CHAPTER - 2: PORT SITES 16

Chapter 2 - Port Sites

The early historical period witnessed crucial developments such as the emergence of ports in addition to towns in the coastal region of Maharashtra. A large number of trading ports dominated the Arabian sea coast including Sopara and Kalyan, Puri, Thane, Chaul, Uran, Nagothane, Roha, Shrivardhan, Bankot, Jaigad, Kharepatna, Vijaydurg, Raddi and Harnai.

A Port is essentially "an economic concept and represents a complex interplay of physical, geographical and socio-economic phenomena", (Kidwai, 1992: 7). It is the place of contact where goods and people as well as cultures are transferred between land and maritime space, as it is a node where ocean and inland transport lines meet and intervene (Weigned, 1958: 185).

In Maharashtra every geomorphologically suitable place was used as a port. So growth of a port was never static because it was determined by the fluctuated parameters of the water, land, and the human factors operating at global, regional and local levels. Some of these port towns existed as early as the first century of the Christian era, and are mentioned by many ancient voyagers for e.g. the Periplus. Irrespective of their size, it appear that the port towns were more numerous on the coast and received the attention of foreign traders. Water transport was the most economical and safe mode of transport in the early days and a creek-head location was both, a site for handling maritime trade as well as a central place occupying a focal point in the collection and distribution of regional goods. In the view of the poor agricultural potential of the lateritic soils of the South Konkan, it is not surprising that settlements are limited to fertile tracts and along the rivers. Many of the riverine settlements function as harbours also. Apart from the riverine harbours, the other main types of ancient ports are those situated along tidal creeks and lagoons. Konkan ports of the early Historic period are largely tidal ports. The selection of a port was also determined by the convenience of the route leading into the hinterland, so a port was located in the vicinity of anchorage and routes in the interior. 17

The coastal geomorpology and the geographical situations of Maharashtra on the Arabian sea eastern coast enabled it to linked India with Eastern, Western Mediterranean world and play a prominent role in India's overseas trade relations, with these most ancient as well as rich civilizations of the ancient world. Consequently, the Arabian sea had always been busy throughout the different periods of history. We come across evidence of contact between India and the West Asian countries even before the discovery of the Monsoons by Hippaulus. The change in the geographical set-up has deeply influenced the history and culture of Maharashtra. Trading activities were confined to the coastal ports, where business was transacted by indigenous merchants who supplied rice, pepper, and other products which the foreign seafarers desired. It also had a deep impact on its commerce establishing that there was a considerable topographical change, particularly in the coastal region of Konkan. One of the most important factors to be considered in the study of the physiography of the West coast is the change in sedimentation and sea level which changed the configuration of the coastline in important ways. Several ports of ancient Maharashtra which were linked with the main ocean through broad and deep estuaries have now become completely land-locked due to sea erosion. The example of Sopara is an ideal one of such a topographical change. Sopara had been an important port which is known as connected with the Arabian sea, by an estuary or creek which is known as the Sopara creek even now (BG 1882 124) At present the only remnant of it which can be seen is a hollow strip looking like a deep river bed, joining the Bhayandar creek on one side and on the other side, the Arabian sea near Nirmal. The ancient port of Surparaka which is now 10 kilometers away from water was situated on this creek. In the same way the inland ports such as Kalyan and Thane at present look insignificant, because the rivers or creeks on which they are situated do not look to be capable of carrying large ships in which commodities were exported from these ports during ancient times. Hence siltation resulted in the decline of Sopara, similarly erosion resulted in the abandoning of Puri.

Almost every safe creek and estuary has a port but its importance depended on the hinterland. There were also inland trading ports like Mahad. This prominence has however been far from uniform and the West coast ports have had fluctuating fortunes as a result of the silting up of inlets and opening up of new routes in the coastal region. As late as the seventeenth century AD. the Bassein creek was navigable as far as Kalyan and Bhiwandi 18 and the silted channel on which Sopara stands today was navigable over a long distance. Similarly the Thane creek was navigable throughout its course and the present marshes and salt pans were much smaller. In the jaw of the Thane bight stood the islands of Hog, Gharapuri and Karanja or Uran, all important ports (Apte, 1973: 8-10)

Its interesting to note that Maharashtra did not have navigable rivers like North India or the Coromondel states but still enjoyed pre-eminence in India's trade with overseas countries The long sea coast is one of the factors. The coastal region of Konkan provided ports like Sopara, Kalyan and Chaul but the commodities which were exported through these ports were mostly manufactured in the Desh region of Maharashtra which was known for the fertility of land as well as for the industrious nature of the people. The excavations at different sites in Maharashtra have yielded sufficient evidence about the productions of wheat, rice, millet and cotton on a large scale, right from the Chalcolithic period (Sankalia/Mate, 1966: 33). These agricultural products and subsistence items formed a major component of the complex Indian Ocean trading system

Economic analysis of ports have emphasized the distinction between 'sea ports' - transport nodes and sea port 'terminals' - locations for industries based on bulk imports. As far as Maharashtra is concerned terminals are not found in the early historic period, but few of the sea ports like Chaul became terminals in the later periods.

As stated earlier we find literary references to sea-routes and creeks in the Konkan region. Many small vessels were sailing along the sea-coast and up the creeks on the Western coast of Maharashtra. Although Maharashtra has no great rivers we find boats carrying men and luggage for short distances. The rivers formed a natural water-way, through which the raw material and finished goods were transported. There is abundant evidence for both sea and river traffic described graphically in detail mostly by the classical writers as well as in concurrent literature From the earliest times the sea has served more as a high way than as a barrier, and as Yule said, "the more we learn the further goes a closed basin like the Mediterranean, the prevalence of currents and periodical winds has always maintained a maritime system of exchanges in which India by virtue of her central position played the dominant role". The Satavahanas enjoyed the title of Tnsamudr- 19 adhipali.s, Lords of the three oceans, and some coins of the dynasty bearing the effigy of a double-masted ship attest the active interest of the people in sea-faring and overseas trade.

Man had probably realized the easy access by river transport at a very early stage of cultural development. The roads, however, didn't carry all the traffic. In ancient period major part of it was shared by the coastal waters and the rivers Compared with travel by road, travel by water was slow, but for long-distance trade, this was widely preferred. The river traffic may not have been used for passenger traffic or over short distances, but for heavy and fragile goods the rivers were used quite frequently wherever possible.

In this way, the agricultural and industrial prosperity which was concentrated in one part of the state which could get an outlet only through the sea coast This is probably the major cause for Maharashtra's significant role in ancient India's overseas trade relations. The trade and commercial relations of Maharashtra with foreign countries contributed to economic prosperity This was also reflected in Maharashtra's rock-cut art. Moreover, the communication network - the location of routes, and regional interference helped in the re-evolution of the cultural and social activities of Maharashtra in the later period. In the fifth chapter the aspects of route location will be studied.

Literary Evidence:

Boats were used for carrying grains and other articles (SCS, 10: 6) in the Konkan areas. Kantilya describes the officers incharge of shipping. He speaks of navigation not only on oceans and mouths of rivers but also on lakes-natural and artificial and rivers in the vicinity of sthatiiya and other fortified cities. He also speaks of large and small boats. Vasudevahimdi mentions that the merchant-ships which traversed a long distance have been referred to as janavatta, vahana or ports. The traders who carried on their business by land-routes were called Sagadiya, vaniyaya-s and satthavaha-s while the sea-traders were referred to as samjataya-vaniyas (Jamkehdkar, 1965). It is stated in the Kalhasahlasagar that while traveling over the seas, a ship was utilized by the merchants. The ship was driven by the 'Kamad/iara'{helmsman) (Joshi, 1980: 172-3). The evidence of the sea- trade is also indicated by Satavahana coinage on which a frequent symbol is a ship with two masts accentuating evidently their use for heavy ballast.. Moreover evidence of excavations have divulged port towns along the sea coast or on major rivers connected to 20 the sea. Some of them were Broach, Sopara, Kalyan and Chaul on the Western sea-board. From the river bank to its destination it was carried on by pack animals and carts.

