[RedTerrano]

Over the centuries, there have been numerous Kings and Queens of various dynasties who ruled over different parts of modern day India. A quick recall and some famous names pop to the mind.

• Mauryan Empire (founded by Chandragupta Maurya, which zenithed under the rule of his grandson, Ashok the Great)
• Chola Empire (Rajaraja/Rajendra Chola was the pinnacle of the Cholas, whose empire extended beyond India to modern day Malaysia and Indonesia, perhaps the greatest Indian ruler to have a powerful Navy)
• Rani Ahilyabai Holkar
• King Lalitaditya of Kashmir

All these and many more have left their stamp on history as well as geography.

In Maharashtra, the word empire is synonymous to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Numerous forts stand testimony to his life work even today.
But much before the Maratha empire was established, modern day Maharashtra was ruled by other Kings and Queens. One such dynasty, were the Satavahanas, whose rule lasted almost 500 years (2nd century BCE to 3rd century CE).
The Satavahanas succeeded the Kanva dynasty and established their rule over modern day Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana, with their capital at Pratishthan (Paithan, MH) and Amaravathi (AP) over the centuries.
After expanding their territories and asserting their dominance, they heavily encouraged manufacturing and trade, recognizing it as the lifeline of commerce and prosperity.
And like any other ruler, they taxed it.
Of course.

There is one very important step which links manufacturing to trade.
Transport.
Check out this image of modern day Maharashtra.

The darker green denotes Konkan, the coastal region. The lighter shade to it's right is the Deccan plateau, whose elevation ranges from 330ft - 3300ft above sea level. The Sahyadri which divides these two regions offers numerous passes which one can use to cross over the boundary.
But this is easier said than done. Trade in those days was not simple. To start with one relied heavily on bullock carts and other pack animals. The routes passed through many a thick forests and the danger of wild animals and highway robbers was very real. No proper paved roads existed back then. Chandragupta Maurya did build a highway called Uttarpath, connecting the capital Pataliputra(Patna) to Lahore, but it was, as the name suggested, in the North.

Over the centuries the Satavahanas had built a stable empire, with numerous prosperous cities like Jeernanagar(Junnar), Tagar(Ter), Nashik and of course the capital Pratishthan(Paithan)
One pass, linked all these cities to the Konkan. Here, the Satavahanas built navigable roads, deployed soldiers for protection and offered rest and water facilities at the pass itself.
All this came at a fee of course. Call it (now defunct) octroi or toll.
This toll was collected in huge stone cauldrons such as this

Thus Nane(coin) ghat(pass).

Today we know all this, thanks to one person.
Enter Queen Nayanika (also known as Naganika), wife of King Satkarni, first of his name, house of Satavahana (NOT to be confused with the climax of the dynasty, Gautamiputra Satkarni)
On the death of her husband, she commissioned the history of the dynasty as well as the ghats to be set in stone. Literally.

Thanks to her, today we know, the Satavahanas

• Performed Ashwamedh yagna. Twice.
• An additional 22 other yagnas.
• Thousands of cows, elephants, horses, pack animals were given as daan.
• Numerous land deeds for villages were given in perpetuity.
• Clothes, ornaments, and cash donations. (Currency was the Karsharpan).

At the base of the ghat, a village was established, where the traders could halt overnight. This exists even today. It's called Vaishakhkhede (originally Vaishya(trader) khede(village). Ample facilities were created for them, their servants as well as pack animals.
The traders used the ghats to descend into Konkan. Their destination? The sea ports at Sopara and Kalyan. Ships carried their goods to as far as ancient Rome. (Fine cloth from Paithan, with delicate embroidery in hand spun threads of Gold (Jari) was in high demand even back then)

Besides all this, the inscriptions also offer a valuable insight into the culture back then. Indologists have identified the script as Brahmi, but the language as Sanskrit!
The Satavahanas revered Indra and Surya.
There is also a mention of Samkarshana (Balram) and Vasudev(Krishna)
along with Yama, and Varuna.

Samkarshana and Vasudev in Brahmi script


Samkarshana and Vasudev depicted on a coin from the reign and kingdom of...hold your breath....the Greek king Agathocles Dikaios



Immersed in the inscriptions, is also the world's oldest known numerals for the numbers 2,4,6,7 and 9.





