Monday, 21st May 2007 (2532 views)

Ancient artefacts including many precious gold items have gone on display in India after being unearthed on the Malabar coast.

The exhibition, organised by the Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR), showcases several artefacts which could be linked to the town of Pattanam, which has been linked to early Roman trade and could be the lost city of Muziris.

Excavations carried out earlier this year revealed brick structures, human bones, flooring tiles and other everyday items such as beads, glass bowls and storage jars.

However, they also revealed gold coins dating back to the Chera dynasty, which began in ancient times and lasted until the 15th century, as well as gold rings and ornaments.

"We could not afford to spare even an inch of the area. It was so rich with remnants from the past," Jenee Peter, research assistant of the Pattanam Excavation Project, told the Newindpress website.

And the site is of particular interest as scientists believe it was a multicultural hotspot for many years.

"The site seems to have been first occupied by the indigenous megalithic [Iron Age] people, followed by Roman and west Asian contacts in the early historic phase till the early medieval period," KCHR director P J Cherian told the site.

 

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