INDIAN HISTORY THROUGH MAP- PART-M

(1) Machilipatnam / Bandar / Masula

• The town has existed since the 3rd century BCE (Satavahana period) when, according to Ptolemy, it was known as Maisolos. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea calls it Masalia in the 1st century BCE.
• Situated in the mouth of the River Krishna, the Masula port saw flourishing sea trade. Muslin clothes were traded by ancient Greeks from Masulipatam Several Roman coins were found during excavations of Buddhist towns located near Masulipatnam (Maisolia).
• There were Arab merchants in the area at least since the 13th century. The Portuguese controlled between 1598 and 1610. The East India Company built its first factory in India in Masulipatnam. It was a 17th-century port for French, British and Dutch trade.

(2) Madura / Madurai / Koodal / Thirualavai

• Madurai is closely associated with the Tamil language, as all three primary congregations of Tamil scholars, the Third Tamil Sangams, were held in the city between 1780 BCE and the 3rd century CE. The recorded history of the city goes back to the 3rd century BCE, being mentioned by Megasthenes, the Greek ambassador to India, and Kautilya, a minister of the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya. 
• The city is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Early Pandyas, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Later Pandyas, Madurai Sultanate, Vijayanagar Empire, Madurai Nayaks, Chanda Sahib,Carnatic kingdom, and the British. 
• The city has a number of historical monuments, with the Meenakshi Amman Temple and Tirumalai Nayak Palace (17th-century palace erected in 1636 AD by King Thirumalai Nayak, a king of Madurai's Nayaka dynasty) being the most prominent. Madurai is built around the Meenakshi Amman Temple, which acted as the geographic and ritual center of the ancient city of Madurai.Vishwanatha Nayak (1159–64 CE), the first Madurai Nayak king, redesigned the city in accordance with the principles laid out by Shilpa Shastras .

Meenakshi Amman Temple:

• It is located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River. It is dedicated to Parvati (Meenakshi), and her consort, Shiva(Sundareswara). 
• The temple is surrounded by gopurams (gateway tower),- There are 14 gopuram the tallest of which, the famous southern tower.The oldest gopuram is the eastern one, built by Maravarman Sundara Pandyan during 1216-1238. Each gopuram is a multi-storeyed structure, covered with thousands of stone figures of animals, gods and demons painted in bright hues
• Tamil literature speaks of the temple over the last two millennia. Thirugnanasambandar, the famous Hindu saint of Saiva philosophy, mentioned this temple as early as the 7th century.
• The temple is believed to have been sacked by the infamous Muslim invader Malik Kafur in 1310. The initiative to rebuild the structure was taken by first Nayak king of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak (1559–1600) under the supervision of Ariyanatha Mudaliar, the prime minister of the Nayak Dynasty and the founder of the Poligar System.
• Only a fraction of 17th and 18th century paintings of Nayak period survives. A painting depicts the marriage of Sundareswarar and Meenkashi. The painting is executed on a vivid red background, with delicate black linework and large areas of white, green and ochre.

From top left clockwise: (1)North Tower(Gopuram)(2)Close up of gopurum figures (3)God Shiva as cosmic dancer Nataraja(4)Temple wall painting depicting its founding legend(5)The Golden Lotus Temple tank (6)The golden shrine over the sanctum of Meenakshi(7)Inside the shrine of Meenakshi (8) Vishnu weds Meenakshi to Shiva(9)A section of Thousand Pillar Hall(10)Sculptures inside the temple

