Eighth Century Temple Discovered in Odisha

In a wonderful – and accidental – discovery, workers found the remnants of another temple under the sand while renovating a larger place of worship in Odisha.
The Bateswar temple in the eastern state of Odisha contained a huge surprise for the construction workers and tourists to come; they discovered an 8^th century Parvati temple. The temple is situated on the sand dunes just 8 kilometres from the Kolkata-Chennai Highway near Humma. Odisha is known for its numerous ancient temples and rich tribal culture, and this Bateswar temple near Rushikulya Rookery in the Ganjam district proves this.

The small Parvati temple wasn’t the only surprise, though: they found a couple of 8^th century artefacts and idols within the tiny temple, too. According to Ashok Kumar Rath, the former head of the history department at the Berhampur University, the Bateswar temple was constructed in the 8^th century during the Shilodvhav period. As he told The Hindu, the Parvati temple on the same grounds must have been built in the same century.
 

 
According to Indian Express, the Shilodvhav dynasty was centered in Odisha, and appeared in the 7^th century. At that time, there were a large number of smaller kingdoms in the area, and like many of these kingdoms, the Shilodvhav dynasty also boasts tribal roots. Historians say that the dynasty must have later acquired their Hindu identities, leading to the commissioning of multiple Hindu temples and idols in the region.
Some inscriptions were also found on the Bateswar temple, written in ‘Devanagari’ and ‘Kutila’ scripts; according to historians, these writings date back to the 10^th century, during the times of the Ganga dynasty.
Ashok Kumar Rath also said that the temple can most probably be associated with maritime activity that was very lively in the 8^th century in that region. There were active ports at Palur and Ganjam near the Rushikulya rookery, so Rath suspects that there must have been urban activity in the vicinity, and he thinks that the temple must have been a part of that civilization. As he told The Hindu, “More excavation around the Bateswar temple can reveal more information.” So, next time you’re driving around sand dunes in your rickshaw, keep an eye out for hidden treasure!