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LARKANA: Archaeologists digging a drain to
protect the remains in the north of DK-G area of Moen-jo-Daro
from stagnating rainwater during rains have dropped the idea
to continue the work for fear that further excavation can
damage the underlying structures.
The Director of Project, Qasim Ali Qasim told media persons
on Monday that at square-34 of the first street, unusual phenomenon
of a drain running in east-west direction had been discovered.
It was the first time that a drain in this direction had been
found in Moen-jo-Daro, he maintained.
A V-shaped sock-pit where both east-west and north-south drains
were meeting had been found and a single brick wall with good
masonry was among the discoveries near the triangular drain,
he added.
Very close to just 1.5 metres deep, tiny beads of 3mm used
in necklace and terracotta figurine and human figurine with
stretched legs and arms were discovered from the site, he
said. A rectangular seal with human forms making an offering
to a tree and a few characters of Moen-jo-Daro language inscribed
on it had been found. On the other side of the seal two persons
were stripping someone standing against a wall while another
was offering something to a lion, Qasim Ali Qasim said and
termed them very rare discoveries. Dixit, an archaeologist,
had found one such seal in 1925-26, he added.
A gold bead recovered from the area was the second gold bead
so far discovered from the site. The first such bead had been
discovered in 1964-65 by Dales, the PD said.
“The
area is rich in cultural material as we found remains and
objects just at a depth of 60 centimetres. Disc beads of 1
millimetre, agate and cardinal itching beads were also found
during the digging,” he added. The Project Director
said complete miniature pots, a crucible and eight-shaped
grinding stone with four legs, flower basket, girl’s
figurine and terracotta rattle were also among the new discoveries.
He said that due to lack of a modern laboratory, we are unable
to analyze a big bone obtained from the site. It needs pathological
analysis to ascertain either it is a human bone or animal’s.
“The bone may be of Indus Ibex,” said the curator
of Moen-jo-Daro but added it needed to be verified.
First time in the history of excavation of Moen-jo-Daro, an
object of a sheep with curved horns had been discovered, the
curator said. The thick deposition traced in the V-shaped
drain needed delicate scientific study as the findings could
give an idea about the kind of food the residents of the ancient
city had been taking, Qasim Ali Qasim said.
He said he would contact the experts involved in deciphering
the Indus script to understand the characters etched on the
seal as he had never before seen such characters (connected
to Indus Script) and the individuals along with the offering
pot before some tree and lion. He said that the presence of
cultural material had prompted him to stop digging and redesigning
the drain for pumping out rainwater from DK-G area.—Agencies |
