A megalithic burial site has been unearthed at Gurrala Madugu, a remote habitation near Konakanamitla in Prakasam District.
The site enriches the historicity of the district, throwing light on the cultural practices of the people during Iron Age (1,000 BC to 300 BC), says Dr. Raghu Yadav working as an academic consultant in the Department of History and Archaeology, Yogi Vemana University, Kadapa.
Diverse modes of rituals
Megalithic people, who perhaps believed in life after death, used carved stones in the construction of a tomb-like structure to commemorate the ancestors, Dr. Yadav says in a conversation with The Hindu.
The artefacts found are a dolmen and on the upper surface of the capstone, cupules/cup marks, explains Dr.Yadav, who has explored the site.
Though very little is known about birth ceremonies performed in the Iron Age, people then practised diverse modes of rituals, including death ceremonies.
Similar cup marks are found elsewhere in the State such as Ubbaramadugu (Chittoor District) and Mulakanur (Anantapur District), he says, adding that probably people had a strong belief in astronomy.
The archaeologist found some other disturbed stone alignments just adjacent to the site.
A dilapidated Hanuman temple and one Telugu inscription dealing with land grants were also found.
