Representative image of 1857 rebellion.
Credit: Wikimedia commons
Lucknow: A cache of weapons, which might have been used in the first war of independence in 1857, was found buried in a field in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur district, about 175 kilometres from here, officials said on Friday.
The weapons were found by one Babu Ram, a farmer, while he was ploughing his field at Dhakia Tewari village in the district a few days back, the officials said.
The weapons included 20 rusty swords, ten barrels of guns, two country made pistols and a spear.
Babu Ram said that he stumbled upon the weapons when he dug up his field after his plough hit something hard. He said that he had purchased the land in 2011 from a family which also lived in the same village.
He also said that there was mound in the field when he had purchased it.
A local expert said that the weapons appeared to 150 to 200 years old. "The swords have handles made of silver while only barrels of guns have been found....it is possible that the wooden parts may have been eaten by termites", said Dr Deepak Singh, who taught history at a local college.
The experts said that recently weapons belonging to the Harappan age had been found in a nearby area. The experts also said that they would request the local administration to hand over some swords to them m for study.
They also opined that the weapons could also have used in the first war of independence.
Sub divisional magistrate, Tilhar, Jeet Singh Rai said that officials from revenue department were sent to the site where the weapons were found and that a report would soon be sent to the Archaeological Survey of India in this regard.
The weapons have been kept at the local police station, sources said.