Meluhha metalwork in archaeometallurgical context of Bagasra validates Indus script decipherment
-- Role of Meluhha in maritime exchanges on the Tin Road from Hanoi to Haifa
-- Presenting Bagasra (Gola Dhoro) Indus seal with hieroglyphic inscription rebus readings
-- Matching with reported finds of fortification, furnace/foundry, supercargo of beads, metalware in Bagasra.
Executive Summary
This should mean that it is no longer necessary for historians to keep repeating, in a sonorous refrain, that 'Indus script has not been deciphered so far.'
See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/08/bronze-age-kanmer-bagasra.html For details of copper implements, seals found at Shikarpur, Gola Dhoro (Bagasra), Desalpur, Surkotada, Kanmer.
See Khirsara shown on the map in Gujarat on the Tin Road from Hanoi to Haifa. Khirsara, Gola Dhoro (Bagasra), Shikarpur constituted the coastal-riverine hub involved in maritime trade by Meluhha seafaring merchants. It has been noted that some cylinder seals of Mesopotamia wre made from columella of Turbinella pyrum which is a signature tune source-material from Meluhha (Ancient Indian western coastline on the Indian Ocean).
A number of postings and studies have noted the role of Meluhha on the Tin Road which preceded the famed Silk Road from Ancient Far East to Ancient Near East. The Gola dhoro (Bagasra), Khirsara, Shikarpur coastal hub might have participated in such maritime exchanges between Far East and Near East during the Bronze Age, given the context of about 2,600 sites of the Sarasvati-Sindhu Civilization mostly on river banks and along the coastline of Indian Ocean in Gujarat.
"Late Uruk Sumerian engravers frequently employed the colummella of the Indian shank shell (turbinella pyrum) for their cylinder seals…If we have to believe to the cuneiform texts that insistently ascribe to Meluhha the lapis lazuli trade, Meluhhan traders would also have promoted the flowing, in a relatively short time, of incredible amounts of the blue stone at the courts of Ur…”(Vidale, Massimo, 2004, Growing in a foreign world: for a history of the 'Meluhha villages' in Mesopotamia in the 3rd millennium BCE, in A. Panaino & A. Piras (eds.), Melammu Symposia IV (Milano 2004), pp. 271-2). http://www.aakkl.helsinki.fi/melammu/pdf/vidale2004.pdf
See: http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/paleo_0153-9345_1984_num_10_1_4350 Gensheimer, TR, 1984, The Role of shell in Mesopotamia : evidence for trade exchange with Oman and the Indus Valley Paléorient ,1984,Volume10, Issue 10-1, pp. 65-73.
Six cylinder seals of various materials including marble, shell, agate, chlorite, and steatite. N. Syria and Mesopotamia, ca. late 4th to early 3rd millennium BCE. The large shell seal, second from the left, was carved from the columella of Turbinella pyrum, the Indian chank shell.
Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History| Catalog Number: | YPM ANT 295376 |
|---|
| http://discover.odai.yale.edu/ydc/Record/3373589 |
Aragonite (shell) cylinder seal with a contest scene. From Mesopotamia Early Dynastic Period, about 2400-2350 BCE Length: 2.900 cm Diameter: 1.900 cm Acquired in 1877 ME 89078 Room 56: Mesopotamia
Discovery sites of Indus writing hieroglyphs
Revisiting the Archeometallurgical report of the excavators, reported in Indian Archaeology, 1997-98 Review , the Meluhha rebus readings stand validated in archaeometallurgical context. Indus writing was hieroglyphic, related to turner-lapidary-metalwork.
Excavators: VH Sonawane, P. Ajithprasad, KK Bhan, S. Pratapachandran and Abhijit Majumdar.
