|
Agroha is situated in Hissar district of
Haryana. In it lies buried the remains of the capital of the Agroha State consisting of 18 state units. The residents of this states were known as Yodhya and Agraya.
Writings on the coins that have been excavated from the ancient site read as 'Yodhyanam Bahu Dhanya Kanam','Yodhya Ganasya Jaya', 'Yodhyanam Jaimantra Shalinam'. According to Dr. Satyaketu Vidyalankar the ancient Agroha town existed some 100
years before the Kushan dynasty. The Agroha State was renowned
for its prosperity. However over time it could not stand the foreign invasions of Greeks, Yavanas and Hunas, who invaded
north India disintegrating various kingdoms in
Punjab.
The disintegrated Agroha led to the migration of the
Agroha residents to other parts of India like Rajasthan,
Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Malwa, however they got a common name Aggarwals which means AGROHA-WALE. It is apparent from the excavations that below the mounds existed a big, well planned
and progressive town. The excavation was restarted in the year 1938-39, though this could not be carried on for long due to World War II, but it provided major input about Agroha's existence. In 1978-79 the Archaeological Department of Haryana Government. began excavation work under the guidance and supervision of Mr. J. S. Khatri and Mr. Acharya.
The Agroha mound now has the Agroha Temple Complex on one side and the Sheela Mata Temple on the other. The Agroha Medical College faces it across the road. Some of the materials collected from the excavated site:
Coins: Large number of coins have been found at the excavated site. The coins are predominantly of silver & bronze in different shapes and sizes. The Script and signs on the coins depict that they belong to different periods. The bronze coins have "Agadke, Agach, Janpads" in prakrit language inscribed on them. A coin dated 200 BD called die struck or counter struck has been found besides Roman, Kushana, Yodhaya and Gupta dynasty coins.
Seals: The seals that have been found at Agroha have been inscribed with words like "Pitradutt", "Sadhu Vridhasya", "Shamkar Malasya", "Madrsya" etc.
Artifacts: From the excavation site many statutes made of stone and sand have been unearthed. Masks, Terracotta Animals and Toys have been found. Utensils belonging to
2nd century BC in black, brown and red polish have also been discovered.
|