STUDY BASED ON RECENT UNDERWATER RECORDS
Dwarka, an ancient harbour and an important religiouscentre of the Hindus, has played an importantrole in the history of maritime activities of Okhamnadal region since the early historical period. Gomaticreek, located at the eastern side of Dwarka, served as a safe harbour till the 19th century AD. Offshore explorations have brought to light a large number ofstone structures which appear to be the remains of an ancient jetty. This hypothesis is supported also by the discovery of a large number of stone anchors of various types in Dwarka waters. The typology of anchors has indicated that Dwarka was an important portsince historical period. Maritime activities increased many folds during the medieval period. This flourishing port and religious capital is believed to have submerged under the sea after the death of Lord Krishna.This paper highlights the results of the offshore explorations carried out during the last two decades in theDwarka waters.THE ancient city of Dwarka, situated on the extreme WestCoast of Indian territory, occupies an important place inthe cultural and religious history of India. The fabulousarchitectural planning of the Dwarka temple has attractedtourists from all over the world. The town has associationwith Lord Krishna, who is believed to have founded thistown by reclaiming 12 yojana land from the Sea. Duringits glorious past, Dwarka was a city of beautiful gardens,deep moats, several ponds and palaces1, but it is believedto have submerged just after the death of Lord Krishna2.Due to its historical importance and association with thegreat Indian epic Mahabharata, Dwarka continues toattract archaeologists and historians besides scientists.Ancient Sanskrit words like pattana and Dronimukhahave been generally used to describe coastal port citieswhere national and international ships and boats wereharbor3. The oldest reference to the Agade harbour comesfrom the Mesopotamian text which mentions that boatsfrom Meluhha used to be anchored in Agade harbour, datableto the mid-3rd millennium BC4. Archaeological excavationsbrought to light a jetty at Kuntasi in Gujarat datingback to Harappan period5. Similarly, excavations have revealeda dockyard and a few stone anchors at Lothal, another Harappan site6. There are several literary referencesmentioning ports at many coastal sites during theearly historical period (2500 to 1500 yrs BP), butarchaeological remains of these ports are scanty. Most ofthe settlements were situated either on the river banks oron the banks of backwaters, which would have served asan excellent natural harbour. These locations beinghighly vulnerable to floods and other natural disasters, itis not surprising that only scanty evidence for theirexistence remain. Excavations at Poompuhar brought tolight, a wharf7 situated on the bank of the old course ofthe river Kaveri. Similarly, onshore excavation at ElephantaIsland yielded a wharf dating back to early centuries of theChristian Era8. There is evidence to suggest that the presentBet Dwarka jetty has been used as a harbour sincethe early historic period9.Historicity of DwarkaThe city of Dwarka has been under investigation by thehistorians since the beginning of the 20th century. Althougha very famous religious and maritime centre, theexact location of this port city was under debate since long.Several literary references, especially from the Mahabharatahave been used to suggest its exact location. Pargiter10was the first to suggest that Dwarka was located near theRaivataka mountain; he also mentioned that it was constructedon the remains of Kusasthali11. Pusalkar12 suggestedthat Dwarka of the modern times is the originalDwarka mentioned in the Mahabharata. Sankalia13 hasalso strongly argued that the modern-day Dwarka is in factthe same as the one that existed during the Mahabharataperiod. The earliest epigraphical reference to Dwarka comesfrom the Palitana copper plate of Garulaka Simhaditya datedto 574 AD. The unknown Greek writer of the Periplus ofErythraean Sea makes a mention of Baraca, which has beenidentified as modern Dwarka14. In Ptolemy's Geography,Barake is the name of an island in the Gulf of Kanthi15, andthe reference is most likely being made to Dwarka.We report here the results of marine archaeologicalexplorations undertaken by the Marine Archaeology Centreof the National Institute of Oceanography, Goa between1997 and 2001. The primary objective of this study wasto appraise the earlier observations and to assess the natureof structures.