"The excavatons in the northeastern part of the mound during the last two field-seasons (1995-97), have revealed a 5.5m thick cultural deposit belonging to the Urban/Mature Harappan period...It also revealed remains of a large, about 5.2m thick, fortification wall built of stone and mud-bricks...A fw stud-handled bowls and elongated handle in red ware and bowls of black-and-red ware are also reported from this assemblage. The red ware, in fact, is the most abundant pottery of this assemblage...Lapidary beads of semiprecious stones and faience, shell bangles and inlays, steatite seal and terracotta sealings, which are abundant in the preceding Urban phase are conspicuous by their almost complete abence in the post-Urban depsit. However, few copper implements including a large knife blade and a heavy chisel/rod are found from this deposit...Several evience showing the industrial production of faience objets and beads of semiprecious stones and shell objects are found in the Trench Eq2 at the southeastern corner of the fortification wall. Along the internal bastion at this corner was found a small fireplace demarcated by a single course of bricks and showing marks of intense burning. A good number of faience beads are found from this fireplace along with fine whitish ash and bits and pieces of chrcoal. Two large pots partially buried in the ground are found adjacent to this fireplace. Some kind of whitish, calcareious material is found sticking at the bottom of both the vessels whose upper half is broken of and missing. From the features described above it appears that this was a workshop used for the production of faience objects. By the side of this foundry are foud hree or four clay lined storage bins or silos of varying dimension. Two of them contained a large collection of huge chunks of a special variety of agate/chert and moss-agate as if it were hoarded in the silos. A finely polished lenticular bead of the above stone recovered from one of the silos indicates that this semiprecious stone was certainly meant for the production of beads and other lapidary items. Beads made of this particular stone are very rare even at the major metropolitan centres like Mohenjodaro, Harappa, Kalibangan, Dholavira and Lothal. The hoards of raw material found from Bagasra may, therefore, indicate some amount of monopoly enjoyed by the Harappan community at Bagasra in the production and distribution of above beads. In addition to this, one of the bins contained a few large intact as well as cut Turbinella pyrum shells. One of these shells shows circular marking by a saw for cutting off circles. This is in addition to a host of evidences unearthed from the site for the industrial production of shell bangles, ladles, beads and pendants...The excavation has also brought to light an inscribed Harappan steatite seal and a few terracotta sealings. The seal (pl. 16) is a small square steatite tablet bearing engraved inscription and the figure of a one horned bull and a standard in front of the beast on one side and a projected boss with a small hole passing through the opposite side. This is found in the upper levels of the Trench El 15 belonging to the phase II of the cultural sequence at the site. Yet anothr interesting object that has been found in the upper layers of the same trench is a hundi-type copper vessel with a sharp carinated shoulder. It contained a hoar of eight copper bangles and a small celt (pl. 17). This is in addition to a chisel-like rod, a rectangular knife and several small wires and rods of copper recoverd from differnt trenches at the site. A very well preserved narrow copper spatula unerthed from the bottom may indicate that copper was in use right from the very beginning of Chalcolithic occupation at the site. Among other antiquities reported from the excavation mention must be made of tubular beads of carnelian, lapis lazuli, amazonite, agate and jasper, wafer-thindisc beads and micro-beads of steatite, a small weight/gamesman of amazonite, terracotta toy-objects like the cart-frames and wheels, tops, tetotum discs and hopscotch discs..."
Source: Indian Archaeology, 1997-98 Review http://asi.nic.in/nmma_reviews/indian%20archaeology%201997-98%20a%20review.pdf 16. Excavation at Bagasra, District Rajkot (pp.22-31)
Bagasra. Fortification.(After Fig. 7)
Bagasra. Seal. (After Pl. 16)
Bagasra. Copper vessel with a hoard of bangles and celt. (After Pl. 17)
Hieroglyph: sãgaḍ, 'lathe' (Meluhha) Rebus: sãgaṛh , 'fortification' (Meluhha). Hieroglyph: one-horned young bull: खोंड (p. 216) [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. Rebus: कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi)
kot.iyum = a wooden circle put round the neck of an animal; kot. = neck (G.lex.) [cf. the orthography of rings on the neck of one-horned young bull]. ko_d.iya, ko_d.e = young bull; ko_d.elu = plump young bull; ko_d.e = a. male as in: ko_d.e du_d.a = bull calf; young, youthful (Te.lex.)
