Unearthed Capitals of the Vakataka Dynasty in Vidarbha

thenewsdirt
Aug 27
6 min read

For centuries, the Vakataka dynasty was known mostly through legends and inscriptions. Now, a series of new archaeological finds in central India is bringing their story to life. Excavations in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra have uncovered the remains of their ancient capitals at Nagardhan (ancient Nandivardhana) and Mansar (ancient Pravarapura).

At these sites, researchers have found pottery, coins and temple foundations belonging to the Vakataka rulers. Together, these discoveries are beginning to shed light on how the dynasty built its power and place in India’s history.

Historical Background

By the mid-3rd century CE, the Vakatakas had emerged as a major dynasty in central India.

They succeeded the Satavahanas in the Deccan and were contemporaries of the Gupta empire in the north.

The Vakatakas held territory roughly between the Narmada River in central India and the Tungabhadra in the south, making them a key power bridging north and south.

Early Vakataka kings, including Vindhyashakti, bore Brahminical names and performed numerous Vedic sacrifices. During the reign of King Rudrasena II (c. 380–385 CE), the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II cemented ties by marrying his daughter Prabhavatigupta into the Vakataka family. This alliance linked the two dynasties: Vakataka inscriptions often begin with the Gupta genealogy, underlining the connection.

After Pravarasena I (c. 270–330 CE), the Vakataka realm split into separate branches. Two major lines emerged: one based around Pravarapura-Nandivardhana in eastern Maharashtra (Vidarbha) and another known as the Vatsagulma branch in western Maharashtra. The eastern branch included kings such as Rudrasena I (c. 335–360 CE), who is recorded as the founder of the Nandivardhana line. The western Vatsagulma branch produced rulers like Sarvasena I and later King Harishena, who undertook great building projects.

Notably, Harishena of Vatsagulma (c. 480–500 CE) is credited with the construction and decoration of the famous Ajanta caves in Aurangabad.

Archaeological finds in Vidarbha document the region’s long history before and after the Vakatakas. For example, the town of Pauni in Bhandara district has yielded dozens of Brahmi inscriptions dating from the 3rd century BCE onward. These are mostly short Buddhist donation records for a large stupa complex.

One inscription from Pauni even mentions Mucalinda, the nāgarāja (serpent-king) who sheltered the Buddha, demonstrating that Vidarbha was a significant Buddhist centre in Satavahana times.

Much later (c. 573 CE), Nagardhan itself produced a set of copper-plate charters known as the Svamiraja plates. These plates, issued by local rulers, record land grants and council proceedings. Epigraphist V.V. Mirashi noted that the Svamiraja charter “extended the known political history of the region into the late 6th century”, indicating that Nandivardhana remained an active administrative site even after the fall of the main Vakataka line.

Vakataka Rule in Vidarbha

Nandivardhana, identified with modern Nagardhan near Ramtek, lies in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

Archaeologists now believe Nagardhan was the capital of the eastern Vakatakas.

As the Times of India reported, Nagardhan “has been declared the capital of the Vakataka dynasty” by state archaeologists.

Excavations there uncovered layers of clay seals, terracotta figurines and pottery dating to the Vakataka period. Senior archaeologist Shrikant Ganvir noted that some of the items were typical of that era: “Some of the artefacts, including ceramics and ear studs made of glass…were the typical items used during this period”.

The team also found a small clay idol of Ganesha with no ornaments, suggesting that the elephant-god was widely worshipped at home. Together, these finds match expectations for the capital of a powerful regional kingdom.

To the east in Vidarbha, the village of Mansar has been identified as Pravarapura, another Vakataka capital.

Archaeologists had long known of a 1972 discovery at Mansar, a life-sized limestone sculpture of Shiva found on a hill called Hidimba Tekdi.

Starting in 1997, teams led by J.P. Joshi and A.K. Sharma excavated Mansar in detail. They confirmed it was the Vakataka capital built by King Pravarasena II. The dig exposed the outline of a royal palace with multiple storeys (sector MNS II), a temple platform with a central Shiva linga (sector MNS III), and a stupa-shaped structure (sector MNS V).