Emergence of Ports:

The initiation of port towns depended upon initiation of trade, and consequently ports were centralized, decentralized and specialized. So there were certain stages in the evolution of these ports. To certain extent it followed the five stage sequence of port development delineated by Rimmer (1973: 65). * - A final illustration of the three trends o^ centralization, decentralization, and specialization are given in a model of port development by Rimmer (1967). Initially there were many small, independent ports arrayed along the coast, but some were soon able to develop hegemony over others, creating a hierarchical system (Fig. 1), through their control of inland and coastal transport. As far as study area is concerned the first phase consists of a dispersed pattern of many sea ports with centers scattered along the coast serving limited hinterlands. The only connections between ports were provided by irregular visits of trading vessels. In the second phase, with the emergence of the main lines of penetration into the interior, certain ports, such Sopara, Thane, Puri, Chaul etc. are able to expand at the expense of others. Port concentration is accentuated as all these ports develop as the foci for respective separate networks of routes in the different river basins. The feeders continue to develop until Sopara, Thane, Puri and Chaul linked together. In the third phase Thane expands its influence by pirating the trade of Sopara and Puri as it occupies the central position. The development of ports Sopara and Puri slackens and they revert to their former status. However, the port Chaul, survives as it is not linked to the above system. While the fourth phase, when the link up between the two separate systems were completed, Chaul has gained sufficient momentum not to be overshadowed completely by Thane, despite the centralization of economic activities on the latter port. By providing limited or specialized services for its immediate hinterland, the port of Chaul was able to withstand the competition from Thane. Further growth is confined, however, to Thane port until a point comes when its capacity was overtaxed and decentralization had to take place. In phase five, therefore, Sopara and Puri were established to provide specialized services, so that Thane port could concentrate on the general services And 21 finally, alongside the centralization and specialization comes decentralization; Congestion in the major port leads to certain functions, especially those concerned with bulk cargoes, being transferred to the adjacent subsidiary centers.

Broach was the main center for overseas trades, however, there were other ports on the western coast which had their own share of both foreign and coastal trade. Among these may be mentioned Sopara in Thane district, which figures as a harbour in the Jatakas also. Kalyan in Thane district was a flourishing port. For a time, it was the rival of Broach, as most of the Satavahana exports and imports took .place through it. During the Saka Satavahana struggle, the Sakas tried to block it several time's (BG 1882: 998-1020; Schoff, 1912). Kalyan had several flourishing merchants, wme of whom figure as donors at Kanheri and Junnar during the 2nd century AD. As late as the 6th century AD., Cosmos Indiepleustes enumerates Kalyan among the five chief marts of western India with trade in brass, cloth, timber and fire wood.

Chaul near Bombay, Mandad, Pale near Mahad, Dabhol, Vijayagad are other ports mentioned by the Periplus. Some of the above ports like Sopara and Kalyan due to change of the sea coast have now become land-locked. These were linked with inland trade canters through the passes and at the same time they were linked with one another. During the period when the Roman trade was at its height and in the succeeding Dark Ages several small ports of comparatively importance engaged in some little trade, some of these ports were within the Trap region. Safe and having natural harbour and yet on the sea shore was the port of Jaygad.

There are three kinds of traffic on these ports. One connected each port to the other, without going into the sea. Other kind of traffic was one in which rivers were used up to the point that they were navigable. This led to the maximum utilization of water route. Third was traffic from the sea shore coasts to the far off places.

On the basis of their location either on the sea shore or the estuaries, the ports have been divided into two types (Table 2.1). Historical development of the port sites also forms a part of the subject matter of this chapter.

Table 2.1 Classification of Port Sites. Ports Situated on the Ports Situated on 22

Table 2.1 CLASSIFICATION OF PORT SITES. Ports Situated on the Ports Situated on Sea Shore the Estuaries Bankot Sanjan Harnai Sopara Guheghar Kalvan Jaygad Thane Kelshi Dounga Devgad-Togarum Puri Vijaydurg Chaul Sanganicshwar Mandad Redi-Vengurla Pale Dabhol Chi pi un VagoThanc Rajapur Ports situated on the sea shore

In case of the sea port the landing places on open coasts unprotected by offshore islands or by the arms were exposed to wind and swell. These ports were away from the settlement. Due to the harsh climatic variations these were only used as nodes for the overseas communications. As the river basins are small and most expeditiously disposed off to the sea Ever in the heavy rainfall zone, after the rains the river turn dry. This along with the wind currents makes them unfit for navigation. At a result the trade became seasonal. One the settlements are occupied on seasonal basis they tend to be made of perishable material. For these reasons the ports on the sea shore do not yield substantial archaeological remains. This may be due to the ecological setting of these places also.

Bankot

Bankot (17" 55^: 73° 2'E) lies at the foot of a rocky headland in the extreme north of the district on the south shore of the entrance to the Bankot or Savitri river. The bar of the Bankot river stands 9 feet deep at low water. Bankot though closed during the SW monsoon, opens earlier and remains open larger than most Ratnagiri ports. The river is navigable eighteen miles to Dapoli and nine miles further to Mahad 23

Harnai

The port of Harnai (17°4772'N: 73° 5'E) was in use in the Early Mediaeval period. There are several temples of the medieval period on this island such as the temple of Murlidhar, Kamaleshwar, etc. (BG 1880: 336-9). Besides these, there is an island rock commanding the Bay of Harnai, this makes it suitable harbour It is located on a small rocky beach which is used as a shelter and the boats could easily take the ground. It was a tidal port. The place is connected with the Satara and Kolhapur regions through Khed and the Ambivle passes (BG 1880; 3) It is likely that it's importance goes back to the Indo- Roman trade, if the identification of Harnai with Auronobos mentioned in Periplus of the Erythrean sea. port (Prasad 1977: 79) is accepted for the reasons given below.

While Arnala, an island and a port, in Thane, is phonetically similar to Aurnobus, it lies in the North of Sopara where as in the description of the Greek accounts, Aurnobus is said to be situated in the south Konkan. Therefore the more likely present equivalent of Aurnobos is Harnai which is about two miles south of Anjarla port and fifteen miles south of Dabhol in Ratnagiri district (BG 1880: 336-9). This parallel not only fits on the basis of phonetical similarity but on other grounds too.

Harnai is encircled by several places of historical significance like the island fortress of Suvarnadurga, the Kanakadurga, the Fatehgad and Goa fort.

Jaygad

Jaygad (17° 17'N: 73° 15T£) is a large village on the south shore of the entrance of the Shastri or Sangameshwar river, at the point of its confluence with the sea, about 22 kilometers south of Guhagar Though at present it is not regarded as an important port but due to its situation at the mouth of the river Shastri which is one of the prominent rivers of Konkan, it must have been a port town as well as a trade-center in the past. It is generally observed that the coastal forts, were constructed for guarding the coastline as well as for protecting the commercial activities of nearby ports. If this principle is applied, Jaigad can be treated as the ancient trade-center referred to above.

Another point in support of this is the phonetical similarity between all these Greek names and Jaigad. Strabo (54 B.C. to 24 AD.) has referred to a trade-center named 24

Sigerdis and Pliny (77 AD.) refers to Sogeris on the Konkan coast. There is a general consensus among scholars that all these names represent the same place but there is a difference of opinion as to which is the present equivalent of this trade-center Here Sigerdis or Sigeris is taken as the ancient name of the present port town of Jaigad.

Vijaydurg

Vijaydurg (16° 32'N: 73° 22'E) is both, a port as well as a historical place because of that the port is known as Vijaydurg or Gheria (BG 1880: 378-82). It is one of the large villages in the Devgad taluka of Ratnagiri district. The port is situated on the South shore of the entrance to the VagoThane creek It is one of the best harbours on the Western coast without any bar or difficulty of access. It was an all weather port for large as well as smaller ships It has what is supposed to be the fastest port for the Southwest monsoon shelter. During the calm season, vessels could anchor anywhere in the harbour because the bottom was of mud clay at the depth of 21 feet which is supposed to be ideal for anchorage

In the Geography of Ptolemy there is a mention of an important port on the West coast of India which has been described as Byzantium (Majumdar Shastri: 1934). Byzantium is the Greek form of the Sanskrit word Vijayanta. On the basis of this, Byzantium has been identified with Vijaydurg. The identification seems to be logical on the basis of the striking phonetical similarity. In the accounts of early European travelers, the VagoThane creek, at the mouth of which Vijaydurg stands, is described as the only big river without bars or rocks of such other dangers which are generally found at other places (BG 1880: 378-82). Even at present it is an important port.

Devgad- Togarum

Devgad (16° 21'/YN: 73" 21'E) was an important port and trade-center during the medieval period. It is one of the important port towns of Southern Konkan. It lies 19 kilometers south of Vijaydurg.

Even at present it is described as a safe and beautiful land-locked harbour at all times, as the depth of the water in the harbour is 18 leet. The mouth of the Channel has been guarded by a fort (BG 1880: 332-2). In the Greek accounts Togarum has been 25 mentioned as one of trade-centers of the coastal regions. It lias been identified with Devgad. Hence it must have been an important port and trade center during the early centuries of Christian era

Malvan Malvan (16° 57N: 73° 30'E) is situated on the sea coast at the junction of the Gad river with the sea. Melizigerus is referred to as Malia or Milandi in the accounts of the Arab travelers and it has been identified with Malvan because even at present it is the most flourishing town in the Sindhudurg district (BG 1880: 346-52). It is the head-quarters of a sub-division and one of the chief ports as well as trader-center in south Konkan. The massive sea-girt fortress of Sindhudurg which was built by Shivaji faces the port. There are several rocky islands in the sea near Malvan These facts support the possibility of Malvan as the present representative of Melizigerous.

