BHAWANIPATNA: A stone image of a couple, excavated during the Bhimkela-Mursing PMGSY road work near Bhimkela village, on the outskirts of Asurgarh, may belong to the Gupta era.
The heavily eroded sculpture, two-and-a-half feet in length and 30 cm wide, depicts the couple with the female seen playing a musical instrument. It has been kept on the premises of Bishnu temple in Bhimkela.
Historian and former head of department in history of Bhawanipatna Autonomous College Prof Baba Mishra said the image depicting an artist couple, most likely belongs to the Gupta era and it can be gauged from the head scarf and hairstyle of the male figure.
“However, the sculpture needs to be examined properly for dating as it has eroded over the period of time,” he said. Mishra called for an extensive archaeological survey in the villages nearby Asurgarh which is considered to be the oldest fortified settlement in the state.
Previously, stone antiquities, beads, among other things had been excavated from Bhimkela that is a part of the ancient settlement.
