Daya Ram Sahni

Daya Ram Sahni hailed from the city of Bhera in Shahpur district, Punjab where he was born on 16 December 1879. Sahni graduated in Sanskrit from the Punjab University with a gold medal. He also topped the M. A. examination from the Oriental College in 1903. As a result of this accomplishments, Sahni won the Sanskrit scholarship sponsored by the Archaeological Survey of India and was recruited by the survey after the completion of his education.

In 1903, Sahni was posted to the Punjab and United Provinces circle where he worked under J. Ph. Vogel. Sahni was involved in the excavation of Kasia (in Kushinagar) in 1905 and Rajgir in Bihar under John Marshall during January – February 1906. In September 1907, Sahni assisted Marshall in the excavation of a stupa at Rampurva in Champaran district.{{Cite book |last=Asher |first=Frederick M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ecbPDwAAQBAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PA35 |title=Sarnath: A Critical History of the Place Where Buddhism Began |date=2020-02-11 |publisher=Getty Publications |isbn=978-1-60606-638-6 |pages=35 |language=en}} He also prepared a catalogue of the archaeological ruins at Sarnath, which he had excavated between 1917 and 1922.{{Cite book |last=Dodson |first=Michael S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TWwNEAAAQBAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PT77 |title=Banaras: Urban Forms and Cultural Histories |date=2021-01-31 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-000-36564-1 |language=en}}

In the spring season of 1907 till 1909, along with Marshall, he excavated the sites of Saheth-Maheth, which were thus confirmed to be site for the ancient city of Shravasti. He later excavated the sites as the Director General during 1927–1932.{{Cite news |date=2014-02-20 |title=ASI launches excavation to ascertain Sarnath's actual age |work=The Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/asi-launches-excavation-to-ascertain-sarnaths-actual-age/articleshow/30713151.cms |access-date=2023-12-17 |issn=0971-8257}} In 1910, he excavated the medieval site of Mandore, the capital of the Pratiharas, in what is now the state of Rajasthan.{{Cite book |last1=Ray |first1=Purnima |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GCxoS4dBto4C&q=daya+ram+sahni+mandore |title=Remembering Stalwarts: Biographical Sketches of Scholars from Archaeological Survey of India |last2=Patil |first2=C. B. |date=2014 |publisher=Director General, Archaeological Survey of India |language=en}} He was asked by Marshall to guide D.R. Bhandarkar throughout the excavation process, even though Bhandarkar was senior to him.{{Cite book |last=Lahiri |first=Nayanjot |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w68lobWerY8C&q=daya+ram+sahni |title=Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was discovered |date=2012-08-07 |publisher=Hachette India |isbn=978-93-5009-419-8 |language=en}}

Sahni worked as the curator of the Lucknow Museum from 1911 to 1912, when he was transferred to the archaeology department of Kashmir state.{{Cite book |last=Cumming |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ThGYjlqVe3kC&dq=daya+ram+sahni+kashmir&pg=PA279 |title=Revealing India's Past: A Record Of Archaeological Conservation And Exploration In India And Beyond |date=2005 |publisher=Cosmo Publications |isbn=978-81-307-0087-8 |pages=279 |language=en}} When he was in Kashmir, he excavated the Buddhist sites of Parihaspore, Puranadishthana (present-day Pandrethan), and Hushkapura (present-day Ushkur).{{Cite book |last=Akhter |first=Dr Urmeena |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1bPvDwAAQBAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni+kashmir&pg=PA44 |title=Monuments of Kashmir |date=2020-06-24 |publisher=Book Bazooka Publication |isbn=978-93-86895-91-2 |pages=44–45 |language=en}} From 1913 to 1915, he excavated the Vishnu-Shiva temples at Avantipur built by the King Avantivarman.{{Cite book |last=Siudmak |first=John |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yVft0FqSxc0C&dq=daya+ram+sahni+kashmir&pg=PA429 |title=The Hindu-Buddhist Sculpture of Ancient Kashmir and Its Influences |date=2013-04-15 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-24832-8 |language=en |chapter=9}}{{Cite book |last=Agrawal |first=Ramesh Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SC5uAAAAMAAJ&q=daya+ram+sahni |title=Kashmir and Its Monumental Glory |date=1998 |publisher=Aryan Books International |isbn=978-81-7305-107-4 |pages=149 |language=en}}

Sahni returned to Lahore in 1917 and was made incharge of the United Provinces and Punjab. While working as an Assistant Superintendent, Sahni excavated the Indus Valley site at Harappa, the first of the Indus Valley sites to be excavated.

