WONDERFUL INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION : READERS MAIL TO NANDHIVARMAN

Paper presented at the National Seminar on The Indus Valley : A Review of Recent Research organized by the Pondicherry Institute of Linguistics and Culture on 28.9.2003 at the Chief Secretariat Conference Hall and inaugurated by the Pondicherry Education Minister K.Lakshminarayanan and Presided by Dr.Pa.Maruthanayagam, Director of PILC.

IS INDUS VALLEY THE CRADLE OR CATACOMB OF THE DRAVIDIAN CIVILIZATION?

 Na.Nandhivarman General Secretary Dravida Peravai

LETTER OF APPRECIATION

Wonderful Indus Valley Civilization of India

 JUVEN BACHAN 3/20/06

JUVEN BACHAN <lavenderpurpleshangrila@yahoo.com>

tonandhivarman@gmail.com

Mon, Mar 20, 2006 at 2:48 AM

The Wonderful Indus Valley Civilization of India

mailed-by yahoo.com

Sir     Your article : Is the Indus Valley Civilization the Cradle or Catacomb of the Dravidian Civilization?:   I must compliment you on writing such a wonderful article on the history of our proud and beautiful people of the Indus, who now command the attention world with its lost history.  Of all the websites , I have read yours have painted the true facts of the evidence where it belongs and that is where it should stay. You have not fallen for the revisionists who have not only destroyed the true history of India but have given India a false greatness which she does not deserve.  Many times I have protested and written about the articles and publications being put out by revisionists inside and outside India with most of the evidence being distorted and false.  For example, the revisionists state that the Indus civilization is derived from Aryan Indian history which I think is false and misleading and students of history is being taught this.  Many articles written by highly qualified Indians with Phds and other degrees asserts that the rite of cremation originated with the Hindus , thus failing to inform students and readers that it is the Indo-Aryans who brought cremation to India.  They also state that the Indus civilization is of Aryan origin ,existing from 3100BC  and this is also false.   Your article of 2001  states and I quote: 

                     "The lack of similarity continues when one considers the

                      the ways of disposing of the dead in the IVC.  The Indus

                      people buried their dead and there is not evidence at all

                      cremation.  The Rigveda on the other hand recognizes

                     cremation as the principal method of disposing of the

                     the dead."         

If this is so why is it that the revisionists , despite the evidence facing them still

continue to spout that the Indus is of Aryan origin, when such practices does not

fit their paradigm  and model? Apart from the rite of cremation, the Indus did not

possess the horse nor the chariot but did possess the ass and wagon similar to

those of Sumer and Mesopotamia.  Why is it that the revisionists distort and try to

rewrite history that is being discovered that does not fit the facts?  Thanking you

for a reply.

  