(3) Mahabalipuram / Mamallapuram / Mamallapattana

• Mahabalipuram is a town in Kancheepuram district in the Tamil Nadu.
• It is an ancient historic town and was a bustling seaport during the time of Periplus (1st century CE) and Ptolemy (140 CE). Ancient Indian traders who went to countries of South East Asia sailed from the seaport of Mahabalipuram.
• By the 7th century it was a port city of South Indian dynasty of the Pallavas. It has a group of sanctuaries, which was carved out of rock along the Coromandel coast in the 7th and 8th centuries : Rathas (temples in the form of chariots), Mandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open-air reliefs such as the famous 'Descent of the Ganges', and the Shore Temple, with thousands of sculptures to the glory of Shiva.
• Mahabalipuram has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Megalithic burial urn, cairn circles and jars with burials dating to the very dawn of the Christian era have been discovered near Mamallapuram. 
• The Sangam age poem Perumpanarruppatai relates the rule of King Thondaiman Ilam Thiraiyar at Kanchipuram of the Tondai Nadu port Nirppeyyaru which scholars identify with the present-day Mamallapuram. 
• Chinese and Roman coins in the 4th century CE have been found at Mamallapuram revealing the port as an active hub of global trade. 
• Two Pallava coins bearing legends read as Srihari and Srinidhi have been found at Mamallapuram. The Pallava kings ruled Mamallapuram from Kanchipuram; the capital of the Pallava dynasty from the 3rd century to 9th century CE, and used the port to launch trade and diplomatic missions to Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia.
• Another name by which Mahabalipuram has been known to mariners, at least since Marco Polo’s time is "Seven Pagodas" alluding to the Seven Pagodas of Mahabalipuram that stood on the shore, of which one, the Shore Temple, survives.
• The temples of Mamallapuram, portraying events described in the Mahabharata, were built largely during the reigns of Narasimhavarman and his successor Rajasimhavarman and showcase the movement from rock-cut architecture to structural building in the 7th century AD.
• Themandapa or pavilions and the rathas or shrines shaped as temple chariots are hewn from the granite rock face, while the famed Shore Temple, erected half a century later, is built from dressed stone. The Shore Temple includes many bas reliefs, including one 100 ft. long and 45 ft. high, carved out of granite.
• All but one of the rathas from the first phase of Pallava architecture are modeled on the Buddhist viharas(monasteries) and chaitya halls with several cells arranged around a courtyard.The possible roots of the Pallava Mandapa to the similar rock-cut caves of Ajanta and Ellora Caves.After Narasimhavarman's victory in AD 642 over the Chalukyan king Pulakesin II, Pallava king may have brought the sculptors and artisans back to Mamallapuram as spoils of war.
• The fact that different shrines were dedicated to different deities is evidence of an increased sectarianism at the time of their construction.
• The monuments are mostly rock-cut and monolithic, and constitute the early stages of Dravidian architecture. They are constituted by cave temples, monolithic rathas (chariots), sculpted reliefs and structural temples.
• It is believed by some that this area served as a school for young sculptors. The different sculptures, some half finished, may have been examples of different styles of architecture, probably demonstrated by instructors and practiced on by young students. This can be seen in the Pancha Rathas where each Ratha is sculpted in a different style. These five Rathas were all carved out of a single piece of granite in situ.

Some important structures include:

• Thirukadalmallai, the temple,. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It was also built by Pallava King in order to safeguard the sculptures from the ocean.the temple is glorified in theDivya Prabandha, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries AD
• Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna's Penance – a giant open-air bas relief carved of two monolithic rock boulders. The legend depicted in the bas-relief is the story of the descent of the sacred river Ganges to earth from the heavens.
• Varaha Cave Temple – a small rock-cut temple(7th century).1.Sculptured side panels featuring Varaha lifting Bhu Devi, the mother earth,(2)A fresco panel of Krishna lifting the Govardhana Hill in the Varaha Cave

• The Shore Temple – 
  a structural temple along the Bay of Bengal with the entrance from the western side away from the sea. The Shore Temple is so named because it overlooks the shore of the Bay of Bengal. It is built with blocks of granite, dating from the 8th century AD.Shore temple is a complex of three temples, one large and two small, Sailors gave the name Seven Pagodas to the Shore Temple when they saw this tall structure on the seashore, as the temple probably acted as a landmark for navigation of their ships. As it appears like a Pagoda, the name became familiar to the seafarers.The main shrine is dedicated to Shiva as is the smaller second shrine. small third shrine, between the two, is dedicated to a reclining VishnuThe main Shore Temple, which faces east so that the sun rays shine on the main deity of Shiva Linga in the shrine, is a five-storied structural Hindu temple rather than rock-cut as are the other monuments at the site. Built with sculpted granite stones hauled from a nearby quarry, it is the earliest important structural temple in South India.