In the 1920 ASI Reports, Daya Ram Sahni describes his explorations starting from 1917 as he had since conducted preliminary investigations at the ancient site near Harappa in Montgomery District. He excavated Harappa again in 1923–1925, then again in 1930–31 with the assistance of Ernest J. H. Mackay.{{Cite book |last=Jansen |first=Michael |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8e0UAAAAIAAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PR11 |title=Mohenjo Daro |date=1985 |publisher=Brill Archive |isbn=978-90-04-07783-6 |pages=XI |language=en}}

In 1920, he had also been involved in the exploration and restoration of the ruined temples at Amb and Kafir Kot, while simultaneously recording & translating inscriptions by pre-Islamic kings in the region corresponding to Gandhara.{{Cite book |last=Meister |first=Michael W. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1N95DwAAQBAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PA31 |title=Temples of the Indus: Studies in the Hindu Architecture of Ancient Pakistan |date=2010-07-26 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-19011-5 |language=en}}

In 1925, Sahni was transferred to Delhi as Deputy Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India and in July 1931, he succeeded Harold Hargreaves as the Director-General of the ASI. Sahni was the first native Indian to be appointed to the post.

In the ASI Annual Report for the season 1923–24, Sahni examined the findings from the temple complex at Lakhamandal.{{Cite book |last=Hāṇḍā |first=Omacanda |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_KmaKomlI-UC&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PA306 |title=Temple Architecture of the Western Himalaya: Wooden Temples |date=2001 |publisher=Indus Publishing |isbn=978-81-7387-115-3 |pages=306 |language=en}} During the 1928–1929 season, he edited and published the seven Kushan inscriptions found at Mathura, mostly attributed to Kanishka.{{Cite book |last=Obbink |first=Hendrik Willem |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0t8UAAAAIAAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PA393 |title=Orientalia Rheno-traiectina |date=1949 |publisher=Brill Archive |pages=302–303 |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Vogel |first=Jean Ph |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GckUAAAAIAAJ&dq=daya+ram+sahni&pg=PA303 |title=India antiqua |date=1947 |publisher=Brill Archive |pages=303 |language=en}}

After his retirement in 1935, he was appointed by Jaipur State as the Director of its newly established Department of Archaeology. He went on to publish a book on his excavations at the ancient site of Viratnagar, the capital of the Jaipur region in classical times.{{Cite journal |last=Blakiston |first=J. F. |date=April 1939 |title=Archæological Remains and Excavations at Bairat. By Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni. 9¾ × 7. pp. 40, pls. 11. Jaipur State: Dept. of Archæology and Historical Research, 1937. 8 annas. |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/abs/archaeological-remains-and-excavations-at-bairat-by-rai-bahadur-daya-ram-sahni-9-7-pp-40-pls-11-jaipur-state-dept-of-archaeology-and-historical-research-1937-8-annas/5D11C7940B433862A21FCDF228BA02F0 |journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |language=en |volume=71 |issue=2 |pages=305–306 |doi=10.1017/S0035869X00088936 |issn=2051-2066}} He also excavated Naliasar and Sambhar during the 1936–1938 season,{{Cite book |last=Singh |first=Chandramani |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i-jVAAAAMAAJ&q=daya+ram+sahni+sambhar |title=Protected Monuments of Rajasthan |date=2002 |publisher=Jawahar Kala Kendra |isbn=978-81-86782-60-6 |pages=XI, 194 |language=en}} where he found, among other things, coins from the Moroli Hoard which belonged to the Gupta period.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lYoMAQAAMAAJ&q=daya+ram+sahni+sambhar |title=The Researcher |date=1997 |publisher=Directorate of Archaeology & Museums, Government of Rajasthan. |pages=1 |language=en}}

He also found prehistoric chert artefacts near the Viratnagar site, which influenced many archaeologists in newly independent India.{{Cite book |last=Śrivastava |first=Vijai Shankar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nKJiBUFrmfoC&dq=daya+ram+sahni+mandore&pg=PA27 |title=Cultural Contours of India: Dr. Satya Prakash Felicitation Volume |date=1981 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |isbn=978-0-391-02358-1 |pages=27–28 |language=en}} He also conducted excavations in the districts of Gorakhpur and Saran, unfortunately not much is known about these excavations.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZodEAQAAMAAJ&q=daya+ram+sahni+mandore |title=Rivista degli studi orientali |date=1910 |publisher=Istituti editoriali e poligrafici internazionali |language=it}}

Sahni was awarded a "Rai Bahadur" medal in March 1920 by the Governor of Punjab at a durbar in Rawalpindi. Soon after his retirement from the ASI in 1935, Sahni was made a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire. The Banaras Hindu University instituted the Dayaram Sahni Gold Medal in his memory.

He died at 7 March, 1939 (at age of 59 years) at Rohtak, Haryana.

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{{succession box|title=Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India|before=Harold Hargreaves|after=J. F. Blakiston|years=1931-1935}}

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Category:1879 births

Category:1939 deaths

Category:19th-century Indian people

Category:20th-century Indian archaeologists

Category:Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire

Category:Directors general of the Archaeological Survey of India

Category:Scientists from Punjab, India

Category:Archaeologists of the Indus Valley civilisation

Category:Indian institute directors

Category:Archaeologists from British India

Category:Harappa

Category:People from Punjab Province (British India)