More than 4,500 years ago, the artisans of Dholavira transformed stone into a remarkable work of art. Today, their legacy lives on in India’s enduring tradition of stone craftsmanship, revealing a remarkable thread of artistic continuity across millennia.

Look closely, think carefully and identify the heritage treasure. Give your answers in the comment section below.

Located at Saidpur in Ghazipur, this site is known for two well-preserved statues representing Varaha, the Boar incarnation, and Krishna with Gopis. The statues are enshrined within a temple built in the Nagara style and belonging to the historical period. The Varaha statue depicts Vishnu’s third avatar, traditionally shown rescuing the Earth goddess, Bhudevi. Varaha is portrayed either as a combination of human and wild boar or entirely as the animal. The Krishna with Radha statue depicts Radha, an embodiment of ideal beauty with large, beautiful eyes, standing beside Krishna. Krishna is shown with a dark complexion and playing the flute, while Radha is shown with a fair complexion. The two statues were declared a Centrally Protected Monument in 1920. The importance of the site lies in its association with the historical period.

Dating to the 13th century, this sculpture depicts the four-armed Surya Narayana seated in the padmasana pose with dhyanamudra. The image is richly adorned with jewellery, while flames of fire emerge from either side of his crown. The upper two hands of the image are broken.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is undertaking cleanliness and upkeep activities at heritage sites across the country as part of the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 campaign, being observed from 17 September to 2 October 2026. These continuous efforts encourage community participation and promote the care and preservation of our shared heritage.

The Pancha Pandava Temple complex is located on the left bank of the river Birupa at Ganeswarpur, Chhatia, in Cuttack district, Odisha. The east-facing temple is of the Panchayatana class, locally known as Panchu Pandava, and is dedicated to Vishnu. Based on its architectural features and sculptural embellishments, the temple can be assigned to the Somavamsi period, around the second quarter of the 10th century C.E. The vimana is pancharatha in plan and triangabada in elevation. The superstructure of the vimana, the jagamohana, and the shrines at the north-east corner have long since collapsed. The presiding deity is a four-armed Vishnu made of green chlorite, standing on a rectangular pedestal with a female figure on either side holding a lotus. The exterior of the temple is decorated with architectural features such as vajramundi, khakharamundi and pilaster designs. It also contains decorative motifs including chaitya medallions, kirtimukha, purnakumbha and nayikas. Many decorative architectural members with scroll work, miniature chaitya motifs and hunting scenes are scattered around the temple. These also include representations of different animals such as horses, bulls, snakes and elephants, along with Krishna-lila scenes, divinities, mithuna and maithuna figures, and nayikas in large numbers.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is undertaking cleanliness and upkeep activities at heritage sites across the country as part of the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 campaign, being observed from 17 September to 2 October 2026. These continuous efforts encourage community participation and promote the care and preservation of our shared heritage.

The excavation at Arambha, district Nagpur, was undertaken on a trial basis during 1991–92 to understand the cultural sequence of the site. The excavation revealed five periods of occupation, each characterized by distinct ceramic types and associated antiquities. Period I yielded Black-and-Red Ware, Black Painted Black-and-Red Ware and White Painted Black-and-Red Ware, with paintings confined to the rim and shoulder of the vase. A U-shaped north-south hearth and a stone hopscotch were also found. Period II revealed patches of floors prepared with stone chips, dust and mud. Finds included a tiny NBPW bowl sherd, Black-on-Red Ware bowls and dishes, shell bangle fragments, a crystal bead, whetstone and fragments of an iron rod. Period III yielded Red Ware pottery with decorative designs of the Satavahana period, including fingertip decoration, multiple grooves, oblique notches, foliage, flowers and converging lines forming triangles. Other finds included a spiral copper ring, an ear stud incised with radiating rays, a potter wheel, semi-precious stone beads, an iron ferrule and a terracotta coin mould attributed to the Sakas. Period IV was characterized by Red Polished Ware pottery. A vase sherd bearing a fragmentary inscription in Brahmi of the Gupta-Vakataka characters was found, along with semi-precious stone and terracotta beads, shell bangle fragments, a Mother Goddess head carved in buff sandstone and a fragment depicting a foliage motif carved on schist. Period V yielded grey pottery of the medieval type, along with glass bangles and terracotta beads.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is undertaking cleanliness and upkeep activities at heritage sites across the country as part of the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 campaign, being observed from 17 September to 2 October 2026. These continuous efforts encourage community participation and promote the care and preservation of our shared heritage.