The present situation is in favour of Malvan and Rajapur. The geographical location of Rajapur makes us believe that it can be the only modern representative of Meziligerus. There is no doubt that Malizigerus was one of the most important trade- centers on the west coast of Maharashtra because it has been mentioned by four Greek writer as well as the Arab and Persian writers.

Redi-Vengurla

Vengurla (15° 50'N: 73° 4TE) is the head quarter of a taluka in the Sindhudurg district. It is also one of the important ports of south Konkan During the 17* century it was a great place of call for ships from Batania, Japan, Ceylon, on the one side and the Persian gulf and the Red sea on the other In the accounts of Ptolemy and Periplus there is a mention of a trade-center Heptanesia and Sesikreienai. Both these names are taken to be of the same place which has been identified with the Vengurla (BG 1880: 374-8).

A few miles to the south of Vengurla is the port of Redi situated at the mouth of the Terekhol creek Redi has been identified with Revatidvipa mentioned in the copperplates of the Chalukyas. There is a description of a naval expedition undertaken by the Chalukyan king Mangalesha at the close of the 6th century (EI Vol. VI: 1-12). Since a bridge of boats was constructed to reach Revatidvipa, it is presumed that it might have 26 been a reference to the Vengurla rocks which is not very far from Redi (Ramesh, 1984: 65). There is a massive fort at Redi which is known as Yashvantgad (BG 1880: 369-70). This is one of the oldest forts. On the basis of this it can be said that there had been a trade-center in the vicinity of Redi and Vengural during the early centuries of the Christian era. This is the southern most trade-center, as far as Maharashtra is concerned

Ports Situated on the Estuaries

It is the place of contact where goods and people as well as cultures are transferred between land and maritime space, as it is a node where ocean and inland transport lines meet and intervene (Weigned, 1958: 185). Some degree of shelter, natural or artificial, is essential for the development of a port. Formal structures do not seem to have been built until about the tenth century, in Maharashtra due to the seasonal occupation of settlements as stated earlier. The boats were beached on open coasts or in natural harbours and on river banks, or they were allowed to take the ground on a falling tide, or held off the foreshore at anchor as it is done even today. Thus rather then coherent structures, we find the remains of anchors of stone or iron, as at Vijaydurg (Tripathy / Gaur, 1997: 78). Clusters of artifacts which are otherwise inexplicable may also indicate a regularly-used landing place, as also may parallel rows of stones a right angles to the shoreline, or cleared areas on an otherwise stony strand. Ports always required natural features (headlands, etc.) which made a good landfall and could be readily distinguished. The approach had to be well-defined and usable, ilmost regardless of wind direction, and the landing -place itself had to be sheltered from the predominant wind and swell. Even in the fine weather the selection of the landing places was confined to various creek heads. Good harbours do not attract ports if the coasts on which they lie are not important in terms of the land-and-sea- exchanges of their region (Hoyle, 1967). A moderately sloping beach of sand, mud where the boat could easily take the ground was also preferred, and a small tidal range is advantageous Landing places with steep rocky beaches and great tidal ranges were avoided.

Natural habours and estuaries provide the best landing places as they were protected by offshore islands or by the arms of a bay and less exposed to wind and swell. It was necessary that it was close to a settlement (seasonal or permanent) where goods were 27 safe and buyers were available and also had possibility of a return cargo. These sites has good access to the center of the regional economy The natural economic and political centers lay away from the coast and so the ideal site was inland, up a river and possibly at a ford.

Inadequacy of inland transport often leads to the development of coastal towns on the sea creeks, far inland, to command a larger area. In fact, sea-creeks commanded the best sites for the sailing vessels which did not require much draught and could easily ply a considerable distance inland giving rise to small break-of-bulk towns. A port's situation also has a purely physical aspect, and preferences constantly change 'Interior' situations were preferred for reasons of security during the early historic period but become redundant when ships became bigger for example, the port of Dounga. 'Exterior' situations were then sought for port location. The development of a port depended on the water situation, the land situation, the water site and the land site (Hoyle, 1967) The shape and character of the coastline is partly determined by mean sea level and partly by the depth of water and nature of the sea-bed, the position of shoals, reef, banks and bars, as tidal-stream regimes, the general weather sequences and the direction of the predominant winds are all immediately concerned with the location of port.

Erosion removes some of land from the sea ward side Eastward drift in the channel has deposited eroded material in a long spit across the entrance to this harbour, inside the alluvium and marsh has formed, for e.g. the port of Sopara. There was silting of estuaries, and bars across their entrances were not so prominent. When a particular port was silted up the other was opened up as a port So the characteristic features of these ports has been their fluctuating fortunes over time consequently upon the opening up of the new routes and the silting up of inlets

Sanjan

Sanjan (20°15'N. 72"45'E) is a small port town situated on the border of Maharashtra and Gujarat. Formally it was in the Thane district of Maharashtra but now it has been placed in Gujarat. Still, the town is connected with the northern part of Thane district in all respects. It is situated on the northern bank of the Sanjan river which joins the sea 10 kilometers west from Sanjan. At present it is not regarded as an important trade- 28 center but in earlier times it was certainly a place of considerable trade with foreign countries. The Sanjan river assumes the form of a tidal creek upto Sanjan therefore at least in those days it was navigable even for large vessels. Sanjan seems to have attained commercial importance as a result of the setback of Sopara. There are, literary as well as epigraphic evidence which indicates that Sanjan came to prominence as an important port and trade-center from the 8th century AD onwards. In the year 720 AD., a band of Persian refugees landed at Sanjan and settled there (BG 1882: 301-2).

These Persian refugees contributed to the growth of this town. The landing of these refugees certainly shows that during the first half of the 8th century Sanjan was known to foreigners as one of the ports on the west coast. Other geographers of 10lh, 1 l,h and 12th centuries repeatedly mention the name Sindan as one of the chief ports of western India (BG 1882). According to Idrisi, during the 12th century Sanjan was known for the export of an 'emerald' equal to the best in brightness and color, harder and heavier than products from other parts. (BG 1882). It was known as Mecca Emerald, because it passed through Arabia, Arab writers of the 12th century mention Sanjan as a populous city. They further described that the people of this place are known for their intelligence and industrious nature. They are rich and warlike. This town is quite large having a great export and import trade with the Arab world (BG 1882). The remains of the old city of Sanjan can be seen even today in an area of at least a couple of kilometers along the banks of the Sanjan river There remains confirm the description given by the Arab traders about the extent of this township.

The commercial importance of Sanjan seems to have enhanced the status of this town because the place appears in several inscriptions from the 8 century onwards. The earliest is the Sanjan copper grant of the Rashtrakuta emperor Amoghavarsha dated 871 AD. (Deo, 1984: No 704).

This copper plate is important for several reasons. It indicates the keen interest shown by the emperor with this town. Several Arab writers of the 9l and 10l century have mentioned king Balhar who was ruling over this part of the Deccan during that period. He has been identified with emperor Amoghvarsha. The copper plate referred to above confirms the evidence and also sheds light on the importance of Sanjan in India's overseas 29 trade relations. Sanjan is mentioned in the Silahara grants as Hanjamana (Deo, 1984: No. 300, 677). In these inscriptions we come across a reference to the Navayitas (Deo, 1984: No. 300) These were the Arab traders who had come to India as sailors (Nanvittaka) but settled there permanently. They had monopolized the horse trade Through this trade they had established themselves firmly in several parts of the Konkan. They had even occupied important positions in the administration. Some of them even attained the position of feudatories. Sanjan was one of those places which was the headquarters of a Navayita feudatory during the 10th century AD. In the Silahara inscriptions, Sanjan is described as the capital of a feudatory, the headquarters of an administrative division as well as a port and trade-center. Sanjan maintained this position right upto the 14* century

Sopara

Sopara (I9"22,N: 72"50,E) is the present name of the ancient town of Surparaka in Vasai taluka of Thane district It lies on the western bank of Basscin creek, 35 km. North of Mumbai. Geography has imposed certain disadvantage on Sopara. Situated at the extreme end of the bay of Bassein, the presence of large sand banks deterred sea-going ships from coming to it directly, and the dread of tidal bore owing to the narrowing of the bay at that point. Sopara could only hold its ground by developing Thane as its outer port

