Hire Benakal
Hire Benakal ( Kannada : ಹಿರೇಬೆಣಕಲ್) is a village that gave its name to the nearby prehistoric archaeological site of Moryar Gudda ( gudda = "hill") in the Koppal district in the north of the Indian state of Karnataka . It is the largest of several of these facilities in Karnataka (see e.g. Badami ).
location
Hire Benakal is a rocky knoll, about 550 m high and strewn with stones and stone slabs, about 10 km (as the crow flies) or 37 km (driving distance) west of the city of Gangavati and north of Hospet / Hampi .
history
Archaeologists date the site to the Iron Age (approx. 800–200 BC) because of fewer small iron finds ; later it was abandoned and only rediscovered in 1835 by the writer and self-taught Philip Meadows Taylor (1808-1876) and described in an article in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society . In the years 1944 to 1948 more detailed investigations were carried out on the instructions of the Archaeological Survey of India under the direction of Mortimer Wheeler .
Archaeological site
The archaeological site, located on a creek that sometimes dried up and near a small natural pool, consists of approx. 400 - mostly destroyed - stone buildings, the purpose of which is unclear. They are commonly referred to as “ dolmens ”, although the type of stone processing (approx. 5 to 7 cm thick slabs) and their height (approx. 1.10 to 1.90 m) clearly differ from most European and Caucasian buildings differ of this kind. Some panels have a kind of “ soul hole ”, others have a corner cut out or a normal entrance. The ceiling slab of the 3–4 m² rooms is mostly monolithic ; a covered access or references to a previously existing stone or earth cover are completely absent.
interpretation
During the excavations or investigations by the archaeologists, neither bone finds nor things clearly identified as grave goods were discovered. The proximity of a brook would be rather unusual for an interpretation of the buildings as grave sites; the same applies in view of their height and the sometimes existing base plate. The openings in the stone slabs, interpreted as "soul holes", could also be entrances that blocked or at least made more difficult for wild or free-roaming animals. Overall, the site can thus also be interpreted as a retreat for a community of possessive and undemanding ascetics or sadhus .
Rock paintings
In the area around the archaeological site there are several rock paintings depicting animals and people. It is unclear whether they were created by the same people who built the stone huts.
Web links
- Hire Benakal - photos, map and description (English)
- Hire Benakal - Description (Italian)
- Hire Benakal - Description (English)
- Hire Benakal - Description (English)
Coordinates: 15 ° 26 ′ 16 ″ N , 76 ° 27 ′ 21 ″ E