Left to right:(1)Shore Temple (2)Gopuram(3)Shivaskanda Panel with Shiva, Uma and their son Skanda(4)Miniature shrine:-  The wall that surrounds the shrine to prevent intrusion of sand from the sea also has an inscription on the topmost layer, in Pallava-Grantha script, which equates the king with Arjuna(5)Vishnu in a reclining pose(6)Stone sculpture

• Pancha Rathas or Pandava Rathas (Five Chariots) – five monolithic rock cut pyramidal structures named after the Pandavas (Arjuna, Bhima, Yudhishtra, Nakula and Sahadeva) and Draupadi. Dating from the late 7th century, it is attributed to the reign of King Mahendravarman I and his son Narasimhavarman I (630–680 AD; also called Mamalla, or "great warrior") of the Pallava Kingdom.Each of the five monuments in the Pancha Rathas complex resembles a chariot (ratha), and each is carved over a single, long stone or monolith, of granite

Left to right:(1)Layout Plan(2)Panch Rathas(3)Arjuna Ratha(4)Nakul Sahdev Ratha(5)Draupadi Ratha(6)Bhim Ratha(7)Dharmraja Ratha(8)Elephant among rathas

(4) Mahasthangarh

Bangladesh

• One of the earliest urban archaeological sites so far discovered in Bangladesh
• Inscriptions: lime stone slab bearing six lines in Prakrit in Brahmi script. The text appears to be a royal order of Magadh. (3rd century BC). An Arabic inscriptional slab of 1300–1301 mentions the erection of a tomb in honour of Numar Khan. A Persian inscriptional slab of 1718–19 records the construction of a mosque during the reign of the Mughal emperor Farrukhshiyar.
• Coins: Silver punch marked coins(4th century BC–2nd century AD), uninscribed copper cast coins ,Gupta period coins 
• Vast number of shards, Terracotta Plaques
• Sculpture:A 5th century Buddha stone sculpture,a Lokesvara stone sculpture showing blending of Visnu and Avalokitsvara, a number sand stone door-frames, pillars and lintels (5th–12th century), numerous Buddha bronze sculpture(10th–11th century), a terracotta Surya 

(5) Mahadaha

• In Pratapgarh district, UP
• Human skeletal remains found: a Gangetic mesolithic site
• The late Mesolithic period in India saw the emergence of agriculture in the Harappan civilization. From here agriculture spread east and south replacing hunting and gathering. Health throughout the world changed as agriculture was adopted, which can be seen in human skeletal remains. Langhnaj and Mahadaha are two of these late Mesolithic hunting and gathering sites. Langhnaj is located in western India within the area the Harappan civilization controlled and had access to domesticated food. Mahadaha is located in eastern India in an area with no evidence of agriculture.

(7) Mahagraha / Mahagara (Near Allahabad)

• In Allahabad district, Uttar Pradesh
• Neolithic site, evidence of cultivation of rice
• In the Eastern and Central Indian Neolithic scenario, domesticated rice and handmade pottery occurred at Koldihawa and Mahagara within the Neolithic levels (9000 BC)

(8) Mahendragiri

• Mahendragiri, is a mountain peak in the district of Gajapati, Orissa. It is situated amongst the Eastern Ghats at an elevation of 1,501 metres.Mahendragiri has interesting archaeological remains.
• Temples built by Pandavas are seen. TBhim,kunti and yudhisthir temples.

