharuch. In chapter IV we have discussed Kamrej as a riverine port involved in iron exports to the Western World. Paithan, as noted, was a centre of semi-precious stone export. The Periplus (51) speaks of Tagara as a market-town dealing in textiles. Tagara of the Periplus has been identified with ancient mounds at the town of Ter in the Osmanabad District of Maharashtra (Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology Vol. II:435-437). Excavations carried out Ter by two different teams in the sixties (see Chapekar 1969, Indian Archaeology - A Review Luders 1972-73) revealed a singleculture Early Historic horizon. There was also brought to light the remains of a stupa and an apsidal brick temple dated to the 2 nd century A.D. (Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology Vol. II:435- 437). A number of brick-lined vats uncovered in the Early Historic levels at Ter have been interpreted by the excavators as tanks used for dyeing cloth, the industry for which ancient Ter was well-known (Indian Archaeology - A Review Luders 1968-69:17). A range of Mediterranean antiquities and 'syncretic' Indo-Roman objects found at Ter provides strong archaeological corroboration for active Roman trade contact with this inland markettown. During occasional prospections at Ter have come to light Roman glassware, amphorae sherds, Roman terracotta terracotta suspension lamp, intaglios inspired by Mediterranean techniques, a fragment of the terra sigillata, imitation Roman coins and lamps (see under Ter/Maharashtra in Appendix-I for bibliographic reference). Further east of Ter, the settlement of Kondapur provided access to the resource-areas and ports of the eastern Deccan Excavations at Kondapur have revealed the existence of a flourishing Satavahana township having iron manufacturing and semi-precious stone bead industries Both products were items of export to the Western World. Artefactual evidence of Roman contact is represented by two gold coins of Augustus Caesar, a number of clay imitations of Roman coins and fine 'Megarian-like' pottery pieces (see under Kondapur / Andhra Pradesh in Appendix-I for bibliographic reference). Route D This land-route connected Paithan with the flourishing harbours of Kalyana Kalliena and Surparaka through the crucial Nanaghat Pass (Barrett 1957:1). An inscription discovered on a rock-cut cave at Kanheri records an endowment of a kuti (temple) and kodhi (hall) excavated in Rajataleka Paithanapatha or the royal road to Paithan (Luders' List No.988 in Epigraphia Indica Vol. X, 1909- 1910). Regular distribution of Mediterranean artefacts is clearly discerned on the ancient land route. The points of deposition are Maheshwar - Bhokardan - Paithan -

256 Nevasa Nasik - Junnar and the ancient harbour-complexes of Kalyana and Surparaka (Route D in Fig. 39). The importance of this route for Indo-Roman commodityexchange is brought out in further analysis (especially of the sites of Nevasa and Bhokardan) undertaken below. Route E The Periplus (51) mentions that goods are brought up to Barygaza from coastal areas beyond Tagara. The extension of the trans-peninsular route passing through Kondapur to the estuarine areas of the Krishna and Godavari indicates acquisition of trade-goods from the east coast (see discussion below under section on Eastern India). Concomitantly, the commodities from the 'coast' may have also been those sent from the littoral tracts of the western and southern Deccan. In this regard Route E in Fig. 39 shows the links between Early Historic ports on the Konkan and inland settlements in southern Deccan such as Brahmapuri, Karad and Vadgaon Madhavpur. In Chapter IV we have discussed in detail two of the ports - Chaul and Kuda and associated them with the 'Periplus' market-towns of Semylla and Mandagora respectively. Mediterranean artefacts have been prospected at each of the three inland settlements. Brahmapuri, in particular, has yielded a rich hoard of bronze objets d'art of Mediterranean origin (see sites under Maharashtra / Karnataka in Appendix - I). Route F This land route came down from Kausambi through Tripuri and connected with the major Early Historic settlements in Vidharba In the Vidharba region, the crossroad is represented by the large settlement of Adam (Fig. 39). Recent excavations at Adam have yielded Roman silver denari, Mediterranean glassware, Roman copper/bronze objects, Graeco-Roman bullae, terracotta male heads of Graeco-Roman affinity and the Hellenistic RPW (Amarendra Nath 1995:149-171). Earlier, a hoard of Roman gold coins had been discovered at Adam (Turner 1989: 46). The range of Roman artefacts recovered from Adam is greater than Mediterranean material found at Ter, the Early Historic settlement in the western Deccan identified with the inland market-town of Tagara in the Periplus (for antiquities from Ter see Cimino 1994: 175-181). It is posited here that Adam happened to be a major inland centre of Indo-Roman trade (like Ter, Paithan, Ujjain), offering access for goods from ports of Kalyana/Sopara/Chaul to traders from ancient cities like Tripuri and Kausambi