TAMIL CRAFTSMEN WON WORLD ATTENTION 1000 YEARS AGO

TAMIL CRAFTSMEN WON WORLD ATTENTION  1000 YEARS AGO
N. Nandhivarman, General Secretary Dravida Peravai, Pondicherry, India 600 501Dated: January 19, 2012
Trade routes
The role of South India in world commerce is now slowly but grudgingly being acknowledged. “Arikamedu ,[ a port city closer to Ariankuppam in Union Territory of Puducherry]  has a legacy back to the Second century B.C, long before the Romans came. My historical investigations indicate that Arikamedu was occupied down to the seventeenth century, and a date nearly as recent is confirmed archaeologically, at least tentatively.” says Peter Francis Junior who passed away in December 2001. The French astronomer Guillaume Le Gentil on the basis of some visible evidences recorded the importance of Arikamedu in his travelogue written in French titled as:" Voyage dans les mers de l’Inde”(Paris1779-81). G.Jouveau Dubreuil described Arikamedu as a Port city called Puduke. L.Faucheux and R.Sarleau published the findings of their excavations in “Les Recherches Archeologiques” in 1942. Apart from these initial studies the first by scientific methods of excavation in 1945 by Mortimer Wheeler is widely known. The book Rome Beyond the Imperial Frontiers (1954) by Wheeler left an impression that “ a sleepy fishing village suddenly awakened by enterprising Romans who built stone buildings and a port, then fell back to sleep when the Romans left” feels Francis Peter Junior. From the arretine pottery, table wares used by Romans found there h Wheeler came to the conclusion that Roman trade flourished between 14 to 25 B.C. Jean Mari Casal conducted his excavations between 1947 and 1950 and opined much before Romans advent, Arikamedu was a prosperous port dating back to 250 B.C. People of that place were civilized even during Iron Age claims J.M.Casal who found gold jewels in burial sites of Suthukeny and was stunned by the prosperity of the people. Vimala Begley in a collaborative project of University of Pennsylvania Museum and University of Madras excavated the site between 1989 and 1992. The first volume of her monumental work The Ancient Port of Arikamedu: New Excavations and Researches Volume I, a publication by L’Ecole Francaise D’Extreme-Orient in 1996 threw more light, and though she passed away on 21 st March 2000, subsequent researches have found that the glory of the site is due to local initiative. “Arikamedu traders imported copper, gold, silver, olive oil and wine from west and spices from East. In return their small scale industries were engaged in manufacturing shell bangles, stone bead making by polishing and cutting of semi precious stones like banded agate, cornelian, onyx, jasper, crystalline beryl, aquamarine quartz, amethyst etc, and terracotta for export purposes. Large scale industries were engaged in textiles, dyeing, glass bead making and metal works “ says P. Ravichandiran,  who assisted Vimala Begley in the excavations and a scholar with number of research papers to his credit. Francis Peter Junior states, “The chief product of Arikamedu must have been beads. It is the first place known to have made small, drawn (cut from a tube) glass beads, the types found almost universally for two millennia. Its stone bead industry was also impressive, and its lapidaries made several important innovations in the field. Workers in the glass bead (Indo-Pacific bead) industry migrated to other places: Mantai, Sri Lanka; Khlong Thom, Thailand; Oc-eo, Vietnam; Srivijaya/Palembang, Sumatra; Sungai Mas, Malaysia; Kuala Selinsing, Malaysia; and Takua Pa, Thailand have now been identified as housing such work..” Arikamedu much before the word outsourcing was coined imported raw materials and used its craftsmen to finish products for export purposes. This historical fact about the Pondicherry must be borne in mind .Arikamedu’s impact on world trade was impressive. Arikamedu products like glass beads, stone beads, ceramics were in Indonesia by the first century B.C. “The West demanded the garnets, prase, citrine and other stone beads and agate cameo blanks produced in Arikamedu between 1st Century and 1200 A.D. Indo-Pacific beads, though not all of which were made at Arikamedu proper, account for 62.2% of all beads of all materials excavated at all archaeological sites as far away as the Philippines. The Arabs took Indo-Pacific beads to East Africa and across North Africa, through the Sahara to the Forest Zone of West Africa. The Portuguese procured from Arikamedu because they were in demand in Mozambique.” There are striking parallels between Indo-Pacific bead making and later techniques and technologies in Europe and America. The Indian prototypes are a millennium or more older. The Archeological Survey of India had declared the site as a protected monument and plans are afoot for setting up a site museum. It will also be appropriate to create a Center for Gemology and a Crafts village to settle artisans for reviving these industries that brought Pondicherry into world map by its exports, much before any foreigner set his foot to rule here.
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ARIKAMEDU CIVILIZATION

  INDIAN EXPRESS Week End: Pondicherry : 4 th Article t by N. Nandhivarman 16.08.2004

THE CRADLE OF CRAFTS AND ITS EXPORTS N.Nandhivarman

The international attention may have dawned upon Arikamedu after its archaeological excavations. The trade between Arikamedu and Red Sea Ports is an established fact. . But scholars of the Euro-centric view who hold any significant innovation to have a European or at least Mediterranean origin nowadays find their fantasies shattered. The role of South India in world commerce is now slowly but grudgingly being acknowledged. “Arikamedu was occupied far longer than had been thought and must be considered a South Indian city rather than principally Roman. The lowest levels we could reach go back to the Second century B.C, long before the Romans came. My historical investigations indicate that Arikamedu was occupied down to the seventeenth century, and a date nearly as recent is confirmed archaeologically, at least tentatively.” says Peter Francis Junior who passed away in December 2001.

The French astronomer Guillaume Le Gentil on the basis of some visible evidences recorded the importance of Arikamedu in his travelogue written in French titled as:“Voyage dans les mers de l’Inde”(Paris1779-81).

