\n\tThe exercise is being undertaken for the first time ever in decades \nunder an on-going Rs 17.323 million project with its first phase, meant \nto protect the site by a 6400 feet long boundary wall, stands almost \ncomplete, app.com.pk reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\t\u201cDespite having been plundered time and again and dug illegally, Mound \nDillu Roy was still a rich site,\u201d said Incharge Harappa museum, Muhammad\n Hassan, the only excavation expert of the department to undertake Dillu\n Roy assignment that would take almost 45-60 days to complete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\t\u201cWe found structures at the depth of only six inches,\u201d Hassan told APP \nlast Monday. \u201cThese structures look like hailing from Gupta and Mughal \nperiod, however, further excavation and cleaning of remains would unveil\n exact detail.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tLeading around 50-men team comprising officials, draughtsmen, \nphotographer, supervisors and equipped with small tools to delicately \nexcavate the site, the archaeologist is in Jampur tahsil of district \nDera Ghazi Khan since Jan 31 and has completed the process of contouring\n the site with a map plan indicating how to proceed forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tThe surface finds including antiquities, artefacts, clay pottery, coins\n etc. suggest Mound Dillu Roy to be a 1st century BC to 2nd century CE \nsite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tFamous travelogue writer and intellectual Dr. Abbas Birmani described \nMound Dillu Roy, traditionally called Dillu Roy theatre, as a \u2018speaking \ncity asleep\u2019 (Bolta Hua Khwabeeda Sheher), in his book \u2018Tilismati \nWadiyan\u2019 (Magical valleys).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tIt was named after a prince Dillu Roy who had once ruled this area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tThe mound is spread over 434 Kanal area, majority of it lying in DG \nKhan and only three Kanal in Jampur tahsil. It lies 2.5 miles northwest \nof Jampur city on Jampur-Dajal road and consists of two mounds, roughly \n100-150 feet apart. The larger one measuring 1460x800x15 feet marks the \nsite of the city and the smaller one about 380 feet North-South, 950 \nfeet East-West has been identified as the remains of a fort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tThe only visible mud-brick structure on the surface is a British era watch tower, Hassan said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tBoth the mounds had been dug by the local farmers and thus exposed the \nplan of houses and streets. The mud brick walls have escaped complete \ndestruction and some of the walls with traces of mud plaster stand as \nhigh as 12 feet. At certain places, complete plan of rooms is traceable \nwhich varies from 5\u00d75 feet to 15-10 feet. The study of the deep trenches\n dug by farmers has revealed two building period of the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tThe archeologist thinks the remains of ancient civilizations like Cytho\n Parthian Period could be found at the bottom as they move forward with \ntheir vertical excavation technique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tHassan said, in addition to antiquities, the excavation process may \nlead them to remains of Cytho Parthian, Gupta, Kushan, Hindu Shahi, \nTughlaq, Mughal and British periods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tHowever, he added: \u201cComplete excavation would suggest whether we find remains of all or some of these civilizations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tHe said that excavation was a time-consuming, and delicate job done in \nscientific manner and at times archeologists achieve only two-three inch\n excavation in a full day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tHe said that contrary to metal or other objects, clay pottery remains \nintact underground for centuries, even millenniums. And pottery pattern \ndenotes what period these belong to and the remains of structures \nindicate pattern of streets, roads, homes, rooms, overall town planning \nand lifestyle of the people of that era. Stratigraphy tells us what \npeople habitated at what layer of the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tHe explained that pottery from 8000-1000 years old Indus Valley \ncivilization had same pattern, soil, motifs, structure whether found \nfrom Mohinjo Daro, Harappa or Mehergarh. Historically precious \nartefacts, coins, and other things collected from Mound Dillu Roy \nsurface were now kept at Harappa museum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\tDr. Abbas Birmani welcomed the Punjab government\u2019s investment on \narcheological excavation and said: \u201cIts like a dream come true.\u201d \nPakistani landscape is a blend of scenic topography and historically \nimportant monuments depicting our heritage and we are proud of it, he \nadded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An archeologist of Punjab Archeology Department has embarked on maiden excavation of Mound Dillu Roy in Dera Ghazi Khan to uncover the treasure of historical secrets the Buddhist era site is believed to be hiding underground. The exercise is being undertaken for the first time ever in decades under an on-going Rs 17.323 million project […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3010,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8,4],"tags":[1040,798],"yoast_head":"\n