(9) Mahini 
(10) Mahisadal

• Birbhum district, WB
• Two fold cultural sequence :
• Period1(1600-1400 BC): Ceramics of black and red ware and painted red ware, some copper,beads of steatite and semi-precious stones,bone tools/bangles, terracotta gamesmen, comb
• Period2(750 BC): Iron objects and unburnt clay seal

(11) Mahishmati / Mahissati / Maheshwar

• Maheshwar was known as Mahissati (Mahishamati in Sanskrit) in ancient times and was the capital of Southern Avanti. Maheshwar on the banks of the Narmada was capital of King Sahasrarjun.
• During the 6th and 7th centuries, Mahishmati may have served as the capital of the Kalachuri kingdom.The Kalachuris were the builders of the famous cave temples on Elephanta Island in Mumbai harbor and also of several caves at the well-known site of Ellora, including the famous Rameshwara cave (Cave 21).

(12) Mahurjhari (Near Nagpur)

• Iron bearing megalithic site
• Largest bead manufacturing center
• Burial site of proto historic period
• Early Iron Age megalithic site at Naikund and Mahurjhari in Vidarbha, Maharashtra.A clear evidence of technological advance in the form of hardening and quenching followed by tempering in addition to the knowledge of steeling as early as 900 BC.

(13) Maihar

• Maihar's history can be traced to the Paleolithic Age. The town was formerly the capital of the princely state of Maihar. The state was established in 1778 by Rajputs of the Kachwaha clan, who were granted land by the ruler of the nearby state of Orchha.

(14) Majgaha

• Iron bearing Megalithic site in Chhattisgarh
• Places like Karakabhat, Chirchari, Dhanora, Majgahan and Sorar in Durg dist. of Chhattisgarh. A new megalithic site is explored at Bisrampur.

(15) Malkhed /Manyakhet

(16) Malvan
(17) Mandasor 
(18) Manda

(19) Mandla 

(20) Mandu 

(21) Maner 
(22) Mangalore


(23) Manimanglam

• In Chengalpattu district, Tamilnadu
• It was here that battles took place in which Narasimhavarman 1, the pallava ruler, defeated the Chalukyan Pullakesin 2 in 7th century AD thus establishing Pallava supremacy in south India.

(24) Mansehra

• In Mansehra District, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
• The area of Mansehra has been under the rule of various emperors and governments, including Alexander the Great, Ashoka, the Afghans, the Turks and the British Empire.During the Maurya dynasty, Mansehra was a part of Taxila

(25) Mansura (Brahmanabad)
(26) Martand

• The Martand Sun Temple was a Kashmiri Hindu temple dedicated to Surya and built during the 8th century CE. Now in ruins, the temple is located five miles from Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir.
• Itwas built by a King of the Karkota Dynasty, Lalitaditya Muktapida and was destroyed by Islamic ruler Sikandar Butshikan in the early 15th century CE.
• It was an excellent specimen of Kashmiri architecture, which had blended Gandharan, Gupta, Chinese, Roman, Syrian-Byzantine and Greek forms of architecture.Various wall carvings in the antechamber of the temple proper depict other gods, such as Vishnu, andriver goddesses, such as Ganga and Yamuna, in addition to the sun-god Surya.

Ruin of Martand temple

(27) Maski
(28) Masulipatam  

(29) Mathura
(30) Meerut

(31) Mehargarh / Mahagriha

(32) Mehtakheri

• Palaeolithic site
• Microblade assemblages(microblades, microblade cores and backed blades , which included two backed blades etc) excavated from the site of Mehtakheri in the Madhya Pradesh. Assemblages dated as far back as 48,000 years ago, making these the earliest known microblades found in India. Their finds challenge current thinking that the technology was developed locally in India around 35,000 years ago and not introduced to the area by modern humans migrating from outside of India. Hence microblade technology was continuously present in the Indian Subcontinent from 48 ka to 3 ka. This is a longer duration than for any other part of the world. Absence of any precedents for blade technology in the Indian Lower and Middle Palaeolithic [before about 50 - 60,000 years ago] make it difficult to consider that this technology developed locally.