G.Jouveau Dubreuil described Arikamedu as a Port city called Puduke. L.Faucheux and R.Sarleau published the findings of their excavations in “Les Recherches Archeologiques” in 1942. Apart from these initial studies the first by scientific methods of excavation in 1945 by Mortimer Wheeler is widely known. The book Rome Beyond the Imperial Frontiers (1954) by Wheeler left an impression that “ a sleepy fishing village suddenly awakened by enterprising Romans who built stone buildings and a port, then fell back to sleep when the Romans left” feels Francis Peter Junior. From the arretine pottery, table wares used by Romans found there h Wheeler came to the conclusion that Roman trade flourished between 14 to 25 B.C. Jean Mari Casal conducted his excavations between 1947 and 1950 and opined much before Romans advent, Arikamedu was a prosperous port dating back to 250 B.C. People of that place were civilized even during Iron Age claims J.M.Casal who found gold jewels in burial sites of Suthukeny and was stunned by the prosperity of the people. Vimala Begley in a collaborative project of University of Pennsylvania Museum and University of Madras excavated the site between 1989 and 1992. The first volume of her monumental work The Ancient Port of Arikamedu: New Excavations and Researches Volume I, a publication by L’Ecole Francaise D’Extreme-Orient in 1996 threw more light, and though she passed away on 21 st March 2000, lovers of archaeology are eagerly awaiting the release of her second volume. Also there is a demand to bring out books in Tamil on these researches. These subsequent researches have found that the glory of the site is due to local initiative.

“The place was important and the bead making industries well established before the Romans came. The Romans went there precisely because it was an important port. After whatever constituted the Roman "emporium" was gone, Arikamedu was still very much in touch with the West, sending its gems that direction and receiving wine and other amphorae-packed Mediterranean products for centuries.” Says Francis Peter Junior. “ Arikamedu traders imported copper, gold, silver, olive oil and wine from west and spices from East. In return their small scale industries were engaged in manufacturing shell bangles, stone bead making by polishing and cutting of semi precious stones like banded agate, cornelian, onyx, jasper, crystalline beryl, aquamarine quartz, amethyst etc, and terracotta for export purposes. Large scale industries were engaged in textiles, dyeing, glass bead making and metal works “ says P.Ravichandiran, Lecturer in History at Ayvvaiyar College for Women at Karaikal, who assisted Vimala Begley in the excavations and a scholar with number of research papers to his credit.

 

Francis Peter Junior states, “The chief product of Arikamedu must have been beads. It is the first place known to have made small, drawn (cut from a tube) glass beads, the types found almost universally for two millennia. Its stone bead industry was also impressive, and its lapidaries made several important innovations in the field. Workers in the glass bead (Indo-Pacific bead) industry migrated to other places: Mantai, Sri Lanka; Khlong Thom, Thailand; Oc-eo, Vietnam; Srivijaya/Palembang, Sumatra; Sungai Mas, Malaysia; Kuala Selinsing, Malaysia; and Takua Pa, Thailand have now been identified as housing such work. This constituted the largest and longest-lived glass bead industry ever. Stone bead making survived down through the end of the last century, but no trace is now left.” Arikamedu much before the word outsourcing was coined imported raw materials and used its craftsmen to finish products for export purposes. This historical fact about the Pondicherry must be borne in mind to set up 100% Export oriented industries and a Special Economic Zone for that purposes to commemorate the memory and legacy of Arikamedu. The revival of Pondicherry Port to once again attract world’s attention is to regain the heritage that is lost in the onslaughts of time.

 

Arikamedu’s impact on world trade was impressive. Arikamedu products like glass beads, stone beads, ceramics were in Indonesia by the first century B.C. “The West demanded the garnets, prase, citrine and other stone beads and agate cameo blanks produced in Arikamedu between 1st Century and 1200 A.D. Indo-Pacific beads, though not all of which were made at Arikamedu proper, account for 62.2% of all beads of all materials excavated at all archaeological sites as far away as the Philippines. The Arabs took Indo-Pacific beads to East Africa and across North Africa, through the Sahara to the Forest Zone of West Africa. The Portuguese procured from Arikamedu because they were in demand in Mozambique.”

 

There are striking parallels between Indo-Pacific bead making and later techniques and technologies in Europe and America. The Indian prototypes are a millennium or more older. The Archeological Survey of India had declared the site as a protected monument and plans are afoot for setting up a site museum. It will also be appropriate to create a Center for Gemology and a Crafts village to settle artisans for reviving these industries that brought Pondicherry into world map by its exports, much before any foreigner set his foot to rule here

N; B; Photographs of Sir Mortimer Wheeler, Gabriel Jouveau Dubreuil (1885-1945), The Book: The Ancient Port of Arikamedu by Vimala Begley 

.

  

THANJAVUR TAMIL UNIVERSITY and FRENCH INSTITUTE CREATE DIGITAL ATLAS

TOPONYMICAL PROBE TRACING ONENESS OF HUMANITY

N.Nandhivarman

Pondicherry is a melting pot of various linguistic groups and cultures. Therefore it is no surprise that lot of people from Orissa have found a haven in Pondicherry. Trailing them to study for his research papers R.Balakrishnan I.A.S, Chief Electoral Officer of Government of Orissa often visits Pondicherry. There is another dimension to his visits, which is to pay respects to his teacher Dr.Vijayavenugopal of Ecole Francaise D’Extreme Orient. Mr.Balakrishnan had presented numerous research papers and he specializes in toponymical probe.