Naneghat Entrance. Notice the cauldron on the right



From the other side



Office and resting areas







Inscriptions on the left wall


Inscriptions on the right wall

Note:
While researching for this thread, I wondered how come no TBHPian had ever been to Naneghat.
Of course, I was wrong!!

Check out this travelogue by @SDP, which has many awesome pics.
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...-naneghat.html (Photologue: 5 BHPians conquer the Naneghat)

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

While researching for this thread, I wondered how come no TBHPian had ever been to Naneghat.
Of course, I was wrong!!

Thank you for this extremely informative post about Naneghat.

Been there (trekked) a few times, never realized the historical significance of the place. Btw for the hikers, Naneghat is an easy trek to do, especially one that can be really interesting to do on a full moon night (with necessary precautions taken).

A terrain view from the top completely fits in with this! Any additional info on the two forts that come up in the image?

[SDP]

Thanks RedTerrano for this thread.
Brought back fond memories of a nice trek with really good company.
Have always dreamt about doing that trek again - in monsoon, when it is supposed to be tougher with a couple of water crossings etc. Your thread revived that dream. Thanks again.

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Any additional info on the two forts that come up in the image?

Jivdhan is probably best known as the place where the last Adilshah of Ahmednagar, Murtaza, was imprisoned by the Mughals. Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's father, Shahaji Raje, stormed the fort, freed the Murtaza and restored him on the throne. However Murtaza was a mere child. So Shahaji sat him in his lap (literally) and ruled in his name from Pemgiri fort near Sangamner. This was probably the first Marathi rule in Maharashtra after the collapse of Devgiri.
Sadly Bijapur buckled under a few years later and it was all over. Shahji Raje had to give up Murtaza.

Jivdhan can be traced back to Satavahanas. I am not so sure about Bhariavgad. Both forts would have offered excellent vantage points over the vast expanse of Konkan down below, making it easy to spot the enemy from a long distance.

Check out this video for the "view"

https://youtu.be/NAoa7w6B8bU

Originally Posted by SDP

Have always dreamt about doing that trek again - in monsoon, when it is supposed to be tougher with a couple of water crossings etc. Your thread revived that dream.

I am happy I managed to "infect" you with the trekking bug all over again.
Looking forward to your travelogue with lots of pictures. Trek safe!

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Check out this video for the "view"

Honestly, we sahyadri trekkers are a gutsy and foolish lot. Doing the patches like the one in the video without rope is a fairly risky choice. I have done so myself for treks like Alang / Kulang, Nalichiwat. But in retrospect, I think it was a bad idea.

Only when I did a couple of Himalayan treks, I realized that the organizers do add value by providing some level of safety during treks.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by 2000rpm

Honestly, we sahyadri trekkers are a gutsy and foolish lot.

+100

Tell me about it. Back between 2004 and 2008, I used to be apart of this highly active group of trekkers from Bombay and Pune, a bunch of 20+ and 30+ year old doing treks every alternate weekend. No proper gear, plans that were based out of a mix of previously completed treks and local folks based info.

It kinda stopped when one of the group members died in a solo (or with 2/3 ppl) trek during monsoon (purposely not getting into details).

For example, the full moon Naneghat trek I mentioned above was formulated on a Friday morning between me and a colleague (/trekker); we caught the train to Kalyan in the evening, and then took a night local bus that dropped us off near the foot of the hills.

We were able to do the trek successfully and even camped for the early morning hours near a cliff at the top, but there could have been a lot of things that could have gone wrong.

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

+100

For example, the full moon Naneghat trek I mentioned above was formulated on a Friday morning between me and a colleague (/trekker); we caught the train to Kalyan in the evening, and then took a night local bus that dropped us off near the foot of the hills.

Dont even get me started on the night treks sir. The number of snakes and wild animals we have encountered is not funny.

We even lost our way and had to camp in the jungle overnight in our journey from Kuland to Alang.

[rav11stars]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Thus Nane(coin) ghat(pass).

Thank you very much for posting this. I can see Team-bhp going on to become India's very own Wikipedia, but with well-researched and excellent quality articles. All thanks to very good people like you writing these beautiful articles in the interest of sharing knowledge.

In Telugu we the word for coin is Nanem. You mentioning Nane(coin) helped me recollect that word again. I can only imagine how many such historical sites are out there waiting to be discovered. Learning about our history is fascinating.

