Times of India

An interesting archaeological structure dating back to 1000 and 500 BC has been discovered at Dannanapeta and Pandavulametta in Amudalavalasa of Srikakulam district.

Archaeology department director P Chenna Reddy said on Thursday that the huge dolmen (a pre-historic megalith) representing the Iron Age sepulchral structure was noticed by Kadiyala Venkatesvara Rao, a retired deputy director of Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh. "The discovery is significant as it is the biggest dolmen measuring 360 X 146 with a thickness of two feet, so far not reported from Andhra Pradesh. The single largest capstone weighs more than 50 tons," he said.

Another key find was an incision in the form of an anthropomorph on the floor of the dolmen and occurrence of post holes all around it that clearly suggest that it was a place of ancient ritual during the Iron Age. Locals believe that Bhima, the strongest of the Pandava brothers, lifted it with one hand and hence the area was called Pandavulametta.

Reddy, quoting Rao, said that during the exploration he also found a small cave used by people during the Iron Age, which could have later been occupied by the Jains during the 1st or 2nd century AD, as attested by the discovery of the rock cut beads.

"There are several post holes arranged in apsidal manner covering an area of 60/38 feet, which perhaps was meant for congregation of people during rituals," Reddy said and added that Pandavulagutta has been attracting huge crowds because of its archaeological significance.

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