MANSAR BUDDHIST ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

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en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mansar,_India

Mansar (Marathi: मानसर) is a census town in Ramtek tehsil of Nagpur district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. This town is located 5 km west of Ramtek and 45 km northeast of Nagpur city.

In 1972, an image of a deity, later identified as Shiva Vamana was found from a hillock in Mansar, locally known as Hidimba Tekri. Important excavations were carried out at the ancient sites of Mansar since 1997-98, under the aegis of the Bodhisatva Nagarjun Smarak Samstha Va Anusandhan Kendra, Nagpur and under the directions of Jagat Pati Joshi and A. K. Sharma. So far 5 sites have been excavated in Mansar, which are designated as MNS 1, MNS 2, MNS 3, MNS 4 and MNS 5.
These excavations have resulted in the discovery of various shrines (MNS 3, 4, 5) and a palace complex (MNS 2), identified as Pravarapura, the capital of the Vakataka king Pravarasena II (1st half of 5th century). Adjacent to this palace, on Hidimba Tekri (MNS 3), an extensive temple complex has been unearthed, identified as Pravareśvara. A 3 m tall lime model of a male human figure in crouching position was found underneath one of the terraces of MNS 3. Significant 5th-century sculptures of Hindu deities, artefacts and some coins have been discovered in the excavations.
The water reservoir around the site and findings of ancient tools and other objects point to the fact that a large population inhabited the area 1600 years ago. The discovery has made Mansar one of the prime archaeological sites in the country