If we see the present condition of this ancient commercial town, we will hardly believe of its past glory because the present town of Sopara is away from any creek or estuary. However, during the last century, the Bassien creek or estuary passed through Sopara. This is evidenced by the description in contemporary sources. In those days it was known as the island of Sopara because it was cut from the mainland by the backwater which left the Bassien creek a little above the railway bridge and flowed upto the Vaitarana. This backwater was known as the Sopara creek. It was once considerable arm of the sea overflowing a large breath off land on both banks of its present channel but with the mud laden Vaitarna on the north and Bassien creek in the south, the entire arm was silted. The silting was further expedited due to the long railway embankment (BG 1882) At present the only remnant of it can be seen as a hollow strip looking like a deep river bed to the west of the present town of Sopara, joining the Bhayandar creek on one side and on the other side, the Arabian sea near Nirmal. This area is still known as Bandarvadi or 30

Dadar meaning port or landing. This place at present looks like a hollow ravine starting from the Bassein creek right upto Gas near Sopara From Gas onwards there is still flowing water in it Small boats sail upto Gas but in those days, they used to sail right upto Sopara and after crossing Sopara could further sail upto the Bassein creek Even at present the traces of the old dockyard and remains of the old habitation are found at Sopara (Bhoir, 1990: 33-5) The ancient port of Surparaka which is now 10 kilometers away from water was situated on this creek. Its importance gradually declined mainly due to the natural process of sea erosion Due to the silting of the Sopara creek, this place proved to be inconvenient for maritime activities.

The example of Sopara is an ideal one for a topographical change-sea erosion. Sopara was connected with the Arabian sea, by Sopar creek (BG 1882: 124)

As a matter of fact the origin of this place-name has some sort of relationship with its geographical situation. The etymology of the word Supparaka has been attempted by different scholars in different ways. Among these, the most convincing interpretation of this name is a "Nice-Landing" (Yule, 1872: 321). Since, the very origin of this place-name is from the term - denoting a port, its importance in foreign trade is beyond doubt. In the absence of archaeological evidences only on the basis the literary sources and from the discovery of Indian antiquities in Mesopotamian sites we can safely assume that Sopara was the chief town right from 1500 B.C. The Sanskrit dictionary Yadavakosa mentions name Supparaka to represent Aparanta or the whole west coast (BG 1882). This clearly indicates the prominent position of this place on the west coast.

In the Jatakas its stated that sailors sailed from Sopara and Bharukachha and passed through six oceans under the leadership of a blind but skilled mariner from Sopara (Singh, 1961). In the Narivamsa, even the dimensions of the city of Sopara have been mentioned (BG 1882) The mentioned dimensions look very meager but considering the situation of that period, we can say that even with these dimensions, Sopara was a major city if it is compaired with the dimensions of Pataliputra given in the accounts of Megasthenes (Majumdar, 1968: 67). As it was a port-town, it came to be utilized for exporting and importing commodities to overseas countries That is why its mention is found in foreign literature. 31

It appears as a holy and wealthy city and an emporium in north Konkan from about 1400 B.C. to about AD. 1500. The earliest reference to it occurs in the Mahabharata (Bhagavanlal, 1883: 304-5) as - Surparaka, one of the places from the Deccan visited by the Pandavas during the course of their exile (BG 1882: 1047-74) around 1400 B.C. (Majumdar 1951: 270).

The Puranas also record the story of Parashurama which is no doubt of a later date but the contents of this story belong to the pte-Mahabharata period. According to this story Parashurama claimed the land of Aparanta near Sopara by hiking his arrow into the ocean (BG 1882). This legend is of the coastal region of Konkan which has resulted out of the process of sea erosion.

The next reference to Sopara occurs in the Bible in connection with the story of Solomon who sent his ships to a place called Sophir or Ophir and brought through those ships, gold, precious stones, scented wood, ivory, peacocks and apes. Sophir or Ophir has been identified by Benfrey, Reland, Reinand and other scholars with Sopara. Interestingly at one place the Periplus also refers to Sopara as Ouppara. The date of this source is about 1000 B.C. (BG 1882). So the most ancient reference to an Indian place is of Sophire of Ophir which has been identified with Sopara (BG 1882: 124). It clearly shows that Sopara was an active port in India's trade with west Asia even prior to the emergence of Broach. Even when Broach became the chief port on the west coast, the importance of the ports of Sopara, Kalyan and Chaul continued for centuries together as indicated by the sources of different periods.

It is referred to by different variants in different sources. In the Buddhist literature Sopara has been mentioned as Supparaka (Singh, 1961: 177-82) In the inscriptions its mentioned by different variants such as Soparaga, Soparaka, Surparaka, Sopariga and Sopara (Deo, 1984: No 401-2). Western Indian Cave inscriptions contain six references to Sopara (Luder's List No. 995).

According to the Buddhist sources, Buddha himself visited Sopara (Pali Supparaka) and it was a very important trade-center on the west coast in those days. There was a regular trade between Bharukaccha, Supparaka and Suvarnabhumi (Apadana II 476). It was linked by a road with Savatthi 120 leagues to its north-east and to Ceylon in 32 the south (Dhammapadatthakatha II 214, Mahavamsa VI 46, Dipavamsa IX 15f) Horse dealing was an important trade of this locality as we find Ubbari mentioned as born a daughter of horse dealer there (Dhammapadatthakatha IV 50) As mentioned earlier it was also a great seat of trade during Mauryan period. It is also mentioned in the list of the important Buddhist works such as Milindapanho and the Mahaniddesa. It is referred to in the Jataka stories too. One Jataka bears the name of this place, - Supparaka Jataka. In this Sopara is honoured as the birth-place of Buddha (Cowell, et. al.: 1907) It is also referred to in the Ceylonese chronicles. A trader from Suppara built a sandalwood Vihara to receive the Buddha

Vertical excavations were carried out by Bhagawanlal Indraji on the Buruda Rajacha Killa mound in Apiil 1881. This mound gave remains of a Mauryan stupa. This stupa and an edicts of Asoka at Sopara confirm the evidence about Sopara referred to above (BG 1882).

Sopara was an important place for the Jains also. The famous Jain priest and writer Jinaprabhasuri, who flourished in the beginning of the 14l century, mentions Soparaka as one of the 84 sacred placed of the Jainas He also refers to the shrine of Rishabhanatha, the founder of the first Tirthankara of the Jains at Sopara. One of the Jain sects is named after Sopara (BG 1882). The Jain writers make frequent references to Sopara. Their mythical king Shripala is said to have married Talakasundari the daughter of king Mahasena of Sopara

Sopara in this way has been mentioned as an important place, a trade-center and a port-town in the literature of all the three major religions of ancient India. Sopara finds mention in various foreign writings, for example, Ptolemy (AD. 150) mentions Sopara between Nausaripur (Navasari) and Simylla (Chaul). The Per/plus mentions it as the first mart after Barygaza. In the 8/9,h century Sopara retained its importance owing obviously to its proximity to Kanheri, a city that became an important commercial center in the preceding century It appears from the testimony of Al Masudi that at the beginning of the 10' centuiy Thane and Saimur served as the main outer port of Sopara. In 1049 Sopara is mentioned as a port in a Silahara grant. 33

Al Idrasi, in the middle of the 12th century, describes it as one of the emporia of India where Pearl fishing was practiced. Under the Portuguese, Sopara was a fortified port with four wooden stockades (Ghate. 1985).

As regards the commercial activity at Sopara, we have very meager data at our disposal but according to the sources available, Sopara seems to have been an important export trade-center. In the Vasudeva Hindi and Manasollasa Sopara is mentioned as a center of the manufacture of diamonds and gems (Jamkhedkar, 1965; 662/681; Gokhale, 1966: 43-47). On the basis of these sources it can be assumed that Sopara was known for the manufacture and export of the diamonds, gems, beads and other ornaments of precious stones. According to the Mahabharata, Yudhisthira was presented with swords manufactured at this place (Dhavalikar, 1970: 24). This shows that it was a manufacturing center of weapons. The description of the sandal wood Vihara indicates it to be an exporting center of this precious wood. Inscriptions from Kanheri and other places refer to merchants, jewelers, perfume traders, etc. which further substantiate the importance of this place as an industrial town as well as a trade-center (Thosar JESI Vol. XV : 97-107).

It was a chief city as early as the times of Ashoka. This Mauryan emperor had deputed a Yavana monk named Dharurakshita and engraved edicts at Sopara. This was done by him as several Greeks and other foreigners had settled as traders (Deshpande, 1967: 38). This is confirmed by epigraphical evidence also.

