Kathmandu, November 7

The Department of Archaeology in collaboration with Durham University of England has started excavation at various heritage sites of Kathmandu and Bhaktapur to study earlier human activities and also to assess vulnerability of these places to earthquakes.

The DoA started its work from November 2. Currently, excavation work is being carried out in front of Das Awatar temple at Hanumandhoka. After completion of study at Hanumandhoka, excavation will be carried out at Jaisidewal, Changunarayan and Pashupatinath area.

Spokesperson at the DoA Ram Bahadur Kunbar said the work would be completed by the last week of November. He said the excavation mainly aimed at finding artefacts that could shed light on early human activities in the area. The excavation will also focus on studying geographical structure of these sites so that the risk posed by earthquakes can be mitigated in future, added Kunbar. For this purpose, ground will be drilled 10 to 15 metres below the surface.

“The excavation will help find the vulnerability of heritage sites and also help build earthquake resilient structures at these sites in future,” said Kunbar.

Besides DoA and Durham University, concerned municipalities, government authorities, and stakeholders, among others, are also assisting the excavation work.

Earlier, DoA and Durham University with support from Pashupati Area Development Trust had completed a four-week excavation at Gurujyu Sattal located at Pashupatinath temple complex.

At that time, excavation work was carried out to understand the cultural sequence beneath Gurujyu Sattal at Pashupati, a monument constructed in the 19th century, which collapsed after the 2015 earthquake.