Sanghol is a historical village located in

Fatehgarh Sahib District Fatehgarh Sahib district is one of the twenty-three districts of the state of Punjab, India, with its headquarters in the town of Fatehgarh Sahib. The district came into existence on 13April 1992, Baisakhi Day and derives its name from Sah ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

, India predating to Harrapan civilisation. It is also known as Uchha Pind Sanghol. It is about 40 km from

Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...

on the way to

Ludhiana Ludhiana ( ) is the most populous and the largest city in the Indian state of Punjab. The city has an estimated population of 1,618,879 2011 census and distributed over , making Ludhiana the most densely populated urban centre in the state. I ...

and approximately 10 km from

Dholewal Dholewal is a small village in the Fatehgarh Sahib district in the Indian State of Punjab, with a population of 1,098. The nearest town is Kheri Naudh Singh, 1 km east to the village. Dholewal falls under the Jurisdiction of the Khamanon Cit ...

. This place holds a special position on the archaeological atlas of India. Excavations at the site have yielded

coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

and

seals Seals may refer to: * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impress an emblem, used as a means of a ...

related to

Toramana Toramana also called Toramana Shahi Jauvla (Gupta script: ''Toramāṇa'', ruled circa 493-515 CE) was a king of the Alchon Huns who ruled in northern India in the late 5th and the early 6th century CE. Toramana consolidated the Hephthalite po ...

and

Mihirakula Mihirakula (Gupta script: , ''Mi-hi-ra-ku-la'', Chinese: 摩酰逻矩罗 ''Mo-hi-lo-kiu-lo''), sometimes referred to as Mihiragula or Mahiragula, was the second and last Alchon Hun king of northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent betwee ...

belonging to central Asia. A

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circum ...

was excavated in 1968, but in February 1985 a rich treasure of 117 beautiful carved stone slabs, which includes 69 pillars, 35 crossbars, figures and figurines, was excavated by the experts of the Directorate of Archaeology, Punjab. Scholars have explained them as

Kushan The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, ...

sculptures of the

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

school of the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. These treasures have since been displayed for art lovers and historians in Sanghol Museum. Many of the art pieces from this museum often go on display as special exhibits at various museums around the world. Situated on the top of a mound, Ucha Pind Sanghol is spread over an area of 200 km.

Museum

Sanghol is famed for the Sanghol Museum. It belongs to the civilisation of Harappan which is retained by the

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexand ...

(ASI).It has various antiques that were discovered during the excavations at Sanghol. The various sculptures of stone are the eye catching attractions of the museum which are displayed in the Upper gallery. Maps, charts, photographs, graphs and drawings are arranged chronically. It displays art forms of Kushana period (extending between 2nd and 3rd century). A large of number of relics dating from the late Harappan civilization (1720 – 1300 BC) to 6th century AD is found here. More than 15000 artefacts were collected from this site and majority of them are displayed in this museum. Sanghol also known as Uchha Pind is a famous village in the area. There are some mythical stories about the destruction of this village. The main village sits very high clearly visible from the surrounding towns. It is also linked to the Kissa "Roop Basant" stories as well. Some people from surrounding villages say that its ancient name was Sangla-deep. There is a

Stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circum ...

and

Monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

Complex dating back to 1st and 2nd century AD situated on the main road.

Gallery

Image:Sanghol_India_Stupa_site_description.JPG, Sanghol Ancient Stupa site info File:Sanghol Buddha in the style of Mathura.jpg, Sanghol Buddha in the style of Mathura Image:Sanghol_India_Supa_site_photo1.JPG, Stupa site Image:SangholIndia_PArt_of_stupa_site.JPG, Stupa Site, part on the side Image:SangholIndia_Ancient_Site_1-2AD.JPG, Ancient Site Image:Sanghol_India_Village_gathering_place.JPG, Village Chowk Image:Sanghol_India_Part_of_excavation.JPG, Part of Excavation Image:Sanghol_India_Museum_Description_Board.JPG, Museum info board Image:Sanghol_India_Museum.JPG, Museum building Image:Sanghol_India_excavated_site_in_village.JPG, Another excavation in village Image:Sanghol_India_Anciant_Stupa_site.JPG, Stupa site another angle Image:Sanghol_india_ancient_site_info_board.JPG, Info board on road Image:Sanghol_India_anciant_site_overview.JPG, Buddhist ancient site

References

{{Authority control Indus Valley civilisation sites Fatehgarh Sahib Villages in Fatehgarh Sahib district Bara culture