The remnants of a 2,800-year-old human habitation have been uncovered in Vadnagar, Gujarat, which is also prime minister Narendra Modi's hometown. Researchers from IIT Kharagpur, the Archaeological survey of india (ASI), the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), jawaharlal nehru University (JNU), and Deccan college discovered the evidence.

According to authorities, human settlements dating back to 800 bc demonstrated the presence of seven cultural phases. Dr Anindya Sarkar, professor of Geology and Geophysics at IIT Kharagpur, told ANI news agency that the excavation has been ongoing since 2016 and that the team has excavated up to a depth of 20 metres. The findings were published in the journal 'Quaternary Science Reviews' under the title 'Climate, human habitation, and migration in South Asia from the early historic to mediaeval period: Evidence from a new archaeological dig at Vadnagar, Western India'.

ASI archaeologist Abhijit Ambekar, co-author of the paper, told PTI news agency, "Excavation in its several deep trenches revealed the presence of seven cultural stages (periods) namely, Mauryan, Indo-Greek, Indo-Scythian or Shaka-Kshatrapas, Hindu-Solankis, Sultanate-Mughal (Islamic) to Gaekwad-British colonial rule and the city is continuing even today. During our excavations, we uncovered one of the earliest Buddhist monasteries.

Ambekar stated that the ancient items discovered comprised earthenware, copper, gold, silver, and iron pieces, as well as finely made bangles. Coin casts of Greek ruler Appollodatus from the Indo-Greek period at Vadnagar were also discovered, he said. The archaeologist further stated that the uncovered remnants made Vadnagar the earliest surviving city within a single fortress found in India.

Meanwhile, Anindya Sarkar stated that some of their latest unpublished radiocarbon dates indicate that the village may be as ancient as 1400 bc, which corresponds to the very late phase of the post-urban Harappan period. "If true, then it suggests a cultural continuity in india for the last 5,500 years and the so-called Dark Age may be a myth," he said.
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G GOWTHAM

17/01/2024 11:46 AM