The
place known as Virampattinam may be identified with the place name Virai
mentioned in the ancient Tamil Sangam literature, Ahananuru. The place known as Virampattinam may be identified with the place name Virai mentioned in the
ancient Tamil Sangam literature, Ahananuru. The site has been identified with
the place name Poduke cited in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea of the 1st Century CE
and the Poduke emporium mentioned by Ptolemy (circa 150 CE).
The historical importance of this site was brought to light to the scholarly world by the
French astronomer Le Gentil during his visit to Puducherry between 1768 and 1771.
Based on the surface finds of Roman origin, systematic excavations initiated by
Mortimer Wheeler in 1945, followed by Casal between 1947-50 and Vimala Begley
from 1989 to 1992, led to many significant archaeological findings at Arikamedu.
Wheeler divided the site into Northern and Southern sectors and brought to light a number of brick-built structural remains identified as a warehouse and a dyeing
vat. The southern sector was subsequently excavated by Casal, revealing similar
finds as well as Iron Age-level remains.
Good numbers of imported and local potteries were found during excavation. Some
of the important varieties were Roulette ware, Arretine ware and amphorae, and
excavation revealed hundreds of beads of glass, shell, bone and gold and
semi-precious stones. The southern sector revealed two tanks that may have been
used as dyeing vats along with other structures. Finds of fragmentary amphorae
and Arretine ware in stratified contexts led Wheeler to identify the site as an
Indo-Roman trading station, which he believed was founded during the time of
Augustus and lasted for about two centuries.
From
the year 1989 to 1992, Vimala Begley, as part of a project of the University Museum,
University of Pennsylvania, and K. V. Raman of the Department of Ancient History and
Archaeology, University of Madras, excavated the site to reassess the findings
of the earlier excavations. The excavation at the northern sector two brick
structures, which were identified as a tank, was excavated. Many Indian and imported
potteries were noticed during excavation. There are a few sherds with graffiti
also, and there was one sherds with Tamil Brahmi reading “Valava”. The
occurrence of the terra sigilatta ware, pieces of double-handled amphorae, and
the existence of the tanks beside other antiquities suggest not only the
promising extension of the port area but also the existence of the industrial
site.
Further
structural remains noticed in the southern sector, including a tank with drainage
and floors and walls in different spaces, help to show how the space was
utilised all along the river. This excavation helps to reassess Wheeler’s
and Casal’s excavations, and material culture suggests that the date of the
founding of Arikamedu should be pushed back to the middle of the third century
BCE, while its first trade contacts with the Mediterranean world may have been
established by the late second century BCE. The Arretine ware phase can be
dated more precisely to the first quarter of the first century CE. (Instead of
the second quarter, as Wheeler had suggested) Amphorae occur in substantially
earlier levels and Rouletted Ware in earlier levels still. The excavated
structures are closed after proper documentation.
ARIKAMEDU
RECONSIDERED
Reconsidered
here are the chronology and significance of the important South Indian coastal
site of Arikamedu, which was excavated by Sir Mortimer Wheeler in 1945 and
Jean-Marie Casal in 1947-1950. Finds of fragmentary amphorae and Arretine ware
in stratified contexts led Wheeler to identify the site as an Indo-Roman
trading station, which he believed was founded during the time of Augustus and
lasted for about two centuries. Even though subsequent investigations revealed
conflicting evidence, Wheeler's basic interpretation has gone unchallenged
until now; as a result, it has become increasingly difficult to formulate a
coherent picture of South Indian cultural sequences during the Early Historical
period.
Reassessment
of Wheeler's and Casal's material suggests that the date of the founding of
Arikamedu should be pushed back to the middle of the third century B. C., while
its first trade contacts with the Mediterranean world may have been established
by the late second century B. C. The Arretine ware phase can now be dated more
precisely to the first quarter of the first century CE (instead of the
second quarter, as Wheeler had suggested); amphorae occur in substantially
earlier levels, and Rouletted Ware in earlier levels still. Although the
Arikamedu Rouletted Ware was probably manufactured locally, the technique of
"rouletting" must have been introduced from the West, probably
sometime in the second century B. C. Since Arikamedu thus seems to have
functioned as a maritime trading center long before the time of Augustus, a new
perspective emerges upon the question of South Indian trade with the
Mediterranean area.
FURTHER EXCAVATIONS
AND FINDINGS
Unlike many
other historical sites in the Indian subcontinent, Arikamedu was excavated for
six seasons between 1941 and 1950, and a fresh round of excavations was
undertaken between 1989 and 1992.
The
Periplus Maris Erythraei refers to the site as Poduke, and this name is said to
derive from the Tamil term Puduceri, meaning a new settlement. What were the
reasons for the origin of this new settlement at Arikamedu, since the site
lies in a region of extensive megalithic occupation? Archaeological exploration
in the South Arcot district has revealed 175 archaeological sites, of which 143
are megalithic, including 100 burials (Rajan 1997: 275). It is significant that
in the Tamil coastal plains, Arikamedu was the largest megalithic site with an
expanse of 8.4 hectares and an estimated population of at least 1,600 (Moorti
1994: table 2.6, Appendix A).
In addition to a diversity of burial types, the region provided evidence for a
3.25-metre standing anthropomorphic figure of well-dressed stone located within
three concentric stone circles at Mottur in Chengam taluk. In the upland parts
of South Arcot district, rock shelters with paintings in both red and white
pigment were found, generally associated with megalithic burials and habitation
mounds (Rajan 1997: 280, 286). The absence of a cultural deposit from these
shelters makes it difficult to date them. It is nevertheless evident that,
rather than external stimuli such as 'Indo-Roman trade', the shift to the 'new'
settlement at Poduke should be seen within the local and regional context of
interaction between megalithic sites.
REASSESMENT AND CONCLUSIONS
1. Earlier, it was thought that the settlement at Arikamedu was
established in the 1st century BCE with the beginning of Indo-Roman trade.
Recent excavations brought to light the fact that a fairly well-established
settlement was already in place at the site before the advent of this trade.
2. The earlier excavations had identified the northern sector as a port area
and the southern one as an industrial area specializing in bead and textile
manufacture. However, it seems that activities were not so neatly divided. It
also seems that some people-probably merchants and sailors-lived in both
sectors.
3. More foreign pottery was found in the northernmost part of the settlement,
so some foreigners may have lived here.
4. The tank-like structures in the southern sector do not appear to be
connected with dyeing cloth at all. They may have been enclosures for storing
food or other sorts of goods.
5. Earlier, it was thought that Indo-Roman trade ended in the 2nd century CE
and that Arikamedu was abandoned thereafter. The recent excavations indicate
that although the trade did decline, it did not come to an end. Some amount of
trade seems to have continued till the 7th century.
6. Coins of the Chola kings, medieval clay lamps, and remains of still later
periods indicate that Arikamedu was occupied with some breaks-till modern
times. East Asian pottery at the site suggests a re-orientation of trade
networks.
Other questions to which there are yet no definite answers include: What did
the Roman amphorae jars hold? Was it wine, sauce, or olive oil? Who were the
consumers of the merchandise-foreign traders, wealthy Indians, or both? Did
traders from the Roman Empire actually live at Arikamedu in large numbers? The
textual and archaeological evidence was initially understood as indicating the
existence of Roman settlements in South India. Recent studies have questioned
this. The amphorae may have contained wine for local elites rather than for
Roman traders living at Indian sites. And it is also clear that the Indo-Roman
ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA
Based
on its archaeological importance, Arikamedu was declared a centrally
protected monument by the Govt. of India in the year 1982.
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OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---
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