Located on the bank of the Wainganga River, the Group of Temples at Markanda, Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra, is an important centre for pilgrimage in the Vidarbha region. The temples date from the 9th to 12th centuries C.E. and are grouped around the central Markandadeo Temple, with Siva as the deity, within a quadrangle. The group has been designated by various scholars as the “Khajuraho of Vidarbha” for its sculptural grandeur and architectural beauty. The temples belong to Saiva, Vaishnava and Sakta faiths and follow a simple plan comprising the ardhamandapa, mandapa, antarala and garbhagriha, with the compartments interconnected. The group includes Markandeshwara, Nandikeshwara, Mrikundeshwara, Mritunjaya, Yamadharma and Dasavatara temples. The Markandeshwara Temple is comparatively well preserved, with its surfaces richly decorated with geometrical ornamentation, foliage, mythical animals, human figures and divine figures. Its walls feature three horizontal bands of finely carved sculptures depicting varied human forms, emotions and activities. The Mrikunda Rishi Temple, dedicated to Shiva, has a carved exterior, lofty sikhara and a sabhamandapa with a square rangasila and profusely carved pillars. The Dasavatara Temple, dedicated to the ten incarnations of Vishnu, is an open cloister divided into twelve compartments, with sculptures of Vishnu and his avatars. The Yamadharma Temple, dedicated to Shiva, has a slender sikhara and a richly decorated doorway. The architectural style of the temples shows influences from Central India, Gujarat, Malwa and Karnatak, reflecting the sculptural and architectural traditions of the period.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is undertaking cleanliness and upkeep activities at heritage sites across the country as part of the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 campaign, being observed from 17 September to 2 October 2026. These continuous efforts encourage community participation and promote the care and preservation of our shared heritage.

4 Days left! Here is a reminder for all interested candidates that the Archaeological Survey of India continues to accept applications for the various positions of Consultants under the Project Mausam, its landmark initiative tracing India's maritime heritage across the Indian Ocean. Openings include Conservation Architects, Archaeologists, Historians, Intangible Cultural Heritage Specialists, GIS Experts and Graphic Designers, based in New Delhi on a one-year contract. For detailed advertisement, check the Link asi.nic.in/HQ/jobsvacancies/, and visit official website of ASI and Ministry of Culture. try

Located in Pune, Maharashtra, Shaniwar wada was the most magnificent and stately mansion built chiefly as the residence of the Peshwas. Its foundation was laid by Bajirao-I in 1730 C.E., and the construction was completed in 1732 C.E. The successors of Bajirao-I added fortification walls with bastions and gates, court halls, other buildings, fountains and reservoirs. A fire in 1828 C.E. gutted the palace, and what remains today are its plinths and fortification walls with five gateways and nine bastions. The principal gateway is the Dilli Darwaja (Delhi Gate), while the other gates are Mastani or Alibahadur Darwaja, Khidki Darwaja, Ganesh Darwaja and Narayan Darwaja. Among its important buildings were Thorlya Rayacha Diwankhana, Nachacha Diwankhana, Ganesh Mahal and Juna Aarse Mahal. The palace was adorned with intricately engraved arches, cypress-shaped pillars, wooden tracery and paintings depicting scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Its famed sixteen-petalled lotus-shaped fountain, Hajari Karanje, is another remarkable feature remembered today.

Sikander Bagh is situated in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. It was built by Wajid Ali Shah (1847–56 CE), the last King of Awadh, in memory of his favourite queen, Sikander Mahal, at a cost of Rupees five lakhs. Originally, it was a high enclosure built of lakhauri bricks, plastered with lime and decorated with plaster mouldings. It contained a summer house and a garden. Most of the buildings have now vanished, except parts of a wall with battlements, a small mosque and a double-storied gateway. The imposing gateway has a rectangular passageway and a pair of flanking bays covered with domes. The inner portion of the gateway is decorated with floral motifs in stucco work. The main arch is adorned with a beautiful pair of fish, representing the royal insignia of Awadh.

The Ancient Temple at Kakapora, in Pulwama district, Jammu and Kashmir. The temple can be assigned to the 10th–11th century C.E. on the basis of its architectural features. The temple is built in the centre of an oblong courtyard, which is below the present ground level. The main shrine follows a typical ratha pattern from outside and consists of a square sanctum (garbhagriha) and a portico on plan, built above the common jagati. It preserves only its basal mouldings. A flight of steps on the east provides access to the temple. The courtyard is enclosed by a peristyle, whose upper platform is also damaged. A double-chambered gateway is located in the middle of the eastern side of the peristyle. The superstructure of the temple is now missing. The temple is presently in a ruined state.

Baraduary Masjid is situated at Gaur, Malda, West Bengal, and is a protected monument under ASI. This mosque was built by Sultan Nasrat Shah in 1526 CE. The mosque has an arcaded aisle along its corridor. It is called Baraduary, meaning a building with twelve doors, but it has only 11 openings. Its corridor is domed, while the three-aisled hall is now domeless. Its domes were originally gilded, giving it the name Barasona Masjid, or the Great Golden Mosque. On the north are the remains of a ladies’ gallery, while on the south-east is a platform probably used by the muazzin for calling the faithful to prayer. Of its three arched gateways, the eastern one alone survives in its original glory.

'Delhi and Its Neighbourhood’, published by the Archaeological Survey of India, was first published in 1964. Since then, several important discoveries have added to our understanding of Delhi’s past, including the discovery of a rock-edict of Asoka and the results of recent excavations at Purana-Qila. The revised edition includes brief details of these discoveries, along with new illustrations and an index to monuments, making the book more useful for readers and visitors interested in Delhi’s historical heritage. It also follows a consistent system for the transliteration of Persian, Sanskrit, Hindi and indigenous words. The names of localities and popular monuments generally follow the spellings used in the Delhi Guide Map published by the Survey of India. The book is priced at ₹100/- for the English edition and ₹110/- for the Hindi edition.