Dated between 2600 and 1900 BC, the Harappan civilisation was spread over Afghanistan, Sind, Balochistan, Jammu, Punjab, northern Rajasthan, Kathiawar, and Gujarat.
A 47-member team comprising researchers and students of the University of Kerala and Kutch University set up camp in Khatiya village of Kutch for nearly two months.
Why?
To unearth several skeletal remains from a burial site. Of the 300-odd graves at the site, 26 were excavated.
Dated between 2600 and 1900 BC, the Harappan civilisation was spread over Afghanistan, Sind, Balochistan, Jammu, Punjab, northern Rajasthan, Kathiawar, and Gujarat.
Among the excavated remains, there is one skeleton, six-feet-long, dated to be around 5,000 years old!
What does the excavation tell us about the civilisation?
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- –The graves were rectangular and of varying dimensions. They were assembled using stones. Some graves also have animal remains along with the human skeletons.
- The skeletons found within the grave were all placed east-west with the heads placed on the eastern side.
- Placed near the leg in the burial grave were earthen pots and shards of pottery.
- The biggest grave discovered here was about 6.9 meters, while the smallest one was around 1.2 meters.
- Grinding stones, blades made of rock with sharp edges, and bangles were also found from this site.
S V Rajesh, Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, University of Kerala, was one of the coordinators of the excavation. Speaking to The Hindu, he says, “While the burial of belongings next to the corpse could possibly suggest the prevalence of the concept of afterlife, much study is required before we could arrive at any such conclusions.”
The excavations show that the drainage system adopted by the people was aimed at saving water.
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Dr Rajesh tells Archeology News Network, “The pottery shards recovered bore similarities with the ones unearthed from ancient settlements in Harappan sites, including Kot Diji and Amri of Pakistan, and Nagwada, Santhali, Moti Pipli, Datrana, Surkotada, and Dhaneti in North Gujarat.”
With more than 200 graves left to be excavated, these discoveries will enhance our knowledge of our past, telling us more about the people who inhabited our land before us and their ways of life.
(Edited by Shruti Singhal)
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