  

“Place names are fossilized representations of the past. In retracing the footprints of our ancestral migrations, place names can be our guiding stars. Our case in this regard is built on the foundation that the migrating people do carry their place names and reuse them in new found homeland as a mark of continuity with past.” says R.Balakrishnan explaining the rationale of the toponymical probe he had ventured into.

 In an article that appeared in the International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, R.Balakrishnan throws “New lights on ancient contacts between Kalinga and Indonesia”. A study conducted by him revealed remarkable similarities between the place names of Java, Sumatra and Bali regions of Indonesia on one hand and the places of Southern Orissa on the other hand. The Chilka region of Orissa seems to have been the focal point of Kalingan interactions with South East Asia.

 Balakrishnan is serious in his research and had done extensive travel to remote regions to draw similarities of place names. In another research paper titled Tamil: A Toponymical Probe he had given a long list of place names that bear the “Tam” prefixes. In a state wise alphabetical list of Tam prefixed place names in India, he states that in Andhra Pradesh [29], Arunachal Pradesh [11], Assam [38], Bihar [53], Gujarat [5), Goa [1], Haryana [3], Himachal Pradesh [34], Karnataka [24], Maharastra [120], Meghalaya [5], Manipur [14], Madya Pradesh [60], Nagaland [4], Orissa [84], Punjab [4], Rajasthan [26], Tamil Nadu [10], Uttar Praseh [64], West Bengal [24] with a grand total of 612 places names resembling Tamil and Tamil influences do occur.

    

This research may sound funny, but researches are always working out new avenues to trace truths of the past. One of the pioneers of rice research in India Mr.Ramiah had identified Jeypore region of Orissa as another independent center of origin of rice. Subsequent researches established that broad geographical region comprising Jharkand; Chattisgarh, Western Orissa and Jeypore tracts of Orissa satisfy the basic requirements to claim as center of origin of cultivated rice. If one can trace roots of rice cultivation why not trace roots of a civilization and its spread, asks Dr.Arivunambi, Dean of Tamil Studies in Pondicherry University.

 “In the Godda District of Bihar there is a village named Tamilgoda. In that District alone there are 12 place names, which end goda Tamilgoda is one of them. In the Puri District of Orissa a place name called Tamilikudi draws our immediate attention. There is no need to establish the Dravidian etymology of the suffix kudi. Tamilikudi is not an isolate case of occurrence as there are 37 place names with kudi suffix within the administrative boundary of Orissa.

 “In the process of locating Tamil related place names the entire list of India was scrutinized and I found a name called Tamia in Chindwara District of Madya Pradesh. Having come across Tamilgoda and Tamilkudi is not surprising to me. However when this name was noticed in the surprising company of such typical Tamil place names Palani, Tekadi, Theni, Bodi and many other geographical names that are in currency in the Madurai region of Tamilnadu and its adjoining upcountry neighbor Idukki, its significance and implications could be understood,” says Balakrishnan.

 Another research paper titled  “Toponymy of Konark”, by Balakrishnan traces the spread of the word Kona. The place name of Konark is a combination of two words kona and arka. A search for Kona as a place name prefix reveals as many as 249 occurrences. Out of this Kona, a mono word place name has been used at least in 13 places [4 in Andhra Pradesh, 3 in Uttar Pradesh, 2 in Madya Pradesh one each in Orissa, Bihar, Haryana and Maharastra]. Kon seems to be a universal term. ‘The primitive tribes of Austro-Asiatic and Dravidian origin use the term as much as the speakers of Indo-Aryan do. Even the English terms such as cone, conical based on Latin conus (derived from Greek konus) show definite affinity with the term. 

Depending on the context, Vedic people used a number of terms to denote angle and most common of them is Karna. The term Karna means Sun, the son of Kunti by Surya and hence the sun nexus of the term would be obvious. Karna denoting ray or beam of light is considered to be the basis for the Greek term Karneios that means radiant. This establishes the nexus between the angle and ray. The Peruvian prefix Kon means Sun and the mythical Sun king who claimed direct descent from Sun is called Kon-Tiki. So goes on Balakrishnan identifying in Iran on the Gulf of Oman just 3 km away from main coastline a village called Konark. About 5 kms away from Persian Gulf he traces another village Konark. Again in the plateau of Iran he finds Konark. The toponymical probe is a new way to establish oneness of the human race. Deveneya Paavanar and his successor R.Madhivanan have used etymological probes to prove that all languages emanated from one common language. As all continents were once united in Pangea that in Latin means All Earth, the distribution of place names across continents in another way proves continental drift and the migration of human race from one place to another.

