BHUBANESWAR: Excavations at Nara Huda mound, near Tirimal village in Khurda district has thrown up interesting insights into eastern India’s Chalcolithic culture including evolution of a well-defined agrarian community.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which has been excavating the mound since 2021, has found remains belonging to the Chalcolithic period during the third phase of the dig. Archaeologist PK Dikhit said the excavation uncovered circular mud structures (both with and without walls), rammed floors, mud walls and post holes.
“The major discoveries of the Chalcolithic period are the three to four varieties of circular huts, stone and copper objects which point to the fact that people of the ancient age began settling here and started agriculture,” said Dikhit. Interestingly, the activity areas of the site and courtyards of the huts were found covered with good quality red morrum.
Similarly, the cultural material evidence and remains found from the phase include stone and iron celts, copper and bone points, semi-precious stones and terracotta beads, glass bangle fragments, terracotta animal figurines, hopscotches, sling balls, toy cart wheels, stone polishers, hammer stones, saddle fragments, and clay tablets.
The potsherds range from red ware, grey ware, red-slipped ware, chocolate slipped ware, black and red ware to perforated and miniature handmade pots (crucibles).
In fact, in the last three years of excavation, archaeologists have come across antiquities that point to three cultural phases at the site - Chalcolithic (2000 BCE to 1000 BCE), Iron Age (1000 BCE to 400 BCE) and the Early Historic Period (400 BCE to 200 BCE).
“The site is contemporary to other excavated sites like Golabai Sasan, Baanga near Harirajpur and Suabarei around Mahanadi Delta, and is older than Sisupalgarh which emerged much later,” he added. Dikhit further said that from the utilitarian objects found, it can be derived that people were leading a good lifestyle which slowly degenerated as the site moved to Iron and Early History ages.
Previously, excavations had found many artefacts of the Neo-chalcolithic era from Nara Huda and Annlajodi village near Tirimal in Khurda district.