Bronze Age chariots and burial sites found in 'ground-breaking' discovery in India

The Archaeological Survey of India has found remains of Bronze Age artefacts including chariots and burial sites.

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/Dr S K Manjul

A team from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has found remains of Bronze Age artefacts during an excavation in Uttar Pradesh's Sanauli village.

The remnants found during the excavations include two chariots, coffins, swords, pots, and ornaments.

Source: PIB Culture twitter/ @PIBCulture

Dr S.K. Manjul, co-director of Excavation at the Institute of Archeology told SBS Hindi that eight burial sites were found.

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/Dr S K Manjul

"Three burial sites were very important as such burials haven’t been found before. Two burials were in coffins that had four legs and copper was embedded in the legs. One coffin was very beautiful where there were eight anthropomorphic figures, with headgears which had a horn and peepal leaf motif.  We found a skull and some bones inside this coffin along with copper pots, copper helmets, and saucers."

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism

Source: PIB Culture twitter/ @PIBCulture

"We found the remains of a chariot, in fact, two chariots. The chariots had wheels that were made of wood and the wood had melted. Fortunately, though, the whole design (of the chariot) was of copper triangles which looks like a radiated sun. We also found evidence of an axle, pole, and yoke of the wheels."

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism

Dr Manjul says that during the excavation they also found pottery, a variety of beads, copper pots and copper swords among other artefacts. "It seems that these two burial sites could have been a royal burial or a burial for warriors," he says. The team even found a dog burial and grains during the excavation.

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/Dr S K Manjul

It's the first time physical evidence of a complete chariot has been found in the sub-continent.

Dr Manjul says that before this a model bronze chariot was found but not a full chariot. The artefacts are pre-Iron Age, around 2000-1800 BC or even around 4000 years old.

Dr Manjul says it's a very important discovery, 

"We didn't know much about the Harrapan culture...This hints at a new direction as the Harrapans are thought to be traders but we can imagine these people to be a warrior class.

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism

"If we look at the technology used here, it is sophisticated technology to make weapons and tools, sophisticated technology for woodcraft and copper. That shows that in this period there was a sophisticated culture, not what is currently considered, which is a rural culture after the decline of Harrapa around 1800BC.

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/Dr S K Manjul

"So this discovery breaks all these myths and it is giving us new dimensions to make us think about our second organization after the decline of Harappa and how our culture would have been."

"If we consider contemporary cultures like Mesopotamia or Egypt, even there remains such as these can be seen. So this is certainly a breakthrough, a path-breaking discovery, which opens a new direction for research", says Dr Manjul. 

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/Dr S K Manjul

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism

Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)/ PIB Culture and Tourism