Bagalavan Perier B By

VILLUPURAM: Archaeologists recently unearthed a small settlement belonging to the Iron Age at Auroville and they believe the settlement dates back to 300 BC.

The researchers have found the people of that time were rearing livestock and farming, and had strong connections with Arikamedu in the present Puducherry, which was an urban area at that time.

Source said that a year ago, people, who were laying telephone cables in Auroville, found some strange stones near Matrimandir, a meditation centre, in Auroville and informed the Auroville Society managing the international township.

The Society then decided to do research in the locality with the help of professor P Ravichandiran from the Department of Historical Studies at Tagore Arts and Science College, Puducherry, who informed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and got permission to excavate the spot.

Ravichandiran and his team who started excavation in February found a cairn-circle at the spot and analysis of samples from there revealed it was 2,300 years old. As the researchers suspected the urns to be there, they started excavating slowly and found seven secondary burial urns, in which the remains of a person, who was buried or burned, and his belongings like plates, weapons and other things.

A huge marble stone was kept on top of the urn to prevent it from being crushed by the soil.

The researchers informed the ASI to proceed further and started the second phase of the excavation a few weeks ago. So far, they have unearthed 18 urns containing an iron spear and a sickle. Some pictures were drawn on the urns, which looked like sign language which was being used during that era.