Sopara was also a center of ship building and there was an institute at this place which trained the navigators in maritime activities (Mookerji, 1912: 63). In this way Sopara occupied the most prominent position in the field of trade in the coastal region of Maharashtra. Its importance gradually declined at about the 5th and 6th century AD. At this time a new port town came to prominence in the form of Puri and replaced Sopara. In spite of its gradual decline, Sopara continued to be a minor trade-center right upto the end of the ancient period because it is mentioned in the accounts of the Arab traders. In the inscriptions of the Silaharas also, it is mentioned as the headquarters of the administrative division designated as Suparaka 66 (Deo, 1984: No. 388). However this ancient metropolis of the west coast was completely thrown into oblivion with the coming of the Portuguese who converted Vasai or Bassein into the major port of this area. As a result of 34 this, whatever trade existed at Sopara was shifted to Vasai. From the medieval period onwards this place ceased to be of any political or commercial significance. This hastened the deterioration of this place to such an extent that at present no trace of its past glory has remained.

These references prove that Sopara was one of the leading cities and trade-centers on the Western coast of India.

Kalyan

Kalyan (19°15'N: 73°20'E) is the head quarter of a taluka division in the Thane district. It was an inland port town. Further South the Periplus mentions the market town of Kalliena (Kalyan) and at the same time indicates a conflict between the rulers of Bharoch and Kalyan to capture external trade (sec. 52). We have mentioned earlier that in the Ulhas basin the Konkan coast widens into the Sahyadris to form an arc. Kalyan lies at the center of this basin. Even more important than the agricultural potential of the region is its strategic control of the communication network. In this area the Sahyadris are broken, lies in a favourable position to dominate these arterial routes between the coast and the plateau. South of Kalyan lay the port of Semylla or modern Chaul and within a convenient distance from it were located at least 130 Buddhist caves, the largest monastic establishment being at Kanheri (Fergusson and Burgess, 1880: 348). During ancient times Kalyan was an important trade-center and an inland port. Due to this, the place has been referred to in several inscriptions and accounts of the foreigners belonging to the early centuries of the Christian era.

It is rather difficult to determine the exact antiquity of this place because no archaeological excavations have been undertaken at Kalyan. According to Mr. Godbole (1985: 102), antiquities of the proto-historic period akin to the Harappan antiquities were noticed in the Durgadi area in Kalyan. This however is yet to be confirmed by an authentic exploration. The antiquity of Kalyan is certain upto the Early historic period as the Periplus of the Erthyrean sea mentions it as one of the important inland ports and town during the period of Satakarnis (BG 1882: 998-1020). Considering its popularity in the 2nd and 3rdcentury AD this settlement can be dated back to 4th/5th centuries. 35

The antiquity of this place at least upto the early Satavahana period has been substantiated by the surface collections of Red Polished Ware (IAR 1954-55: 67) which was introduced in India after the entry of Greeks and the Romans. Its occurrence at Kalyan corroborated the other evidence that Greeks had their settlements in this city.

The antiquity as well as the significance of this ancient town is further substantiated by a large number of inscriptions from Kanheri, Nasik and Junnar (EI Vol. XLL: 1001-2, Luder's List No. 986, 998, 1000,1003, 1032, JESI Vol. VI 46-9). These inscriptions must be regarded as most important because the word Nigama has been used to represent the guild. Nigama was the guild of traders as well as industrialists. The existence of such guild at Kalyan speaks of its role as a center of trade and industry.

The Ambalika Vihara mentioned in the inscriptions at Kanheri has been identified with Ambivle which is a few kilometers east of Kalyan, on the Ulhas river. According to S. Gokhale, this Vihara might have been patronized by the traders who had to visit Kalyan frequently because from Kalyan, the Naneghat pass was easily accessible (5 kms away from Kalyan) and therefore Kalyan became the most flourishing trader-center during the Satavahana period (Gokhale 1982: 77-80). It may be further noted that the traders of this place have recorded their endowments at 3 different places. The Kanheri inscriptions referred to above which record the endowments to different Buddhist centers mentions the names of Sopara, Ambalika Vihara at Kalyan and Paithan. The inscriptions have probably mentioned these names following the ancient trade route connecting Paithan to Sopara through Naneghat and Kalyan. In those days in Ambivle, the Ulhas river had perennial water. As Kalyan was the major inland port which was not far from those caves and besides the effects of tidal activities facilitated the traders to anchor their ships at Ambalika Vihara and used it as rest house (Gokhale 1982).

Sopara was linked with Kalyan by the Ulhas creek and therefore the goods were carried from inland center to Kalyan through land-route and from Kalyan they were taken to Sopara through small vessels. As a result of this there was a regular traffic between Kalyan which was the first important trade-center on the trade route in the low land of Konkan and Junnar which was the last station on the land route connecting Sopara and 36

Paithan. The traffic was through Naneghat. Interestingly, this is confirmed by inscriptional evidence (Luder's List No. 1177).

An inscription in the cave 7 at Kanheri records the gift by Sulasdatta, a jeweler from Chemulya (Luder's List No. 1179). The name Sulasadatta again occurs as a donor in an inscription at Junnar in which he is described as the son of Heranika who was the resident of Kalyan If he is identical with this jeweler from Chemulya we shall have to presume that Sulasadatta originally hailed from Kalyan. Moreover it will be proved that for business purposes different persons of the same family resided at different places such as Heranika who stayed at Kalyan and Sulasadatta at Chemulya as well as at Junnar. This further sheds light on the hectic trading activities of Kalyan based merchants (Thosar JESI Vol XV).

In this way excepting the period of occupation by the Kashatrapas, Kalyan seems to have continued as a major trade-center as well as an inland port throughout the early centuries of the Christian era. According to some of the writers, Kalyan lost its importance after the rise of Thane but this observation is proved to be wrong by the references to Kalyan as a chief trade-center right upto the medieval period. On the contrary, after the end of Buddhism, Kalyan was regarded as the most important trade-center of this region. Kosmas who visited India in 535 AD. mentions Kalyan as one of the five chief marts of Western India (BG 1882) and controlled by persia as a seat of Christian Bishop. He also refers to it as the seat of a powerful king. What is more important is that during that period, Kalyan was the seat of a Christian Bishop which was controlled by Persia.

This continuous tradition of foreign settlements at Kalyan seems to have continued in future. Kalyan is referred to as an important trade-center in the accounts of Arab traders. For example, Hadud-Al-Alam, a work of I0lh century AD. describes Khalhin as a populous city, famous for the trade of clothes, velvet, medicinal herbs and wooden cloth. It is thus evident that throughout the first millennium after the Christian era, Kalyan continuously played the role of an important trade-center in Konkan. It was but natural because the caravan after crossing the Naneghat pass, saw Kalyan as the first place on route is tcstimonied by the frequent references of traders from this city The inscriptions referred to above indicate that Kalyan was an important center of jewelry This is in 37 keeping with the evidence mentioned in the Greek accounts which says that articles of precious stores were one of the major commodities of export (Prasad, 1977: 221). All these sources thus corroborate the existence of a rich export trade to the western world.

Kalyan seems to have continued to be a trade-center throughout the historical period. As it was an inland port town, several foreign traders stayed here. In the same way, as it lay on the trans-penninsular trade-routes, traders, artisans from the hinter-land also seems to have settled at this town. This is witnessed by the names of different suburbs of Kalyan that existed in the early 19th century (BG 1882).

Thane

Thane (19"15'N: 72°58,E) was supposed to be among those ports of Konkan which came to lime-light after the decline of the ancient ports such as Sopara, Kalyan and Chaul, but recently a clay sealing discovered at Bhokardan indicates the existence of Thane as a commercial center as early as the Satavahana period. (Deo/Gupte 1974 : 77-9).

The discovery of a sealing belonging to a trader from Thane and that too in the Satavahan layers of Bhokardan certainly indicates the existence of commercial activities at Thane. This is the only evidence of this period but it speaks for itself.

Thane was situated on the same creek through which vessels carried goods from Kalyan to Sopara (Ibid). As a midstation between Kalyan and Sopara, Thane must have occupied an important position. The position of Thane on the creek is also unique. It is situated on the western bank of the Thane creek. Above this place the Ulhas river joins the Thane creek In this way Thane is connected with Sopara, Vasai, Kalyan, as well as Puri and Chaul. It was a sort of a junction of the creek routes. This position was mainly responsible for the growth of this town as a port as well as a trade-center during the early Medieval period The extent of the township of ancient Thane was quite large There were as many as four landing places in this town. Remains of ancient temples, tanks etc. are still found through out the outskirts of Thane (BG 1882). Thane was probably the last representative of the ancient ports which rose and fell in the vicinity of Mumbai

Thane is mentioned as Sristhanaka or Sthanaka in several inscriptions (Deo, 1984: No. 643), the earliest of which refers to it as the headquarters of a Vishya division under 38 the Rashtrakutas. We have literary evidence which indicates the commercial importance of Thane even prior to this period The earliest reference to Thane as a center of trade and commerce is of the year 638 AD in which Usman Bin Asi Sakifffi, governor of Bahrain and Oman has sent a plundering expedition from the Persian gulf to Thane, sacked the city and carried away enormous wealth (BG 1882 : 355). In the year 600 AD Thane was again sacked by the Arabs (BG 1882). The repeated attacks by the Arabs on Thane can certainly be regarded as the evidence of its wealth which could only be due to its importance as commercial center From this period onwards Thane continued to flourish more and more. In 913 AD Al Masudi mentions it as one of the chief coastal towns of India (BG 1882). At the beginning of the 11th century. Al Beruni speaks of Thane as the main port and capital of Konkan (Gupta, 1973: 99).

