The National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Madras, who discovered the archaeological relics in the Gulf of Cambay, recently organised a National Workshop on Marine Archaeology in the Gulf of Cambay (or Khambat), which I was privileged to attend. Privileged because it was one of the most well- organised and focused workshops I have attended recently. It was inter-disciplinary, with participation by scientists, archaeologists, geologists, engineers, epigraphists, historians, etc.
The subjects were chosen with a view to broadbasing NIOT’s efforts in the Gulf of Cambay, so that their scientists would have a better background for their underwater archaeological work. Accordingly, papers were presented on geoarchaeology in the Gulf of Cambay and its environs, geochronology, the use of remote sensing in underwater archaeology, the paleo climate of the Gulf of Cambay region, the sedimentation process, and the geological evolution of the Cambay Basin.
Marine archaeology is a new subject and a little-explored one, mainly due to the lack of funds, scientific and other necessary equipment and even trained divers, besides a dearth of qualified marine archaeologists. A pioneer in this field is Dr S R Rao, formerly of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and now with the National Institute of Oceanography in Goa. With all the existing limitations, he has done considerable work in the Bet Dwaraka region, where he found an entire submerged city, with rubble and masonry structures, several shell and pottery items and seals. The Mahabharata and Harivamsha describe Krishna’s capital Dwaraka and how it was submerged by the sea in great detail, a description that coincides in many ways with what the divers found. Unfortunately, the doubting Thomases of our historical world, a school of Indian historians who regard Indian literature as “myth”, do not want to acknowledge this interpretation, in case it gives credence to the story of Krishna, whose capital was submerged by the sea. It is ridiculous not to correlate archaeology and literature. Mythology is “the science of primitive man, his manner of explaining the universe”. Records of natural phenomena and historical events — invasions, migrations, etc. — are stored as myths. If literature and archaeology had not been correlated, we would never have known the history of ancient Greece. And how many people are aware of the fact that the only (ancient) temple for Matsya — Vishnu’s incarnation at the time of the great flood — is to be found at Shankhodhara in Bet Dwaraka.
Structures have also been found off the Poom Puhar coast, but South Indian history is nothing more than a footnote in Indian history books. So two major archaeological finds whimpered into oblivion after a few magazine articles. Any other country would have celebrated them.
NIOT’s discovery would have also, probably, died a similar death if the Minister of Ocean Development, and Human Resource Development, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, had not chosen to announce it publicly. Immediately, there was a chorus of voices clamouring that it should have been first presented as a scientific paper. That would have been an excellent way to destroy the story. Why should the rest of India not learn about these discoveries? They belong as much to the cart puller as to the scientist and archaeologist.
What was found in the Gulf? Several rectangular to round pieces made of rock and mortar with perfectly shaped holes (some rectangular), obviously man-made; stone cylindrical rods with vertical holes, probably used as necklaces (as in Harappa); rolled rods and well-turned cylindrical rock pieces; fused rock articles; thin triangular and round rock pieces; chert blades, cut into long flat pieces; macro tools resembling axes, stone blades, choppers, chisel, etc. and micro tools made of basalt, chalcedony and chert, besides a pestle and fish hook; ladle-shaped objects made of agate or steatite; semi-precious stones and beads made of opal, agate, carnelian, steatite, quartz, malachite, and topaz; potsherds, including sun-dried gray and kiln-baked red.
But these were not all. Human and animal (deer and duck) figurines, a hand with what appears to be a carving of a bangle, a few fossilised human bones and a flat rock piece with a sort of script have made the finds more exciting.
Paleo channels 20 to 40 metres deep and over 9 kms long, adjoined by basement-like features of major structures in a grid pattern, resembling an urban habitation site, were observed. These include a 40m x 24m tank-like depression with steps leading to a deeper portion (like the Great Bath of Mohenjo Daro?), a 200m x 45m platform-like structure, a 79m x 50m buried structure and what appears to be a 41m x 20m wall, with a relief of about 3m above the seabed. Most important, a chunk of carbonised teak wood was picked up, which was dated using 14C (Carbon dating) methodology by the Birbal Sahni Institute of Paleo Botany, Lucknow, and the National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, gave an interim calibrated age of 8150-7650 BP (before present). This is the information that came in for much public flak and acrimony, with some historians and media stories even casting doubts on the authenticity of the scientific testing and the results, an untenable accusation. Foreign laboratories upheld the results, a certification which should not have been necessary, and about which there has been no response from the doubters. Another reason given for doubt was that the wood could have floated into the area from anywhere else. But the scientists present at the workshop debunked that objection, showing how the current patterns meant that the water circulates within the Gulf and is not exchanged with the Arabian Sea.
