Satavahana-era well with 'unique' brickwork found in Osmanabad

A brick-lined well, believed to have been constructed during the Satavahana period, has been discovered at Ter in Osmanabad district of Maharashtra.

The well, which has a unique brickwork, was found last month during the excavation work being carried out for the construction of a building, where a museum in Ter is planned to be relocated, an official said on Thursday.

"The Ramalingappa Lamature Museum in Ter is set to be shifted to another location. The state government has started constructing a new building for that and the well belonging to the Satavahana period (230 BC to 200 AD) was discovered during the excavation work on December 14," assistant curator of the Department of Archaeology, Amol Gote told PTI.

"The well has a unique brickwork. The bricks are larger in size as compared to those found earlier in Ter from the Satavahana period," he said.

According to Gote, the bricks found during the excavation in Ter in the past were 40 cm long, 20 cm wide and 7 cm thick.

"But the bricks used in the construction of this well are 45 cm in length, 24 cm in width and 9 cm in thickness," he added.

Following the discovery of the well, the archaeology department has demarcated the area to carry out a scientific excavation.

"The arrangement of bricks in the well gives us an idea that the work was executed during the Satavahana era. The vertical and horizontal arrangements of bricks is unique here. While one layer is vertical, three others are horizontal," the official added.

"During the excavation work carried out so far, we have reached the depth of three meters. We recovered bones of animals within the well area and got them confirmed from veterinary doctors," Gote said.

According to Revansiddha Lamture, a history scholar, Ter was an important trade centre during the Satavahana period.

"Commodities from different regions used to be brought at Ter, from where they would be sent to Rome via Paithan (Aurangabad) and Bharuch (Gujarat)," he said.