Almost all the inscriptions of this period mentioning the place-name Thane is described as a commercial town. Idrisi describes in the J2,h century AD. that Thane was the most important port and a flourishing center of trade and commerce. The following observation gives the ascending position of Thane during the 13th century, the fortunes of Thane seem to have been their best. It was a capital. The king was in league with corsairs who plundered merchants and gave him all the horses they caught No ships came without horses and the king had no horses of his own. There was much traffic with many ships, and merchants who imported gold, silver and copper and exported brown incense, cotton, cloth and leather of various excellent kinds (BG 1882: 355)

The above passage is sufficient to understand the position of Thane at the close of the 13' century. It was but natural because by this time almost all other ports in this area had become defunct. Naturally all commercial activities were concentrated at Thane. Its importance was doubted when it became the royal capital of the Silaharas at the beginning of the II1 century (Mirashi, 1981 : Introduction). Several families of rich traders occupied important positions in the administration some of them had settled at Thane.

The most important factor which was responsible for the acceleration of the growth of Thane as a trade-center was the "Horse Trade". It is mentioned in several accounts of the Arab traders since it was the capital of the Silaharas, the demand for the 39 import of horses was increased from 11 century onwards. This resulted into the increasing influx of the Navayita traders on the coast of Konkan (Mirashi 1981).

Dounga

Dounga has been identified on the Mumbai island which is area of present Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus The mentions of Ptolemy of the River Goaris between Souppara and Dounga, and of the river Bendas between Dounga and Semyla, makes it certain that the town must have been somewhere on the island of Salsette, as the two river have been identified as Ulhas and Amba. It was identified by Johnstons (1941) with Dongri which is exactly opposite Bassein at the north end of the island. But the lattitudes given by Ptolemy point to its location further down. In the reading of maps, changes of coastline and also of road-system must be allowed for (Map - 4). In the 1st century AD. the modern Mumbai was a chain of insignificant islets with awkward currents. There was a navigable channel round its southern end into what is now the northern extremity of Mumbai Harbour (Map - 5). Hence a narrowing channel led north-eastwards to Thane and then turned north and west, thus rounding Salsette and dividing it from the mainland by Thane creek and came out on the north of Salsette by Bassein. This place was known as Dongree in the 18* century and in the 19l century it was used as a dock. This phonological semblance and its use as a dock in the 19* century make one believe it to be the site of Ptolemy's Dounga.

Puri

Puri (18"55'N . 72"5(TE) was the capital of north Konkan under the Mauryas who ruled this region from the 5th to the 7th century AD. Unfortunately there is a controversy with regards to the exact location of this township. The Aihole inscription of Pulakesin II dated 635 AD. is the earliest epigraphic record which refers to the conquest of Puri by the Chalukyan King after a fierce-naval battle (EI Vol. VI: 1-12). This reference certainly indicates that Puri was a sea-port The Vada inscription of Maurya Suketuvarman is the earliest inscription referring to the rule of the Mauryas over this region (Ramesh, 1984: 105-6). The inscription is dated 400 AD. this clearly shows that the Mauryas were ruling this region with Puri as their capital at least from the beginning of the 5* century. 40

Following are the different locations of ancient Puri as suggested by different scholars (Thosar: Nov. 1988).

The deserted settlement near Marol Village by Henry Cousens, the present island of Elephanta near Mumbai which is also known as Gharapuri in the BOMBAY GAZ£EETER and by Dr. Thosar, Dandarajpuri near Murud-Janjira in the Raigad district of North Konkan by Shri Bhave.

Of all these three alternatives Elephanta or Gharapuri is the only place which was known as Puri in the early Medieval period. This is evidenced by the Portuguese accounts of the 15th century in which the island is described as the "island of Pori".

The description in the Aihole inscription (Majundar Shastri 1934 : 20-1) shows that Puri was an island city and a port located in deep sea-waters. The antiquarian remains including the rock-cut caves, inscriptions and remains of habitation push back the antiquity of this island upto the 5th century AD. At the same time the antiquity of the other two places cannot be traced beyond the Medieval period (EI Vol. VI). -pi l/ji'ic:

The scholars who are against this recognition have given stress to its inaccessibility and unsuitability for habitation. This is mainly because Elephanta is reached from the landing point at the Gateway of India, which is a distance of about 13 kilometers. On the other hand the distance between Elephant and Navasheva a port on the mainland near Uran in Raigad, district is just 3 to 4 kilometers. Even Gharapuri is located in the Uran Taluka of Raigad district. Therefore in those days Gharapuri must have been reached from the Uran side. The question of its unsuitability for habitation also doesn't seem to be true because large scale remains of ancient habitation have been noticed all over the island. Even at present there are 3 to 4 villages on it.

Above all, it may be noted that Navasheva which is situated on the opposite side of the Creek had been selected for building a new harbour as a substitute to Mumbai. This certainly provides a concrete evidence that the site near Elephanta was an ideal site for a deep water port (Thosar 1988).

From these observations it can be said that ancient Puri is represented by the present island of Elephanta. Puri was also an important port. This is confirmed by its 41 reference by various names such as Puri, Sripuri or Chandrapuri in several inscriptions as well as in the accounts of Arab travelers According to Dr. Thosar, Puri came to prominence during the 3rd century AD when the ancient port of Kalyan and Sopara were gradually losing their importance due to the process of sea erosion. Puri was situated in deep sea water and protected on one side by the main land and on the other side by the Mumbai Island and hence supposed to be an ideal place for new port. The Traikutakas were the successors of the Satavahanas in Konkan Their capital has been described in inscriptions as Aniruddhapuri which also has not been identified so far. Dr. Thosar thinks that it was Puri (Ibid). It shows that Puri was the name of this island and had different prefixes attached to it during different periods according to the names of the contemporary rulers. So, under the Traikutakas it was named Aniruddhpuri, under the Mauryas as Chandrapuri, under the Chalukyas as Mangalapuri and under the Silaharas as Sripuri. The commercial importance of this port town probably increased to a great extent during the 5th and 6,h century AD. This is evidenced by the Anjaneri copper-plates which refer to the recolonisation of this port town by the provincial governor of the Chalukyas 10. As a result of this the lost glory of this island was again revived. The Anjaneri plates give details of the commercial importance of this town. The continuation of this island-port as an important trade-center during the succeeding period is revealed through the accounts of Arab travelers who describe it as Sandabur which is obviously the corrupt form of Chandrapur. In these accounts we come across the description of the large palaces, buildings and markets of this town. According to Idrisi, Sandabur is a famous port between Broach and Chaul which is know for its beautiful houses, rich markets and where ships cast anchor (Ibid). From these accounts it seems Puri continued to an important port throughout the post-Chalukyan period. In the inscriptions of the Silaharas also, Chandrapuri or Sripuri i.e. Puri is described as a flourishing port of their kingdom, since it had been the capital of the Mauryas, the Silaharas also might have had their capital at Puri during the early period of their regime. At the end of the 10,h century AD, Konkan was invaded by Satyashraya, the later Chalukyan king of Kalyan. The description of this battle occurs in a Kannada work Gadayuddha by Ranna (Gopal: 95-7). From this description too, it seems that it was another fierce hard battle. This invasion probably proved to be fatal for Puri because from the 11th century onwards, the Silaharas shifted their capital from 42

Puri to Thane. Still, Puri seems to have continued as a harbour because in several inscriptions of the Sjlaharas, it is mentioned either as the headquarters of a division or a port. The transfer of capital from Puri to Thane probably caused for the set back of this ancient town as a center of trade and commerce.

Chaul

Besides Sopara and Kalyan, another significant port as well as trade-center from Konkan referred to in early inscriptions and foreigner's description is Chemulya or Chemula (18° 33 'N: 72° 59'E). It has been mentioned in the description of Ptolemy with different variants such as Symulla or Timulla (BG 1882: 270). He refers to it as a headland emporium between Binda river (the ancient Bena or the Vasai Creek) and Baltipatna, that is Palepattana or Mahad. The place appears to have been of particular interest in the days of Ptolemy.

