Pandav Sthan, Panr

Pandav Sthan, also called Panr, is an ancient site in Panr village, Dalsingsarai block, Samastipur district, in the Mithila region of Bihar. Legend links it to the Mahabharata: the Pandavas are said to have escaped here through a tunnel after Duryodhana set fire to the Lakshagriha, and stayed for some days. A temple nearby, Pandava Krishna Dham Mandir, holds statues of Krishna and the five brothers.

Digging began in 2002 under the Kashi Prasad Jayaswal Research Institute, Patna, and eight seasons had been completed by 2020 across roughly 22 acres. They revealed three cultural phases, from a Copper Age level of around 2000 BCE to a pre-Kushan level near 100 BCE, along with walls, 15 pillars, a Brahmi inscription on a potsherd, copper coins bearing royal portraits, seals, beads, ivory and Kushan coins. Radiocarbon tests put many finds at about 3600 years old. The excavations have since stopped, and parts of the site are being farmed.