Having seen these artifacts myself, I believe they belong to a pre-Harappan culture. Ladles, figurines, beads (including the cylindrical stone pieces) and chert blades, made of terracotta, have also been found in Harappan sites. If the rock with the script on it belongs to the same period as the carbonised wood, it would be the earliest known writing.
Marine archaeology is an essential tool for the study of the past. Our limited knowledge and lack of facilities should not make us turn a blind eye to what has proven to be an important source of information elsewhere. Ancient shipwrecks indicate the items traded across the Mediterranean. Cleopatra’s bust was a recent discovery off the Egyptian coast, and tales of American shipwreck hunters — including the Titanic — are legion. The seabed preserves its treasures carefully. Marine archaeology in India is still at its infancy. It needs up-to-date scientific equipment, such as remote controlled robots, and trained divers and diving equipment. All this costs money.
The Gulf of Cambay project involves three disciplines. The archeological investigations map the area of interest, trace the paleo-river course, collect artifacts and videograph underwater archaeological material. Geological investigations investigate the structure, tectonics and buried channels, sand wave movements, and locations of depressions and basins. Engineering investigations include sonar imageries and remote sensing.
The Gulf of Cambay extends over 3000 sq km in the state of Gujarat, with the rivers Narmada, Tapi, Sabarmati and Mahi draining into it. The rivers form an estuary with islands above and submerged below the water. Rivers of today superimpose older river channels, and cut across materials deposited earlier. The sea is made up of alternating clay and sand formations, the latter making shoals that migrate periodically. Tectonic activity in the area would have influenced sedimentary deposits and underwater structures. However, scientific geochronology and geochemistry can give very accurate dates today.
Gujarat is an archeologically rich site. Paleolithic remains of the low sea level periods of the middle and late Pleistocene ages have been found in Junagarh and Bhavnagar districts (adjoining the Gulf of Cambay). Around 14,000 B.P. the sea level started rising, while the period between 9000 and 5000 B.P. saw strong summer monsoons. Mehergarh (in Pakistan), the oldest known pre-historic site in the subcontinent, existed at this time. Pre-Harappans occupied the area around 6000 B.P., developing into the mature Harappan phase. Not far from the Gulf is Padri, an important pre-Harappan site. While the lower levels had rectangular and square structures of mud, the upper levels were made of mud-brick. Similarly, the earlier coarse pottery was replaced by fine and well-made pottery in the upper levels. Harappan script, pottery and copper artifacts appear towards the end of this phase. The best examples of Harappan culture are to be found at Lothal and Kuntasi, both Harappan ports. Lothal is the site of the world’s earliest dockyard, besides which a warehouse and bead furnace have been found here. At Kuntasi, a jetty for anchoring small boats was discovered. Several inland settlements of the Harappans have been excavated, besides the sites of Rangpur and Prabhas Patan. By the third century B.C., the historical phase had begun, and Hathab near Bhavnagar is referred to as Hatrab by the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea. Along with the excavations at Dwaraka, the area is rich in early material artifacts, and the prospects are exciting.
Prof M Ravindran and Prof S Kadhiroli, Director and Project Director respectively of NIOT, have worked very hard to do their homework and cover all aspects of the proposed investigations in the Gulf of Cambay. The discoveries in Dwaraka and Cambay have proved that the Indian coastline contains rich treasures that could unlock secrets of our past history and pre-history. The east coast has a tradition of lost cities and archaeological treasures. If we could find more money for marine archaeology, we could learn so much more about ancient cities like Mahabalipuram and Poom Puhar.
(Nanditha Krishna is Director, The
C P Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation, Chennai)