Chaul is situated near the junction of the Kundalika river or the Roha creek with sea, in the Alibaug taluka of the present Raigad district, also supports its identification. Even at present lower Chaul, known by the name of Revdanda is an important port on the west coast. The situation of Chaul on the Roha Creek is very important because Kalyan, Thane and Sopara attained the position of important ports because of their location on the Vasai Creek. Due to this position, they are connected with the sea as well as the hinterland. After the Ulhas river which later on converts into the Vasai Creek, Kundalika is the next important river in North Konkan, As Chaul is situated at its mouth, it served as a port, and was linked with Varandha pass which led to the cities like Paithan and Ter. It was probably connected with Gomashi and Pale near Mahad, situated on the same river. Chaul must have played the same role in the southern part of North Konkan as placed by Sopara and Kalyan in the northern part.

As far as the recognition of this ancient commercial town is concerned, there are two different views adopted by scholars. In the beginning Chemulya was equated with Chaul. The recognition was generally accepted linguistically and had a consistent record of historical importance at least upto the 11th century A. D. The Arab-travelers mention different variants of this place-names such as Saimur or Jaimur which shows resemblance with Chembur, a village near Trombay on the island of Mumbai, (BG 1882: 271). 43

Although phonetically Chembur is closer to Chemulya but certain geographical factors go to opposite this view.

Like, in the Penplus of the Erythraean Sea, it is mentioned as Symulla and further described it as the first mart to the south of Kalliena (BG 1882: 270) but Chembur is to the West of Kalyan or at the most to the South-West from Kalyan. The places mentioned in these accounts are in order from North to South. On the basis of this criteria, Chaul has to be taken as the present equivalent of Chemulya.

Sopara, Kalyan, Thane, Dounga and Puri all important port-towns as well as commercial centers are situated within a radius of about 50 to 60 kilometers This goes against the possibility of the existence of yet another prominent port of consequences in this region. On the other hand the present town of Chaul is about 50 kilometers to the South of Mumbai and hence it must have been the next station after the Thane-Kalyan belt.

Further there are several traditions current among the people of Chaul containing the stories of its past glory proving its antiquity. On the basis of these points the anamnesis of Chemulya or Chemula with Chaul looks more befitting than its counterpart.

Besides the Greek sources referred to above, the place also finds mention in some other foreign accounts earlier than Ptolemy and the Penplus The possibility of Chaul's recognition with Perimula or Automula referred by the Greek historian Pliny has been expressed by some scholars It has been described as the greatest emporium in India, halfway between Cochin in the South and Hyderabad (Sind) in the North (BG 1882. 270 FN.) How far it is correct cannot be said without sufficient evidence After the Greek accounts referred to above the place has been mentioned as Sibor by Kosmas, who visited India in 525 AD. (BG 1882: 270) It is mentioned as Chimolo in the accounts of the Chinese pilgrim Hieun-Tsang All these evidence clearly point out that Chemulya was an important port as well as trade emporium throughout the Early Historic and Medieval Period.

The information gathered from Chinese and Greek accounts is corroborated by the epigraphs. The commercial importance of Chemulya has been further attested to by inscriptions at Kanheri (cave no 7, 95) belonging to the early centuries of the Christian 44 era, records the gift by Sulasdatta and Dhamanaka, the son of Rohinimitra, banker and gold smith from Chemulya (Deo, 1984: No. 132, 183).

Another inscription from the same place of about 5th century AD also'mentions Chemulya as an important port (Deo, 1984: No. 299). Two inscriptions of the 11th century AD. belonging to the Silaharas describe the place as Chemulya and Chemuli One of these inscriptions of the same period also refers to Chemulya as an important port and trade- center (Deo, 1984: No 488) The information from the later inscriptions is substantiated by the accounts of the Arab traveler of 10th, 11th and 12"' centuries Masudi describes it as Saimur (BG 1882 274) He gives the name of the contemporary local ruler as Jhanjha who was one of the Silahara rulers of North Konkan It has been referred to in the accounts of Al-Beruni and Hadud-Al-Alam.

Thus there are sufficient literary and epigraphical sources that help for tracing the importance of this place as a trade-center. From the accounts of Ptolemy it seems to be one of the important ports involved in foreign trade and we have archaeological evidence too (Ghate: 1985) In addition to this there are a few early Buddhist caves at this place. Although not of high artistic merit they belong to the 2"' century AD, dating back the antiquity of this place to this period

The peculiarity of this port-town is that it maintained its position as earlier even during the medieval period It continued to be a flourishing port right up to the Maratha period.

It had trade relations with China in the medieval period, are proved by reference in the Arab accounts. The historic nature of the place during the Yadava period is proved by the occurrence of two inscriptions belonging to them (Deo, 1984: No 338). The place appears to have witness fierce battles. This is evidenced by as many as five stone slabs on which the battle scenes are carved These sculptures resemble the sculptures at Eksar near Borivali The only difference is that the Eksar panels depict scenes of naval battles whereas these panels have pictures of battles fought on land Among other ancient monuments, mention may be made of the Someshvara temple which probably belongs to the early Silahara period (BG 1881 307) An attempt has been made by Kulkarni to present a connected account of Chaul up to 1818 A.I). (Kulkarni, 1992) 45

Mandad

Mandad (IS'^'N: 73°5CTE) is one of the important ports in the Mangav tahsil of Raigad district (BG 1883: 349). It stands on the bank of the river Mandad which joins the Janjira or the Rajapuri creek 12 kms above Mandad or to the west of Mandad. At Mandad the river meets the tide and is joined from the left by another river known as Bamangad river. This creek of Mandad is the north-east arm of the large Rajapur creek and has an excellent strategical position. T>ie "sailing ships of a hundred tons can ply on the creek. According to the Bombay Gazetteer, boats of 30 to 70 Khandis could reach Mandad at spring tides and boats of 12'/2 tons at ordinary high tides" (BG 1883: 349). From this description it is proved that even a century back, Mandad was a regular port

The present situation of the Kuda caves is also worth noting. The Kuda caves are situated in the Rajapuri creek which is about five miles wide and looks like a mountain lake. It is shut in from all sides by hills having 200 to 600 feet height (BG 1883: 333- 40) From this situation and from the reference to Mandava in the Kuda caves it seems that the sight near Kuda caves itself represented Mandagora of the Periplus.

Mandagora is mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean sea as one of the important ports of Konkan after Kalyan and Chemulya (Schoff, 1912: 201). The same place has also been referred to by Ptolemy From the description of this place in both these Greek works, it has been generally accepted by scholars that both represent the same place (BG Vol X: 116)

As the place has been referred to in both the Greek sources mentioned above, it leaves no doubt about the contemporary importance of this place as a port and a trade- center. James Burgess had discussed the question of the recognition of this place-name more than a century back (BG 1883: 333-49). He had suggested several places on the western coast of Maharashtra as the possible modern equivalents of Mandagora.

The list given by Burgess about the possible equivalents of Mandagora was mainly based on phonetical similarity. Other factors such as geography, topography and other corroborative evidence were not taken into account. If all the factors are considered Mandad appears the only probable modern representative of Mandagora 46

Mandad had a large monastic settlement in the Satavahana period Mandad was connected with Ter via Shirwal through the pass of Bhor The Mandad-Tala-Indapur- Mahad route went to meet the highway on the plateau through Kumbha ghat. The series of rock cut caves-Mandad (Kuda)-Karle-Bhaje-Shelarwadi-Bedsa give the trace of the ancient trade route. From the inscriptional data the port of Mandad seems to be frequented by the caravan-leaders and traders from Karhad. Karad is situated beyond the Sahyadri range The Amboli pass was probably used by traders to reach the Konkan. There was an early historic habitation at Mandad, as is evident from the light bricks and pottery found by the author.

The antiquity of Mandad is established to about the 2"' century AD An inscription from the Kuda caves which are situated just at the outskirts of Mandad mentions a place- name Mandara as the royal seat of a chief (Deo, 1984: No 245) Dr Burgess has also identified Mandara mentioned in this inscription with Mandad (BG 1883: 333)

The inscriptional evidence quoted above seems to be convincing because it is most authentic entry No other place except Mandad has this sort of evidence Therefore Mandad seems to be the real representative of ancient Mandara and Mandagora

This observation is further strengthened by the description of this place as an important port and trading center during the I91' century. According to Bombay Gazetteer among the imports, references to iron is interesting because it gives an idea of a long standing iron trade activity at this place. An inscription of about the 2,u century AD from the Kuda caves records donation by an iron dealer who was a native of Karhataka (Deo, 1984: No 245) The Kuda caves are so close to Mandad that it can be treated as the part of that township. The visit of a Karad based iron trader to Mandad clearly indicates that he had visited the place in connection with receiving the import of the metal. It further sheds light on another important aspect of this port. The evidence thus indicates that besides, the Naneghat pass, other passes also existed to its south during this period linking the Desh region of Maharashtra with Konkan

This is further corroborated by inscriptions carved in the cave number 14, 17, 18, 23, 24 at Kuda (Deo, 1984: NO.246, 251-5). 47

The donors mentioned in these inscriptions were all traders. It is further interesting to note that these traders had gathered at such a port which had direct commercial links with the Roman Empire

from the discussions referred to above we can conclude that there existed an important port in the vicinity of Mandad-Kuda is referred as Mandagora by the Greek writers This port was a regular port of import and export and therefore was linked on one side with inland trade-center like Karad and on the other side with overseas countries.