courtesy: The New Indian Express -weekend-18.06-2005

TAMIL HISTORY THROUGH THE EYES OF EPIGRAPHY

 Dr.Vijayavenugopal inspecting Irumbai Mahaleswar Temple inscription in Vanur Taluk Villupuram District of Tamilnadu

N.Nandhivarman

In Paris not in Chennai  two conferences on Tamil Epigraphy :Historical Sources and multi-disciplinary approach took place in 2005 and 2006 at Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudies [EPHE] .  The groundbreaking works of several generations of pioneering scholars on Tamil epigraphy have proved beyond doubt that inscriptions constitute one of the most important sources for a better understanding of the historical, cultural and social evolution of the past, opines historian Romila Thapar.

Daud Ali focused his research paper on Gangaikondacholapuram temple inscriptions. This temple was first visited by Meckenzie  between 1818 and 1826. Subsequent surveys till 1993 yielded an epigraphic corpus, which was updated by Daud Ali.

 Philology is a study of the language together with its literature and the historical and cultural contexts which are indispensable for an understanding of the literally or other culturally significant texts defines Becker. Y.Subburayalu employed philology and lexical semantics in interpreting and understanding the epigraphic texts. There is an ancient Tamil word Pazhanam which means fields. The name Pazhani came to that temple town because it was situated in midst of fields. Unless one knows the word Pazhanam the correct meaning could not be imparted.

Rachel Loiseau turned her eyes to the abandoned Naganatheswara temple  of the tenth century. Supplementing  epigraphic sources with structural and iconographic observations, her study the first of its kind in stylistic evolution of a single monument. Rachel Loiseau finds out that the iconographic programmes of this Chola temple bear the influence of Sembiyan Madevi model.

Ten pottery inscriptions of Tamilnadu and two such from West Bengal in Sinhala-Prakrit script found by Iravatham Mahadevan sheds new light on long distance trade routes between Srilanka, Tamilnadu and West Bengal.Anthropologic decoding of epigraphy of two inscriptions of Rajaraja from Thanjavur temple undertaken by Tiziana Leucci which focuses on socio-religious aspects of Devadasi system  is noteworthy.

Charlotte de Percin-Sermet chose to deal with Chandesa, one of the important Nayanars of the Bhakthi movement. She finds pan-indian nature in the Tamil saiva nayanar. “ She establishes Chandesa’s presence as a violent deity or asura  in ancient sources like Mahabharatha or Agnipurana. She contrasts how Tamil literary sources depict a contrary image of the nayanar as an ideal devotee” says Appasamy Murugaiyan in his introduction to the book New Dimensions in Tamil Epigraphy . Because he teaches epigraphy in Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudies [EPHE]  Paris , he and his friends organized two  conferences on Tamil epigraphy.

Foreign country evincing interest in Tamil epigraphy is because recent Survey on Indian Epigraphy (1996) places inscriptions of Tamil Nadu at the top of the list. The categories of language, alphabet and number of inscriptions on both stone and copper plates also indicate Tamil Nadu as the first among Indian States. From this survey it can easily be understood that Tamil Nadu has the bulk of inscriptions found in India. It has been estimated with a fair degree of accuracy that the inscriptions written in Tamil occupy the first position in volume, amounting nearly to 20,000, followed by those in Kannada (10,600), Sanskrit (7,500) and Telugu (4,500). Inscriptions in Tamil language are noticed from the third century BCE onwards. (Source: Journal of the Epigraphical Society of India Volume 19 : 1993)

Tamilnadu Government started The State Department of Archaeology  in the year 1961 .The aim of the department is to showcase the rich heritage and glorious traditions of Tamil Nadu with its classical Tamil language, magnificent monuments, exquisite temples, art and sculpture and diversified traditions The Department has  14 site museums, the Government Oriental Manuscripts Library and Research Centre at Chepauk, Chennai besides the Institute of Epigraphy. A separate epigraphy wing was started during the year 1966. The primary function of this wing is to copy inscriptions on boulders, stone pillars, stones, temple walls and on copper plates. The inscriptions are deciphered, edited and published.  So far, about 14,000 inscriptions are copied and  preserved in this wing. Some original copper plates and old palm leaf manuscripts are also under the custody of this department.

The Department of Archaeology has been recognized as a Centre for doing research in history and archaeology leading to Ph.D by the University of Madras during the year 2003. At national level The  Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), under the Ministry of Culture regulates all archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. It also regulates Antiquities and Art Treasure Act, 1972.