Stone artifacts excavated from Mehtakheri. J39 is a trimmed nodule. J2 is is a retouched flake on multicoloured chert and M9 is a perforator made on a platform rejuvenation flake. J44, D107, A42 and I41 are hammerstones of various sizes. C26, D26, D78, C3 are broken flakes and M22 and M13 complete flakes. K1 and M2 are from the initial stages of core reduction showing the much larger initial size of the cores.

(33) Mirzapur

• Mirzapur was established by the British East India Company in 1735 while the civilization at here was found in 5000 BCE. As a proof of the existence of the lower Paleolithic age culture, the artifacts of prehistoric caves, the painted rocks and other evidences in the Belan River Valley. Here we can find the evidences that are more than 17000 BCE. 
• Some interesting petroglyphs in the sandstone of the Vindhya range are found in Morhana Pahar in Mirzapur district. The depictions of chariots, horses, weapons and people in these works.
• It is the place in India where the Holy River Ganges meets with Vindhya Range. This is considered significant in Hindu Mythology

(34) Mitathal

• The archaeological site of Mitathal in District Bhiwani, Haryana and this site belongs to Indus Valley Civilisation.
• Mitathal is situated on the alluvial plain near a channel between the Chautang and the Yamuna rivers 
• The most significant find by our team was of a steatite seal.
• Large number of blue-green faience bangle fragments

(35) Modhera

• The Sun Temple at Modhera in Gujarat, situated on the bank of the river Pushpavati, 25 km from Mehsana. 

• It was built in 1026 AD by King Bhimdev of the Solanki dynasty.This was the time when Somnath and the adjoining area was plundered by Mahmud Ghazni. The Solankis, however, regained much of their lost power and splendour. Anahilvad Patan, the Solanki capital, was restored to glory. Royalty and traders jointly contributed to build grand temples.
• Solankis were considered to be Suryavanshi, Gurjar or descendants of Sun god. 
• The temple was so designed that the first rays of the sun fell on the image of Surya, the Sun God, at the time equinoxes.
• The temple is partially in ruins after it was also finally destroyed by the Allauddin Khilji.

Architecture

• The Sun temple is of a unique architecture. The temple comprises three separate, axially aligned and integrated elements: Surya Kund, Sabha Mandap and Guda Mandap.

Figure clockwise: (1)Surya Kund: :rectangular stepped tank.108 miniature shrines are carved in between the steps inside the tank. (2)Guda Mandap (3) Reliefs on Guda Mandapa (4)Erotic Sculptures. (5) A sanctuary on the Surya Kund (6)Two pillars standing alone near temple(7)Sabha Mandap: This hall of religious gatherings is a magnificent pillared hall. It is open from all sides and has 52 intricately carved pillars representing 52 weeks in a year. The carvings depict episodes from the Hindu epics of Ramayan, Mahabharat and Krishna Lila

• Sexual iconography is displayed, at the exterior walls of the main temple itself.

(41) Mohenjodaro
 

• Mohenjo-daro is an archeological site in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. 
• Built around 2600 BCE, it was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, and one of the world's earliest major urban settlements, contemporaneous with the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. Mohenjo-daro was abandoned in the 19th century BCE. It is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Mohenjo-daro means Mound of the Dead in Sindhi. 
• Cock-fighting may have had ritual and religious significance for the city, with domesticated chickens bred there for sacred purposes, rather than as a food source. 
• The site occupies a central position between the Indus River and the Ghaggar-Hakra River. The Indus still flows to the east of the site, but the riverbed of the Ghaggar-Hakra on the western side is now dry.

Architecture and urban infrastructure:

