Re: Indian archaeologists say they have found remains which point to the existence of a city about 7,000 years old in eastern India.

On 19 Feb, 09:23, "Peter Jason" <p...@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Ancient city discovered in India
      By Sandeep Sahu
      Bhubaneswar

The remains have been discovered at
Sisupalgarh near Bhubaneswar, capital of the
eastern state of Orissa.

Researchers say the items found during the
excavation point to a highly developed urban
settlement.

The population of the city could have been in
the region of 20,000 to 25,000, the
archaeologists claim.

The excavations include 18 stone pillars,
pottery, terracotta ornaments and bangles,
finger rings, ear spools and pendants made of
clay.

But some historians and archaeologists in
Orissa have expressed reservations about the
claim of the researchers - they say it is too
early to say anything about the population or
periodicity of the area.

'Significance'

RK Mohanty of the department of archaeology,
Deccan College, Pune, who is one of the two
researchers involved in the excavations.

"The significance of this ancient city
becomes clear when one bears in mind the fact
that the population of classical Athens was
barely 10,000," he said.

Mr Mohanty, along with Monica Smith of the
Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University
of California, has been carrying out limited
excavations at the site every year since 2005
with the permission of the Archaeological
Survey of India (ASI).

The latest round of excavations ended last
Monday and the new discoveries have been
covered with special plastic material and
earth to preserve them before further digging
is taken up in subsequent years.

The first excavations at the site were
carried out by Prof BB Lal as far back as in
1948.

On the basis of the architectural pattern and
artefacts discovered during the early
excavations, Prof Lal concluded that this
fort city flourished between 3rd century BC
and 4th century AD.

On the basis of the new findings, Ms Smith
and Mr Mohanty claim that the fortified city
flourished from around 5th century BC and
probably lasted well after the 4th century.

"We have employed geophysical survey,
systematic surface collections and selected
excavations in the 4.8km perimeter of the
fortified area and studied individual houses
and civic as well as domestic architecture to
arrive at the figure of 25,000," said Ms
Smith.

"If anything, it is a conservative estimate."

'Guesswork'

But some historians and archaeologists in
Orissa have expressed reservations about the
claim of the two researchers.

"At best, it is a guesswork. Without
excavating the entire area of the fortified
city, it is not possible to determine its
population or periodicity," said BK Rath,
former director of the state archaeology
department.

"The actual area excavated so far is only a
minuscule part of the city. How does one
determine the size of the average family in a
period about which very little historical
literature or evidence is available?

"Besides, the comparison with Athens is
odious since it was not a fortified city like
Sisupalgarh," he said.

Mr Rath, however, gives credit to Ms Smith
and Mr Mohanty for having focussed attention
on the problem of encroachment that is
threatening to engulf a large part of the
fortified city.

The major portion of the land that
constitutes the ancient city is in private
possession making an archaeological study
difficult.

Besides, several urban settlements have
sprung up in the vicinity of the area in the
last few years owing to its proximity to the
city of Bhubaneswar.

With a view to preserving this important
archaeological site for future research, the
ASI is now contemplating asking the state
government for control over the land.

Lost

"This way, we can prevent further
encroachment and develop the site as a
tourist attraction," said BR Mani, a senior
ASI official.

There is also some concern about the
preservation of the material which has been
found during the excavation.

Well-known historian Karuna Sagar Behera
voiced serious concern over the preservation
of material unearthed from the site.

"Its is a shame that some gold coins and
terracotta pottery found at the place during
the first excavation in the late 1940s were
subsequently lost," he said.

"Measures should be taken to ensure that all
the material excavated are properly preserved
for future research."

The project is being supported by the
National Science Foundation of India, the
National Geographic Society and the Cotsen
Institute of Archaeology, California.

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I'm very impressed by the claim that a city dating back to the 5th
century BC can be claimed as 7000 years old.
.

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