Publications of the ASI was started by A. Cunningham, the first Director General, who along with his associates, documented vigorously all the results of their tour from1862-63 onwards. In 1874, a new series entitled ‘New Imperial Series’ was launched which continued up to 1933 containing exhaustive research on antiquarian remains.

John Marshall introduced Annual Reports published in two parts from 1902 onwards. He also started the publication of a new series ‘Memoirs of the Archaeological Survey of India’, of which the first number appeared in 1919 and the latest (ninety-eight) in 2003. ‘Ancient India’ the Bulletin of the Archaeological Survey of India was started in 1946, which contained general and research articles on different aspects of archaeology in India and adjacent countries.  The most important among them, ‘Epigraphia Indica’ for Sanskrit inscriptions was first published in 1892. So far 42 volumes have been published. In the field of Arabic and Persian inscription, ‘Epigraphia Indo-Moslemica’ is being brought out. The ‘Annual Report on Indian Epigraphy’ has been brought out from 1887 till 1995-96, which contains the reports on the epigraphical discoveries made each year. In addition to these, inscriptions of various dynasties were also published under the series ‘Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum’. For the epigraphical records of South India, a separate series ‘South Indian Inscriptions’ is also being published since 1890. The south Indian inscriptions are also dealt with from 1905 to 1946 in another series called ‘Annual Report of South Indian Epigraphy’ which contains brief notes on inscriptions of south India collected during a particular year. The  Epigraphy Branch of the Survey caters to the needs of the Sanskrit & Dravidian inscriptions and coins (Headquarters at Mysore) and Arabic & Persian inscriptions and coins (Headquarters at Nagpur)

Underwater Archaeology Wing

India has 7,516 km long coastline, 1197 islands and 155,889 sq. km of territorial waters and 2,013,410 sq. km exclusive economic zone. The vast water area of the country is rich in underwater cultural heritage. The importance of underwater archaeology was realized as early as in the VI five-year plan. Beginning of underwater archaeology in India can be traced back to 1981. Off shore explorations in the country have generated a lot of popularity to this discipline. Establishment of the Underwater Archaeology Wing (UAW) in the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in 2001 marked a major step towards the development of the subject. Since its inception the UAW is actively engaged in conducting underwater archaeological studies in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal.

Protection of underwater cultural heritage and regulation of underwater activities aimed towards the cultural heritage is one of the main concerns of the UAW. Adoption of “Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage” by UNESCO in 2001 displays the global concern about the protection and management of underwater cultural heritage. UAW has initiated steps for the protection and preservation of the underwater cultural heritage. 

So far what steps both Central and State Governments had taken to preserve our cultural heritage including conferences held in Paris reveal painstaking efforts but sad part is various universities and Tamil scholars show no interest in inscriptions. Temple authorities forget these are treasure troves of history. They focus on deities neglecting temple history.

Archaeological Survey of India in its Annual Report of Epigraphy 1895 had brought to notice 12 inscriptions, numbering 53 to 64 in the series. In Annual Report on Epigraphy 1930-1931, they have brought to notice 88 inscriptions numbering 121 to 208. The lethargy comes while publishing such inscriptions, whereas out of 100 inscriptions only 50 have been read deciphered and published. A place called Thiruchotruththurai in Mayiladuthurai-Kumbakonam road 4 kilometers near Thirukalliyur , in spite of copying 50  , in its Second Volume of Annual Report of Epigraphy only 50 inscriptions are published .50 copied but not published had been the target of study by Dr.Vijayavenugopal, epigraphist and multi disciplinary Tamil genius . So he revisited Thiruchotruthurai and deciphered these inscriptions which are going to see the light of the day.

Photo 1 : A sample page of Annual Report on Epigraphy

The above page of the ARE mentions some of 70 inscriptions found in 1903 and 1924 in Piranmalai of Trichy district, in a temple under Kunrakudi Atheenam. Piranmalai was known in earlier days as Thirukodunkunram. South Indian Inscriptions Volume 8  shows 70 stone inscriptions as noticed but less than 30 only deciphered and published. A team of epigraphists led by Dr.Vijayavenugopal and photographers Ravi and Babu associated with French Government organization Ecole Francaise de Extreme Orient visited 4 times in between 2009 and 2014 to Piranmalai to find new inscriptions, or precisely re-find inscriptions noticed in South Indian Inscriptions book. The poojari of Mangaipagar Koil refused to let them in in spite of the team saying published report mentions in 435 serial number about an inscription by Kulothunga Chozhan. During 4^th visit, thanks to the new pujari, the team could read that Kulothunga Chozhan inscription.

