KEELADI
CIVILISATION - ART AND CULTURE
News: ASI’s Keeladi report pushes Sangam
age further back to 800 BCE
What's
in the news?
●
In the latest development, the Sangam age
has been pushed to 800 BCE based on the archaeological findings from the first
two phases of excavation carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India in
this sleepy hamlet along the Vaigai river, about 13 km from Madurai.
Key
takeaways:
●
Sangam
age
was believed to be between 300 BCE to 300 CE.
●
The
new report repositions the Sangam age between 800 BCE and 300 CE.
●
Even this period of history has been
classified into three periods.
○
Pre-early historic period between 800 BCE
to 500 BCE.
○
Mature early history between 500 BCE to
the end of 1st century BCE.
○
Post early history from 1st century BCE to
300 CE
●
About 5,800 artefacts were unearthed at
Keeladi during the first two phases of excavation.
●
In 2017,
the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology took over the excavations
and thousands of artefacts continue to be unearthed at the site confirming the
rich urban life of the ancient Tamils.
Keeladi
Civilisation:
●
It
is also referred to as the Vaigai
civilization, named after a nearby river Vaigai.
●
Came
from IVC - Discoveries at Keeladi suggest that the people who
lived there may have travelled south from the Harappan or Indus Valley
civilization (as it declined) to start new lives.
●
The civilization was an indigenous, well
developed self-sustaining urban culture with an industry and Tamil-Brahmi script, indicating that
the people of that era were highly literate.
●
Evidence of ancient industrial production are spinning and weaving tools, cloth dyeing
operations, brick kilns, and ceramic workshops.
●
Keeladi has added greatly to the
credibility of Sangam Literature.
Second
urbanization:
●
Discoveries date to around 500 B.C., when an agricultural surplus
allowed people to build urban centers in what’s known as the subcontinent’s
“second urbanization.”
●
The name reflects a contrast with the much
earlier “first urbanization” of the Indus Valley civilization that began 2500
BCE.
●
Previously,
it was believed that the second urbanization happened along the Central Ganges
Plain in northern India.
●
But new evidence suggests a similar
phenomenon occurred in the south as well.
Religion:
●
An interesting feature of Keeladi is that
it has not revealed any signs of
religious worship in all the five rounds.
Economy:
●
The fertile nature of the area and cattle
rearing played a crucial role in its evolution paving the way for excess
production of rice and sea trading of the inhabitants.