The Archaeological Survey of India and the Raigad Development Authority's joint excavation recently unearthed a ‘yantraraj' (astrolabe) at Raigad, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's capital fort.
About Raigad Fort:
It is a hill fort situated in Raigad district, Maharashtra.
It is situated in the Sahyadri mountain ranges, or the western ghats.
It stands at an elevation of 2,700 feet (820 meters) above its base and 4,449 feet (1,356 meters) above sea level.
Raigad, surrounded by valleysshaped by the Kal and Gandhari rivers, stands as an isolated massif without connections to neighbouring hills.
The fort also overlooks an artificial lake known as the ‘Ganga Sagar Lake’.
It is only accessible by a pathway on one side, through several steps in a stiff climb.
There is a famous tower built on a high valley near Raigad Fort, which is called “Hirkani Buruj”.
It is one of the strongest-ever fortresses of the Deccan Plateau and is known as the ‘Gibraltar of the East’ across the world.
It was seized by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1656 from Chandraraoji More, the King of Jawali.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj renovated this fort and declared it the capital of the Maratha Empire in 1674 AD.
The fort’s layout is strategically designed to maximize its defensive capabilities, with multiple layers of fortification, bastions, and gateways.
The fort was the location for an armed campaign executed by the British East India Company in 1765.
On May 9, 1818, the fort was looted and subsequently destroyed by British.
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