Picture 1. Temple poojari in camphor light shows the wall behind the deity and says there is no inscription.

Photo 2 and 3 : The epigraphists argue that South Indian Inscriptions mentions 425 th inscription by Kulothunga Chozhan....

Photo 4 : 4^th visit successful, and team finds that Kulothunga Chozhan inscription in the temple.

This one incident will reveal how much efforts are needed even to trace an inscription once found. The application of sandal paste in walls, santhanakkappu had hidden this Kulothunga Chozhan inscriptions.

The team led by Dr.Vijayavenugopal are currently in search of new inscriptions in Karnataka state, more particularly which were once Tamil territories. There ancient inscriptions are in Tamil, later day inscriptions being Tamil but written in Kannada script and recent period inscriptions are in Kannada. This shows waning influence of Tamil Kings over these adjoining Tamil territories, where Kannada officials gradually replaced Kannada with Tamil in inscriptions.

EFEO team visited Karnataka to verify the authenticity and to update the 300 or so inscriptions noticed by Archaeological Survey of India. In that process found few new inscriptions, which they have deciphered and going to publish.

All such new discoveries are getting published in a journal Avanam published for over 25 years or so by a private association Thamizhaga Tholliyal Kazhagam sponsored by Department of Epigraphy and Archaeology of Tamil University Thanjavur with financial support from Indian Council of Historic Research.

Photo 7 : Avanam journal recent 2013 issue, 24^th issue.

 Along with the team out of curiosity to know how they are deciphering inscriptions, the author of this article visited Senthalai temple in Tiruvaiyaru region of Thanjavur District.

This temple during renovation the masons who undertook the work had thrown the order of inscriptions out of gear, and between one inscription and next continuity is missing, hence to re-read it and suggest proper chronological order of the inscriptions in grantha and devanagiri scripts, team of epigraphists must re-visit such temples.

It is a great blunder that Tamilnadu which housed around 70000 inscriptions in Ooty allowed its transfer to Mysore, where Tamil related inscriptions faced decay and destruction. Even the request by Tamil University to have Xerox copies of those inscriptions being turned down, was a thorny issue which recently had been resolved. ASI and Tamilnadu Archaeological department have joined hands to bring out a publication deciphering such monuments, which will throw new light on South Indian history much to the delight of Tamils...

BOMMAYARPALAYAM HUMAN FOSSIL : 1.66 LAKH YEARS OLD :SCIENTISTS

Human fossil from TN dates to 1.66 lakh years
Sunday, 26 September , 2004, 17:06
Thiruvananthapuram: The age of the human baby fossil, found three years back from Odai in Bommayarpalayam in Tamil Nadu, has been dated to 1.66 lakh years, making it the second oldest human fossil from India and the first fossil found within ferricrete from anywhere. The absolute date was recently worked out by Dr M P Chougaonkar of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre through desimetry analysis of thorium, uranimum and potassium removed from the ferricrete that covered the fossilised baby skull found from Odai. The age clearly showed that in the human evolutionary stage Laterite Baby from Odai belonged to Homo sapiens (archaic) of the Middle Pleistocene period, Prof P Rajendran, archaeologist in Kerala University, who discovered the fossil in 2001, said. "The dating not only proves the age of the human fossil, but also the age of ferricretisation -- the process of clay changing into laterite--of the fluvial deposit on the East coast of India. It represents the stage between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens or modern man," Dr Rajendran, also a UGC research scientist, said. The oldest human fossil was found from Hathanora in the Naramada river bed in Madhya Pradesh in 1982 by Sonakia of Geological Survey of India, Rajendran said.

ARIKAMEDU CIVILIZATION

THE CRADLE OF CRAFTS AND ITS EXPORTS

 N.Nandhivarman

The international attention may have dawned upon Arikamedu after its archaeological excavations. The trade between Arikamedu and Red Sea Ports is an established fact. . But scholars of the Euro-centric view who hold any significant innovation to have a European or at least Mediterranean origin nowadays find their fantasies shattered. The role of South India in world commerce is now slowly but grudgingly being acknowledged. “Arikamedu was occupied far longer than had been thought and must be considered a South Indian city rather than principally Roman. The lowest levels we could reach go back to the Second century B.C, long before the Romans came. My historical investigations indicate that Arikamedu was occupied down to the seventeenth century, and a date nearly as recent is confirmed archaeologically, at least tentatively.” says Peter Francis Junior who passed away in December 2001.

The French astronomer Guillaume Le Gentil on the basis of some visible evidences recorded the importance of Arikamedu in his travelogue written in French titled as:“Voyage dans les mers de l’Inde”(Paris1779-81).

