Custodians of the past : 150 years of the Archaeological Survey of India

2012·20.7 MB·English

by  Gautum Sengupta (editor)

Custodians of the Past
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150 Years of the Archaeological Survey of India
Custodians of the Past
150 \ears of the Archaeological Survey of India
edited by Gautam Sengupta and Abba Narain Lambab
This commemorative volume celebrates 150 years of
the establishment of the Archaeological Survey of
India, the country’s premier organization committed to
the preservation and care of its national monuments.
The book offers a brief narrative of the foundation
and history of the ASI, lavishly illustrated with images
selected from the Surveys vast photographic and
drawing archives. The early photographic images from
the 19th and beginning of the 20th century printed
here include some never before published photographs
of India’s monuments as well as rare photographs
showing archaeological excavations and conservation
works in progress, and provide a visual overview of the
subcontinent’s greatest monuments.

Custodians of the Past
150 Years of the Archaeological Survey of India
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Custodians of the Past
150 Years of the Archaeological Survey of India
edited by Gautam Sengupta and Abha Narain Lambah
ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA
Ministry of Culture, Government of India
Published by
The Director General
Archaeological Survey of India
Ministry of Culture
Janpath, New Delhi 110 011
www.asi.nic.in
© Archaeological Survey of India, 2012
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing
of ASI, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed
with appropriate reprographic rights organization.
Price: ? 2500.00
ISBN: 978-93-5086-199-8
Editing, Design, Processing and Production by
The Marg Foundation
Army & Navy Building, 3rd Floor
148, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Mumbai 400 001
www.marg-art.org
Text Editor: Rivka Israel
Editorial Team: Savita Chandiramani,
Arnavaz K. Bhansali and Rahul D’souza
Designer: Naju Hirani
Production: Gautam V. Jadhav
Printed at Silverpoint Press Pvt. Ltd., Navi Mumbai
Contents
6 Message from the Minister of Culture and Minister of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation,
Government of India
7 Preface
9 Milestones in the ASI’s History
16 Early Explorations in Indian Archaeology and the Foundation of the ASI
Gctutam Sengupta and Abba Narain Lambah
40 Mapping India’s Monuments: Early Documentation, Architectural Casts and Photography
Abba Narain Lambah
70 The First Hundred Years of the ASI
Gautam Sengupta and Arundhati Banerji
92 Revealing India’s Past: Excavations and Epigraphy, Museums and Monuments
B.R. Mani
120 Conservation of Monuments in India: A 150-Year Perspective
Janhwij Sbarma
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Minister of Culture
and
Minister of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation
Government of India
Shastri Bhawan New Delhi-110115
0 1 AUC 2012
MESSAGE
Archaeological Survey of India is celebrating its 150lh year of establishment.
Founded by an indomitable military engineer. Sir Alexander Cunningham in 1861, the
Archaeological Survey of India has travelled a long way.
What began as an exciting journey unveiling the mystique of ancient India,
evolved into a multi-disciplinary exercise straddling an amazingly wide range of
domains - pre-history, proto-history, early and late historical archaeology, epigraphy
and numismatics, preservation and conservation, archaeological science and
environmental upgradation.
Indeed, over the last 150 years, while conserving the ‘ruins and remains’
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has contributed substantially to our
understanding of India’s past by revealing unknown facets which have become part of
our history. This amazing journey was carefully recorded by surveyors, draughtsmen
and photographers - both European and Indian.
Much of the early visuals were shifted outside India during colonial period But
what remains, at the ASI headquarters and in its Circle offices, unfold an astonishingly
rich visual treasure. There are images dating back to early 20lh century occasionally
even late 19lh century. We felt it an inescapable necessity to make this rich treasure of
visuals available to the discerning readers. I am happy that The MARG Foundation has
brought out a finely produced volume encapsulating a judicious selection of the visual
wealth from ASI archives and other important collections. A number of accompanying
essays capture the narratives between 1861 and 2011.
1 am indeed very happy in being able to present this volume for wider
readership. 1 congratulate MARG and Archaeological Survey of India for making it
possible.
(Kumari Selja)