• Mohenjo-daro has a planned layout based on a street grid of rectilinear buildings. Most were built of fired and mortared brick; some incorporated sun-dried mud-brick and wooden superstructures.
• The sheer size of the city, and its provision of public buildings and facilities, suggests a high level of social organization. 
• The city is divided into two parts: (1)The Citadel (2) The Lower City.
• The Citadel is a mud-brick mound around 12 metres high – is known to have supported public baths, a large residential structure designed to house about 5,000 citizens, and two large assembly halls. 
• The city had a central marketplace, with a large central well. Individual households or groups of households obtained their water from smaller wells. Waste water was channelled to covered drains that lined the major streets. Some houses, presumably those of more prestigious inhabitants, include rooms that appear to have been set aside for bathing, and one building had an underground furnace (hypocaust), possibly for heated bathing. Most houses had inner courtyards, with doors that opened onto side-lanes. Some buildings had two stories.
• One large building in Mohenjo-daro as a "Great Granary". Certain wall-divisions in its massive wooden superstructure appeared to be grain storage-bays, complete with air-ducts to dry the grain. Carts would have brought grain from the countryside and unloaded them directly into the bays.
• Close to the "Great Granary" is a large and elaborate public bath(Great Bath).From a courtyard, steps lead down to the brick-built pool, which was waterproofed by a lining of bitumen. It may have been used for religious purification.

(1)Great Bath (2)Bath area: Almost every house unit at Mohenjo-daro was equipped with a private bathing area with drains to take the dirty water out into a larger drain that emptied into a sewage drain. Many of these bathing areas had water tight floors to keep moisture from seeping into the other rooms nearby or below(3)This private well stands like a chimney because all of the surrounding earth has been removed by excavation(4)Seal depicting nude male diety in yogic position(5)Bison Seal(6)Unicorn Seal,:The unicorn is the most common motif on Indus seals and appears to represent a mythical animal that Greek and Roman sources trace back to the Indian subcontinent(7)Street(4)Seal depicting nude male diety seating in yogic position

• Other large buildings include a "Pillared Hall", thought to be an assembly hall and the "College Hall", a complex of buildings comprising 78 rooms, thought to have been a priestly residence.
• Mohenjo-daro had no series of city walls, but was fortified with guard towers to the west of the main settlement, and defensive fortifications to the south. Considering these fortifications and the structure of other major Indus valley cities like Harappa, it is postulated that Mohenjo-daro was an administrative center. Both Harappa and Mohenjo-daro share relatively the same architectural layout, and were generally not heavily fortified like other Indus Valley sites. It is obvious from the identical city layouts of all Indus sites that there was some kind of political or administrative centrality, but the extent and functioning of an administrative center remains unclear. 
• Mohenjo-daro was successively destroyed and rebuilt at least seven times. Each time, the new cities were built directly on top of the old ones. Flooding by the Indus is thought to have been the cause of destruction.

Artifacts:

1.Dancing girl 2.Priest King 3.Seven Stranded Neckless 4.Pashupati Seal

• Seated and standing figures, copper and stone tools, carved seals, balance-scales and weights, gold and jasper jewellery, and children's toys.
• Dancing Girl: A bronze statuette dubbed the "Dancing Girl", with bangles, her hand on her hip. The statue led to two important discoveries about the civilization: first, that they knew metal blending, casting and other sophisticated methods of working with ore, and secondly that entertainment, especially dance, was part of the culture.
• Priest-King: A seated male soapstone figure was found. Though there is no evidence that priests or monarchs ruled Mohenjo-daro, it was called "Priest-King".It depicts a bearded man with a fillet around his head, an armband, and a cloak decorated with trefoil patterns(double circle and single circle designs ). The two ends of the fillet fall along the back. The hair is carefully combed towards the back of the head. Two holes beneath the highly stylized ears suggest that a necklace or other head ornament was attached to the sculpture.
• Pashupati seal: A seal bears the image of a seated, cross-legged figure surrounded by animals. The figure has been interpreted by some scholars as a yogi, and by others as a three-headed "proto-Shiva" as "Lord of Animals".
• Seven-stranded necklace: The necklace has an S-shaped clasp with seven strands, each over 4ft long, of bronze-metal bead-like nuggets connecting each arm of the “S” in filigree. Each bead is less than the size of a pepper-seed and has many facets.

(42) Monghyr

(43) Muchchatla Chintamanu Gavi

(44) Mukhalingam

(45) Multan 

(46) Mundigak (Near Kandhar)

(47) Muradabad

(48) Murshidabad

(49) Muziris 

(50) Mysore