CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department will submit the underwater sonar survey report on the ancient Korkai port and the detailed underwater exploration report on Poompuhar to the state government by February next year.
Once the Korkai report is submitted and the required approvals are obtained, the department is likely to begin diving exploration at Korkai to search for archaeological evidence of the ancient port.
Officials said a detailed side-scan sonar survey has already been completed in the Korkai-Azhagankulam region, and the department is now collating and interpreting data collected during the underwater reconnaissance survey.
Speaking to TNIE, Joint Director of the State Archaeology Department V P Yathees Kumar said the third phase of underwater exploration at Poompuhar is currently under way. After the work is completed, the department expects to submit both the Poompuhar exploration report and the Korkai sonar survey report to the government by February next year.
The geographical identification survey at Korkai was carried out about two years ago in collaboration with the Indian Maritime University. The reconnaissance used advanced equipment, including multi-beam echo sounding, side-scan sonar and a sub-bottom profiler, to identify potential underwater archaeological features.
Exploration aimed at improving documentation
Officials said the initial survey indicated greater potential for immediate underwater exploration at Poompuhar, leading the department to prioritise work there while the Korkai survey data was being analysed.
Asked whether the sonar survey had revealed signs of the ancient Korkai port, Kumar said the findings could not be confirmed based on sonar images alone. He said diving would be necessary to verify anomalies, including possible shipwrecks and other archaeological remains beneath the seabed.
The ongoing underwater exploration at Poompuhar, in Mayiladuthurai district, is also aimed at improving documentation. Earlier explorations had yielded ceramics and shipwrecks, but officials said very few photographs were available. The current phase is expected to provide better visual documentation, with around 10% of the overall project completed so far. Korkai holds a special place in Tamil history as one of the most important Sangam-era ports on India’s southeastern coast. Historians say it was a thriving Pandya harbour that maintained extensive maritime trade with the Roman Empire and other overseas regions and was especially renowned for its pearl fishery.
Past excavations have highlighted the site’s archaeological importance. During the 1968-69 excavations, the State Archaeology Department unearthed artefacts dating back centuries, along with remains of conch-shell cutting workshops and centres where pearl oysters were processed.
Terracotta lamps and sharp bone tools believed to have been used for weaving and hunting were also discovered.
Officials said these earlier discoveries make the proposed underwater exploration at Korkai particularly significant, as it could reveal submerged evidence that helps reconstruct the ancient port’s maritime past and trading network.