Tiruchirapalli, Mar 27: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has launched a mega project to fully explore the pre-historic site of Arikamedu near Pondicherry in a bid to reveal the earliest Indo-Burman contact and settlement. ASI superintending archaeologist (Chennai) T Sathyamurthy said the full-scale exploration began last month in the 100-acre fenced site containing rare evidences and artefacts of historical importance. Ignificantly, the site is the one where renowned British archaeologist late Dr Mortimer wheeler conducted excavation in 1946, he told reporters here. Sathyamurthy said the ASI had taken up another major project of making full-scale exploration at Adhichanallur, the largest archaeological site in South India, which was first explored by reputed historian Alexander Rae during 1900-1904. The 114-acre site is located near Srivaikuntam in the southern Tirunelveli district. The ASI is also making efforts to trace the Sangam age of Tamil history through a recently-initiated project. The three-year endeavour, under which six trenches of 60x60 metres had been dug, had so far yielded 30 rare urns. He further said the trench cuttings were made to the exact norms and mappings of the late Alexander Rae, who first explored the site. The ASI initially faced certain shortcomings due to non-availability of the old mapping records of Rae. The ASI will also exhibit the old frescos at the big temple in Thanjavur, dating back to Nayak period, which had overlapped the early Chola paintings. After having removed and recovered both the layers of paintings, the complete exhibition will be inaugurated at the corridor of the temple tower built by king Raja Raja Chola during the tenth century.
Earlier, Sathyamurthy delivered the Padma Bhushan K R Srinivasan memorial endowment lecture organised by a local association. Renowned epigraphist Iravatham Mahadevan was honoured on the occasion.
Bureau Report