[Dodge_Viper]

What a wonderful thread. Brought back fond memories of climbing 50+ forts over 8-10 years. Unfortunately the trekking vehicle in me has slowed down drastically since last couple of years.

I had even started a thread to jot down my trek experiences, but the lazy brat inside me made sure it wasn't updated since long.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...sahyadris.html (Wandering in the Sahyadris)

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

While researching for this thread, I wondered how come no TBHPian had ever been to Naneghat.
Of course, I was wrong!!

Check out this travelogue by @SDP, which has many awesome pics.
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...-naneghat.html (Photologue: 5 BHPians conquer the Naneghat)

Very nice info. Infact have been to Naneghat twice and paid toll as well .

Originally Posted by SDP

Thanks RedTerrano for this thread.
Brought back fond memories of a nice trek with really good company.
Have always dreamt about doing that trek again - in monsoon, when it is supposed to be tougher with a couple of water crossings etc. Your thread revived that dream. Thanks again.

What a wonderful trek that was. What food we enjoyed! We had decided to repeat it in monsoons. Alas we never trekked after that.

Originally Posted by 2000rpm

Dont even get me started on the night treks sir. The number of snakes and wild animals we have encountered is not funny.

We even lost our way and had to camp in the jungle overnight in our journey from Kuland to Alang.

I have done night treks. However not all forts can be climbed in the night. Kulang definitely no. The hike is the steepest in Sahyadris plus the route is tricky as well. We had lost our way even during the day time. Thumb rule for night trek should be that the route must be prominent and atleast one of the person should have attempted it atleast few times during day.

[am1m]

Super travelogue! Thank you for taking the time to describe the historical aspect to the area as well. Really informative!

Originally Posted by 2000rpm

Honestly, we sahyadri trekkers are a gutsy and foolish lot.

Oh yeah, especially the Punekars! A few years ago, was visiting a friend at Pune for a couple of days, when we decided to hike up to Torna. We thought we were in pretty good shape, but had to stop to rest quite a few times. All along, there was a stream of Punekars who were just bounding up the trail, shouting encouragement at us. Several of them carrying canisters of water, cooking supplies and most of them in chappals! Even got overtaken by a couple of elderly ladies! Hats off to their stamina!

[alphadog]

Thank you for sharing this interesting bit of information from our classical history.

By co-incidence, I happen to be reading, at the present moment, 'The history and culture of the Indian people' by R C Majumder. I am on the 3rd volume and the Satavahanas have been mentioned. Their rule was followed by that of the Guptas in the north -central India, which has been called the Golden prime of the history of Bharat.

It always amazes me the amount of interaction - trade and cultural exchanges that the ancients had across far flung geographies, both towards the west and the east. These exchanges were much before the Renaissance Europeans 'discovered' the sea-route to India. Unfortunately, these classical pieces are not covered well in our regular school history books and disproportionate importance is given to more recent empires.

It was good to see the coins and it is nice to see that such relatively untouched places and structures from the past remain to be explored in India. Wish to see more such threads, if you could. I am sure you will find more than a few interested T Bhpians.

Originally Posted by rav11stars

In Telugu we the word for coin is Nanem. You mentioning Nane(coin) helped me recollect that word again. I can only imagine how many such historical sites are out there waiting to be discovered. Learning about our history is fascinating.

The Malayalam word for coin happens to be 'Nanayam'. Pretty similar to the Telugu term as mentioned.

That youtube trekking video, even accounting for the GoPros distortion of scene, was seriously scary. To think they were doing it without safety gear.

Cheerio!

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by alphadog

By co-incidence, I happen to be reading, at the present moment, 'The history and culture of the Indian people' by R C Majumder.

Take Majumdar Guruji with a slight pinch of salt. He was restricted by the tools of his time. Many a times he got the wrong end of the stick simply because he could not read Modi script. In fact he even (wrongly) declared Shivaji Maharaj illiterate (unable to read/write) !!

The similarities between nane/nanem/nanayam should be no surprise simply because the Sanskrit word for coin is nANaka (नाणक)

Originally Posted by alphadog

it is nice to see that such relatively untouched places and structures from the past remain to be explored in India. Wish to see more such threads, if you could. I am sure you will find more than a few interested T Bhpians.

