Archaeology & Prehistory

Keeladi: Sangam-era urbanism

around 6th c. BCE (per AMS dates)Sangam-age Tamil societyKeeladi (Tamil Nadu, Vaigai river)Tamil Nadu

600 BCE

A brick-built urban settlement with inscribed Tamil-Brahmi potsherds, industry and games - evidence of early literacy and city life in the Tamil region.

Dated: 600–501 BCE
As scholars put it: around 6th c. BCE (per AMS dates)
Originator: Sangam-age Tamil society
Source text: Keeladi (Tamil Nadu, Vaigai river)
Region: Tamil Nadu
Discipline: Archaeology & Prehistory
Evidence: Documented
Confidence: Medium
Verification: Verified-web

Meanwhile in the West

Contemporary with the Ganga-valley 'second urbanisation'.

Fair to say

The precise dating and the official excavation report are the subject of an ongoing academic and political dispute.

Path to modern innovation

Reshapes the cultural history of the Sangam age.

Transmission

Suggests urbanism and literacy in the deep south earlier than once thought.

References

1TN State Dept. of Archaeology
2ASI (Ramakrishna report)