Inscriptions at Mansar praise Shiva and name it as the king’s ‘Paramaheshvara Devakulasthana’ (the great Shiva temple). These findings show that Mansar was a fully developed 5th-century city, serving as the dynasty’s capital in that era.

Archaeological Excavations

Both Nagardhan and Mansar have been the focus of recent systematic digs. In Nagardhan, a team led by archaeologists Ganvir and Shantanu Vaidya has worked since 2015.

They have revealed thick occupation layers full of settlement debris.

Vaidya noted that the combined discoveries at multiple trenches now “confirm the presence of a capital of the Vakataka dynasty here”.

The team even unearthed a clay seal bearing the name of Prabhavatigupta, the Gupta princess who ruled the Vakatakas as queen-regent. In the archaeologists’ words, the seal “reveals that the queen was the head of the state post the death of King Rudrasena II”, confirming her recorded role in the dynasty’s history.

Excavations at Mansar, overseen by the Archaeological Survey of India, have been equally significant.

Groningen University historian Hans Bakker wrote that the finds at Mansar were “astounding and revolutionised everything we knew of the Vakataka kingdom”. The Mansar project has mapped out the city in detail: archaeologists uncovered palace foundations, remnants of city walls, water tanks and houses.

They documented smaller finds, terracotta dancers, toy pieces and a gaming board, which speak to daily life in the capital.

Crucially, they also found the bases of temple sanctums. One with a Shiva lingam and stone fire altar, and a star-shaped temple was found nearby. All together, the work at Nagardhan and Mansar is rewriting Vidarbha’s history by providing material evidence of the Vakataka court and its society.

Art, Architecture and Religion

The Vakatakas were noted patrons of art and architecture. Their most famous legacy is the Ajanta Caves in the Aurangabad district, which are explicitly associated with the dynasty.

Cave inscriptions state that “the Buddhist viharas and chaityas of Ajanta Caves…were built under the patronage of Vakataka king Harishena”.

Three large cave halls (Nos. 16, 17 and 19) date to his reign (c. 475–500 CE) and contain richly painted frescoes depicting scenes from the Buddha’s life. These murals illustrate a high level of artistic sophistication.

An Ajanta inscription even praises the founder Vindhyashakti as “the banner of the Vakataka family”. In this way, the Vakataka kings fostered Buddhist arts even while based in a mostly Hindu region.

Within Vidarbha itself, the Vakataka rulers appear to have followed Hindu faiths, especially Shaiva traditions. Most Vakataka kings took on grand Shaiva titles. For example, Pravarasena II assumed the title Paramamaheshvara (“greatest lord of Shiva”).

The Mansar excavations emphasise this: sector MNS III contained the remnants of a layered brick temple with a Shiva linga and a pillared mandapa, and a star-shaped temple was found nearby. These indicate that the principal state temple at Mansar was dedicated to Shiva.

At Nagardhan, the discovery of the Ganesha idol suggests that Hindu household worship also flourished there. Meanwhile, Queen Prabhavatigupta, a Vaishnavite by birth, left her mark on the inscriptions. The Nagardhan plates she issued open with a genealogy praising her Gupta ancestry and invoking Lord Vishnu.

This combination of Hindu and Buddhist elements shows that the Vakataka court blended religious traditions during its reign.

The picture of the Vakatakas in Vidarbha is still emerging. Scholars emphasise that many artefacts have yet to be fully studied.

Every season of excavation and analysis yields new data, from mundane pottery shards to inscribed seals, that helps refine the history.

It is already clear, however, that Vidarbha was a political and cultural hub in ancient India, not a remote backwater. The finds at Nagardhan and Mansar have brought tangible reality to a dynasty once known mainly by name.

For people of modern Vidarbha, the uncovering of these sites has made the ancient past real. Every new artefact and architectural fragment is being carefully studied to fill in the gaps of this dynasty’s story, and further excavations promise to expand our understanding of these rulers.