Glyph: ko_t.u = horns (Ta.) ko_r (obl. ko_t-, pl. ko_hk) horn of cattle or wild animals (Go.); ko_r (pl. ko_hk), ko_r.u (pl. ko_hku) horn (Go.); kogoo a horn (Go.); ko_ju (pl. ko_ska) horn, antler (Kui)(DEDR 2200). Homonyms: kohk (Go.), gopka_ = branches (Kui), kob = branch (Ko.) gorka, gohka spear (Go.) gorka (Go)(DEDR 2126).
kod. = place where artisans work (G.lex.) kod. = a cow-pen; a cattlepen; a byre (G.lex.) gor.a = a cow-shed; a cattleshed; gor.a orak = byre (Santali.lex.) got.ho [Skt. kos.t.ha the inner part] a warehouse; an earthen
Rebus: kõdā‘to turn in a lathe’(B.) कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi) koḍ ‘artisan’s workshop’ (Kuwi) koḍ = place where artisans work (G.) ācāri koṭṭya ‘smithy’ (Tu.) कोंडण [kōṇḍaṇa] f A fold or pen. (Marathi) B. kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’; Or.kū̆nda ‘lathe’, kũdibā, kū̃d ‘to turn’ (→ Drav. Kur. Kū̃d ’ lathe’) (CDIAL 3295) A. kundār, B. kũdār, ri, Or.Kundāru; H. kũderā m. ‘one who works a lathe, one who scrapes’, rī f., kũdernā ‘to scrape, plane, round on a lathe’; kundakara—m. ‘turner’ (Skt.)(CDIAL 3297). कोंदण [ kōndaṇa ] n (कोंदणें) Setting or infixing of gems.(Marathi) খোদকার [ khōdakāra ] n an engraver; a carver. খোদকারি n. engraving; carving; interference in other’s work. খোদাই [ khōdāi ] n engraving; carving. খোদাই করা v. to engrave; to carve. খোদানো v. & n. en graving; carving. খোদিত [ khōdita ] a engraved. (Bengali) खोदकाम [ khōdakāma ] n Sculpture; carved work or work for the carver. खोदगिरी [ khōdagirī ] f Sculpture, carving, engraving: also sculptured or carved work. खोदणावळ [ khōdaṇāvaḷa ] f (खोदणें) The price or cost of sculpture or carving. खोदणी [ khōdaṇī ] f (Verbal of खोदणें) Digging, engraving &c. 2 fig. An exacting of money by importunity. V लाव, मांड. 3 An instrument to scoop out and cut flowers and figures from paper. 4 A goldsmith’s die. खोदणें [ khōdaṇēṃ ] v c & i ( H) To dig. 2 To engrave. खोद खोदून विचारणें or –पुसणें To question minutely and searchingly, to probe. खोदाई [ khōdāī ] f (H.) Price or cost of digging or of sculpture or carving. खोदींव [ khōdīṃva ] p of खोदणें Dug. 2 Engraved, carved, sculptured. (Marathi)
Hieroglyph: dula 'two' Rebus: dul 'cast (metal)'
Hieroglyph: kolmo ‘three’; rebus: kolom'sprout'; kolom = cutting, graft; to graft, engraft, prune; kolma hoṛo = a variety of the paddy plant (Desi)(Santali.) kolmo 'rice plant' (Mu.) rebus: kolami ‘forge, smithy’ (Telugu) 
Hieroglyph: kuṭi‘water-carrier’ Rebus: kuṭhi‘smelter/furnace’+ Hieroglyph: kanka'rim of jar' Rebus: karNi 'supercargo'.From the archaeological finds reported, it is clear that the 'supercargo' from the smelter/furnace or foundry (as reported by the excavation report) related to beads and metalware and the work of .कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ denoted by the one-horned young bull which in Meluhha was called खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf.
The gloss semant. 'supercargo' indicates that Bagasra was in the hub of maritime exchanges of Meluhha seafaring merchants and artisans mediating Ancient Far East with Ancient Near East during the Bronze Age.
Conclusions
Indus writing was hieroglyphic, related to turner-lapidary-metalwork. The writing was read rebus in Meluhha language of Ancient Bharatam Janam. The rebus readings stand validated in archaeometallurgical context. QED
This should mean that it is no longer necessary for historians to keep repeating, in a sonorous refrain, that 'Indus script has not been deciphered so far.'
S. Kalyanaraman
Sarasvati Research Center
February 17, 2015