AHMEDABAD: Present-day Vallabhipur, 40km from Bhavnagar, is a town in Gujarat with 15,000 people. But between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE, it was the seat of the Maitrakas, one of the region’s early rulers. The town was famed for its university, Valabhi Vidyapith, which was compared with Nalanda in Bihar by Chinese travellers Xuanzang and Yijing in 7th century CE. A recent study has found remains of the town in satellite imagery.
The findings, published in the Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, claim to have located the ancient town’s ruling seat, university and monastery.
Valabhi was capital & a port city at one point: Researcher
The study, “Ancient Valabhi: A Remote Sensing Perspective”, by Arya Pradeep and M Rajani of National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru, draws parallels with existing structures of similar nature to identify the remains, buried beneath the existing town.
Rajani told TOI that it started with a collaborative project with SAC-ISRO on geo-archaeology. The sites selected were those that had undergone geomorphological changes. “Along with Gangetic delta and Krishna-Godavari delta, we selected Valabhi.”
Pradeep, an architect and researcher, said Valabhi was a capital and port city at one time. “But we do not have much evidence regarding location or extent. Thus, satellite images were used to find patterns and spectral signatures of the landscape. It revealed important clues about an ancient site and its probable linkages to other significant cultural sites,” she said.
The researchers identified two archaeological mounds — named by them as Mound M and Mounds M1 to M6. Mound M is a rough square of 350 x 350 metres and is believed to be the fortified part of the town. Mounds M1 to M6 are in straight line with a length of about 350 metres — the researchers believe these are the monasteries.
The study points at a square construction that can be found in Vikramshila in India and Somapura in Bangladesh, whereas a very similar monastery pattern is found in a group of monasteries at Nalanda Mahavira complex.
“The information from Maitraka copper plate grants testifies to presence of several monasteries and prominent monastic clusters in ancient Valabhi,” the study says.
What next? Rajani said systematic surveys using other non-invasive techniques can help identify specific sites that can be excavated.