The Asurgarh fortified settlement, which was excavated by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in Odisha’s Kalahandi district, has been ascertained to be the oldest among the major fortified settlements in the State. It dates back to the ninth century BC.
To determine the age of the ancient settlement, archaeologists deployed the Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon technique, which established the Asurgarh era as spanning over three cultural phases from ninth century BC to second-third century AD.
The Asurgarh era has been compared with early historic sites in Odisha such as Sisupalgarh (near Bhubaneswar); Jaugarh, a fortified settlement on the Rushikulya valley (Ganjam); Manamunda (Boudh); Khalkattapatna (Puri); the port site of Manikpatna (Puri); Radhanagar (Jajpur); Kharligarh (Balangir) and Budhigarh (Kalahandi). Excavations were carried out by scholars to find parallels with early civilisations such as the Harappan Civilisation.