G.Jouveau Dubreuil described Arikamedu as a Port city called Puduke. L.Faucheux and R.Sarleau published the findings of their excavations in “Les Recherches Archeologiques” in 1942. Apart from these initial studies the first by scientific methods of excavation in 1945 by Mortimer Wheeler is widely known. The book Rome Beyond the Imperial Frontiers (1954) by Wheeler left an impression that “ a sleepy fishing village suddenly awakened by enterprising Romans who built stone buildings and a port, then fell back to sleep when the Romans left” feels Francis Peter Junior. From the arretine pottery, table wares used by Romans found there h Wheeler came to the conclusion that Roman trade flourished between 14 to 25 B.C. Jean Mari Casal conducted his excavations between 1947 and 1950 and opined much before Romans advent, Arikamedu was a prosperous port dating back to 250 B.C. People of that place were civilized even during Iron Age claims J.M.Casal who found gold jewels in burial sites of Suthukeny and was stunned by the prosperity of the people. Vimala Begley in a collaborative project of University of Pennsylvania Museum and University of Madras excavated the site between 1989 and 1992. The first volume of her monumental work The Ancient Port of Arikamedu: New Excavations and Researches Volume I, a publication by L’Ecole Francaise D’Extreme-Orient in 1996 threw more light, and though she passed away on 21 st March 2000, lovers of archaeology are eagerly awaiting the release of her second volume. Also there is a demand to bring out books in Tamil on these researches. These subsequent researches have found that the glory of the site is due to local initiative.

“The place was important and the bead making industries well established before the Romans came. The Romans went there precisely because it was an important port. After whatever constituted the Roman "emporium" was gone, Arikamedu was still very much in touch with the West, sending its gems that direction and receiving wine and other amphorae-packed Mediterranean products for centuries.” Says Francis Peter Junior. “ Arikamedu traders imported copper, gold, silver, olive oil and wine from west and spices from East. In return their small scale industries were engaged in manufacturing shell bangles, stone bead making by polishing and cutting of semi precious stones like banded agate, cornelian, onyx, jasper, crystalline beryl, aquamarine quartz, amethyst etc, and terracotta for export purposes. Large scale industries were engaged in textiles, dyeing, glass bead making and metal works “ says P.Ravichandiran, Lecturer in History at Ayvvaiyar College for Women at Karaikal, who assisted Vimala Begley in the excavations and a scholar with number of research papers to his credit.

 

Francis Peter Junior states, “The chief product of Arikamedu must have been beads. It is the first place known to have made small, drawn (cut from a tube) glass beads, the types found almost universally for two millennia. Its stone bead industry was also impressive, and its lapidaries made several important innovations in the field. Workers in the glass bead (Indo-Pacific bead) industry migrated to other places: Mantai, Sri Lanka; Khlong Thom, Thailand; Oc-eo, Vietnam; Srivijaya/Palembang, Sumatra; Sungai Mas, Malaysia; Kuala Selinsing, Malaysia; and Takua Pa, Thailand have now been identified as housing such work. This constituted the largest and longest-lived glass bead industry ever. Stone bead making survived down through the end of the last century, but no trace is now left.” Arikamedu much before the word outsourcing was coined imported raw materials and used its craftsmen to finish products for export purposes. This historical fact about the Pondicherry must be borne in mind to set up 100% Export oriented industries and a Special Economic Zone for that purposes to commemorate the memory and legacy of Arikamedu. The revival of Pondicherry Port to once again attract world’s attention is to regain the heritage that is lost in the onslaughts of time.

 

Arikamedu’s impact on world trade was impressive. Arikamedu products like glass beads, stone beads, ceramics were in Indonesia by the first century B.C. “The West demanded the garnets, prase, citrine and other stone beads and agate cameo blanks produced in Arikamedu between 1st Century and 1200 A.D. Indo-Pacific beads, though not all of which were made at Arikamedu proper, account for 62.2% of all beads of all materials excavated at all archaeological sites as far away as the Philippines. The Arabs took Indo-Pacific beads to East Africa and across North Africa, through the Sahara to the Forest Zone of West Africa. The Portuguese procured from Arikamedu because they were in demand in Mozambique.”

 

There are striking parallels between Indo-Pacific bead making and later techniques and technologies in Europe and America. The Indian prototypes are a millennium or more older. The Archeological Survey of India had declared the site as a protected monument and plans are afoot for setting up a site museum. It will also be appropriate to create a Center for Gemology and a Crafts village to settle artisans for reviving these industries that brought Pondicherry into world map by its exports, much before any foreigner set his foot to rule here

  Courtesy :New Indian Express dated 4^th September 2004