I am happy that you liked it. I hesitated a bit initially thinking TBHP might not be a suitable place for such topics. But I finally told myself it is about Toll, and that's one thing which everyone here understands and is interested in.

In case you haven't done so, since you like history, you might want to check this out. I think you will like it.
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...1857-59-a.html (Varsai to Kashi on foot : 1857-59)

[v1p3r]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Take Majumdar Guruji with a slight pinch of salt. He was restricted by the tools of his time. Many a times he got the wrong end of the stick simply because he could not read Modi script. In fact he even (wrongly) declared Shivaji Maharaj illiterate (unable to read/write) !!

Could you please recommend a good book or resource in this regard? Your posts and threads are fascinating, by the way!

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

Could you please recommend a good book or resource in this regard? Your posts and threads are fascinating, by the way!

Thank you! I am glad you enjoy it!

Depending on which period of history you are interested in, any of these might be useful.

1. Raja Shiv Chhatrapati - Babasaheb Purandare
(I have the Marathi version, am not sure of any other language version exists)
This book (2 volumes) were originally gifted to me by my grandfather. I was too young to read, but the drawings absolutely fascinated me. I have extremely fond memories of my grandfather reading the book while I sat cuddled up in my grandmother's lap, who nodded her assent now and then. Babasaheb has manage to tell history as a story, without any embellishments or "artistic license". If you have kids of malleable age, perfect way to spend quality time with them and teach them at the same time. Highly recommended.

2. Marathi Riyasat - Govind Sakharam Sardesai
Original version (Marathi) is a mind boggling eight volumes.
Also, a 3 volume English version (New History of The Marathas) available online for free here
https://archive.org/search.php?query...f+The+Marathas
Extremely well researched. Highly recommended.

3. Vishwanath Kashinath Rajwade (24 June 1863 - 31 December 1926)
This gentleman became a widowed at an young age. Instead of remarrying he decided to dedicate his life to historical research. Numerous times, he travelled even on foot to reach remotest villages to procure original documents (part of family history) where possible or make hand copies where not. Truly a giant, on whose shoulders later historians stand.
(Later on he found a library Bharat Itihas Sanshodhak Mandal, which stands in Pune today. All the documents he collected and researched are preserved in the library. Unrestricted access to them is provided free of cost/at a nominal charge)
Some of his books:
Marathyanchya Itihasachi Sadhane (History of Marathas) – 22 Volumes
Radha Madhav Vilas Champu (Biography of Shahaji)
Aitihasik Prastavana (Historical Prefaces)
Rajwade Lekhsangraha (Collection of essays) – 3 Volumes
Chronology of the Peshwas (Marathi)
Mahikavatichi Bakhar (Story of Mahim, Mumbai)

4. Shivaji His life and Time - Gajanan Bhaskar Mehendale
(English)
Has also authored several other books. Tipu Sultan, Maratha Navy etc.

5. History of the Marhattas (3 volumes) - James Grant Duff
English, available free online here
http://www.ibiblio.org/britishraj/Duff.html
Duff was a man blessed to be at the right place at the right time.
After 1818, after the Maratha Empire folded, the British took over India. Along with the country, they "inherited" all the documents and records from the office of the Peshwa (called Daptar in Marathi)
Duff meticulously researched these documents (even learnt to read and write Modi script) and published them in the form of these 3 volumes.
While reading, keep in mind he was a British

A well researched book will always cite the primary source for whatever claims it makes. Footnotes and index are always a good place to become aware of such works. These can be used for further reading.

e.g. One such book I stumbled upon my recent reading is called Chow-Chow!
(Not to be confused with the canine breed)
It's a kind of diary by Amelia Cary the Viscountess of Falkland. Like other British ladies of her times, she too travelled to the colonies to see for herself ow the natives lived. What she saw and experienced, she published as a book called "Chow-chow; being selections from a journal kept in India, Egypt, and Syria"
Available for free download here: https://archive.org/details/chowchowbeingse00falkgoog

Besides the written word, youtube has several good videos on historians discussing various subjects.
e.g.

https://youtu.be/5CDMcBZNNd4

https://youtu.be/Sbcatrf3faw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BriQiOgGgvk

https://youtu.be/_jEj6YYAOJQ

https://youtu.be/jdYX-seIGfk

Might be useful in case you understand Marathi