A three-feet tall stone sculpture of goddess Marichi, a broken Buddha idol, a stone pillar and other objects were unearthed from the riverbed of the Baitarani nearKunjabiharipur villageinJajpur districtduring sand mining.
Some workers found the objects while digging sand from the dry riverbed. “We found stonesculptures, broken stone idols, old bricks and other objects during sand mining in the river. After the objects were discovered, villagers stopped the mining work and helped remove the artefacts from the riverbed,” said Manomohan Das, a local resident.
The development, according to researchers, indicates that the village and its nearby areas were part of Buddhist sites. “The size of the stone sculpture of goddess Marichi, discovered here, is similar to the Marichi sculptures of Lalitgiri, Ratnagiri and Udayagiri. We believe all the objects are the remnants of a Buddha stupa of the eighth century. Since third century BC till the medieval period, flourished in Odisha. But it is difficult to ascertain exactly which period these artefacts belong to until archaeological department officials examine them,” said Nrusingh Sahoo, a noted researcher.