Thursday, July 16, 2015

PANAJI, INDIA—Researchers from India’s National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) have uncovered an ancient wall along the Zuari River that could be the remains of a port on the country’s central west coast. It is estimated to be between 1,000 and 3,500 years old. “This area was earlier known as Gopakapattinam. The exploration work on the site is done and scientists have found the steps going in the water. It is imminent that existence of such a big wall parallel to the river indicates that it is remnant of a port,” Rajiv Nigam, head of the Marine Archaeology unit of the NIO, told NDTV. The researchers plan to date the sediments with radiocarbon and thermo-luminance techniques, and conduct a survey of the area with ground-penetrating radar. Nigam thinks the port may have served the ancient capital of Goa. “If the project comes through it will be a big discovery for the central west coast of India. This was a very flourishing harbor of ancient time,” he explained. To read more about archaeology in India, go to "Oceans of Dharma."