Besides Sopara, Kalyan, Puri and Chaul, Mandad was another important port in the Konkan region

Mandad seems to have lost its importance in the early medieval period

Pale

Valipattana or Balipattana (18°7'N: 73"22,E) was another important port as well as a trader center from Konkan It is mentioned in the inscription of the Silaharas (Mirashi, 1977: No. 40-42) and was the feudatory capital of the southern Konkan as the feudatories of the Rashtrakutas and Chaiukyas of Kalyan. Baltipatna has been mentioned in Ptolemy's geography as an important trade-center in western India (BG 1883: 344). Interestingly Pcriplus also points out to the existence of Palaipatmai as an important emporium of trade in the same region (SchofT, 1912: 201). There is a general consensus amongst scholars that Baltipatna and Palaipatmai is the same place. There is also unanimity about its recognition with Valipattna or Balipattana occurring in the inscriptions of the Silaharas. Most of the scholars have identified this place with Pale near Mahad in the present Raigad district (BG 1883: 344-5). According to Schoff who has translated the Pcriplus, Palaipatmai can be identified with Dabhol (Schoff, 1912) Moti Chandra also holds the same view (1977: I 16). Dabhol is no doubt one of the important ports in the Ratnagiri districts but there is no phonetical similarity between this place-name and Palaipatmai Therefore this recognition is also not acceptable to most of the scholars

In the Bombay Gazetteer this place has been identified with Pale near Mahad which is famous for rock-cut caves and inscriptions belonging to the early centuries of the Christian era (BG 1883 343-9) This recognition which has been adopted by quite a 48 number of scholars seems to be most acceptable because at least it tallies with the first part of the name as mentioned in the Periplus It can also tally with Balipattana because in Sanskrit and Prakrit, the letters 'B' and 'P1 are interchangeable. Besides, Pale can claim the antiquity of the period of Periplus and Ptolemy because there are about 29 caves belonging to the early centuries of Christian era (BG 1883). The village of Pale is almost a suburb of the town of Mahad which is situated on the Savitri rivers that flows into the sea at Bankot. This river is navigable upto Mahad even now a days. Mahad also has an antiquarian background The place has several local traditions Its situation on the banks of the Savitri which is one of the major rivers of north Konkan has enable Mahad to have maritime trade even now The group of Buddhist caves were excavated during the Is and 2nd century of the Christian era. This is confirmed by epigraphic evidence also because in one of the inscriptions in cave No 9 at Mahad, a prince named Vishnupalita has recorded his endowment (Deo, 1984: NO 625) The inscription belongs to 130 AD

Two small groups of caves with inscriptions occur at Kol across the Savitri river (Burgess. 1885: 74) Most of the caves are now ruined but number of these caves also bear inscriptions of the same period. There are in all 3 short inscriptions (Deo, 1984 No. 627) They were from a distant place which is mentioned as Aghakasa. This place is not identified but it shows that they were not local people. These persons must have visited the place in connection with trade. We have seen many instances of trade-centers surrounded by rock-cut caves which were used as rest houses by monks as well as traders The Kanheri Vihara near Sopara, the Ambika Vihara near Kalyan, and the Kuda caves near Mandagora are some examples of this type. The existence of such caves at Pale and Kol near Mahad certainly indicates the correctness ol~ the recognition of Balipatana or Palaipatmai with Pale or Mahad It is possible that during the early centuries of Christian era the township of Mahad was itself on the sight of present Pale village and later on might have shifted to the present location due to topographical changes Thus after Mandad, we come across another important on the coast of Konkan This port has been mentioned by both the Greek authorities Therefore after Sopara, Chemulya and Mandagora, this was another important port having direct commercial contacts with the Graeco-Roman world 49

This recognition is further attested to by the fact that Mahad is connected with the Deccan plateau through the Varandha Pass which is the only outlet from the Deccan plateau to the Konkan in this area

Dabhol

Dabhol (17" 34"N: 73" 16'E) lies nine and a half kilometers from the sea at the foot of the hills on the north bank of Vashisthi river. Large remains, several feet underground, seem to show that Dabhol was in very early times a place of consequences and remained as that for a long lime

Chiplun

Chiplun (17° 30"N: 73" 361:) is situated forty kilometers from the sea, on the southern bank of the Vashisthi river fifty kilometers inland There are also two or three smaller caves. This port served the city of Karad via Patan

Vaghotan

Vaghotan (16" 30*N: 73" 3

Rajapur

Rajapur has been identified here with Melizigerus. Rajapur (16" 37"N: 73" 30T£) is situated two kilometers inland on the northern bank of an estuary called Kajavi At Rajapur the depth of laterite is about twenty kilometers which is although unproductive due to its acidity was ideal of anchorage purpose Melizigerus is the name of a trade-center from the west coast region of India which is mentioned in both the Greek accounts i.e Periplus and Ptolemy. Rajapur was connected to Kolhapur via Anaskura and Bavda ghats It lay just two kilometer towards the north of the early Medieaval town of Kharepatan

VV.ll SeholVis of the opinion that neither Jaigad nor Malvan represent Melizigerus - the ancient trade-center According to him, "it is not impossible that it may be the 50 modern Rajapur town which lies at the head of a tidal creek and is the only port on this Ratnagiri coast to which Arab boats still trade directly This is the Melizigerus of Ptolemy. The name seems to suggest the Sanskriti/.ed word Malayagiri which is the name of the southern fringe of the western ghats (BG 357-66). Though Rajapur does not have any phonetical affinity it was one of the major ports and trade-centers during the medieval period. This was one of the colonies of the Dutch on the western coast It continued to be an active port and trader-center throughout the Mughul-Maratha period

Kanheri Although Kanheri was not a port, it lias been included here only as il was in the Konkan region. The monastic settlement at Kanheri (72° 59" 12: 19" \T N), nourished between the first and the tenth centuries AD during the rules of the Satavahanas, Traikutakas and Silaharas Kanheri is situated in the hill ranges 10 km South-East of Borivali in the fertile basin of the Ulhas river. Thus its hiterland included the agrarian tracts of the region and the inscriptions refer to several villages, as well as the urban centres in the neighbourhood The significance of the location of important centres of Buddhism on ancient trade routes can be satisfactorily explained if it is remembered that they were also centers of trade and industry According to Ptolemy, Kalliena (Kalyan) was one of the six important trade centres on the West coast and it handled metals, cotton and sandal wood Perhaps metal extracted at Kanheri was exported through the ancient ports of Kalyan and Sopara Kanheri is the meeting point of two important trade routes, one connecting Paithan (ancient PratisThane) in Aurangabad District with Amaravati on the East coast and the other connecting Nasik with Ujjayini, Mathura and Varanasi in North. Both the routes converged on Kanheri wherefrorn they branched off towards Broach and Sopara in the North and Kalyan and Thane in the South. So Kanheri rose to prominence largely on account of its proximity to the ports of West coast, especially i'-'van, Thane and Sopara, and its importance for seafarers continued in the later periods Table 2.2 OCCUPATION OF PORT CENTERS DURING DIFFERENT DYNASTIC PERIODS

-—______^ Periods M s K A V K C IK KC SI K Y Sites ~"~"~^"--—^. M Bankot Chaul * * * * * * * * * Chiplun * * * Dabhol * De\ gad-1 ogarum * * * Dounga * Harnai * * * * Jaygad Kalvan * * Kclshi * * * Mandad * Mcli/.igcrus Puri * * * * * * * * Redi-Vcngurla Sanjan Sopara * * * * * * * * * * * Sangamcshwar * Thane * Vagotliana * Pale * * * * Vijaydurg * * M - Maurjan, S - Satavahaiia, K Kshatrapa, A - Abhiras, V - Vakatakas, R Rastiakuta, (' (halukyas, BC liadami C'haljkya, KC Kalvani ('halukyas, SI Silaharas KM , Kakuhuii of Maliismati, Y Yailavas