Archaeologists strike gold in Thoothukudi village

THOOTHUKUDI:  In a first, State Department of Archaeology unearthed a gold ornament during an excavation at Barakiramapandiyapuram village, which comes under the Sivagalai archaeological site in Thoothukudi.

For the past three years, excavations have been underway at the Sivagalai archaeological site. The Sivagalai cluster consists of Sivagalai parambu, Srimoolakarai, Barakiramapandiyapuramm and Pottalkottai Thiradu.

While Sivagalai parambu and Srimoolakaraiare are burial sites, Barakiramapandiyapuram and Pottalkottai Thiradu are habitation areas.  Over 200 different types of articles such as glass beads, mud pots, hopscotch, bangle pieces, smoking pipes, gamesman, spindle whorl, earlobe and bone point have been found at the habitation sites. 

The small piece of gold ornament weighs 0.30 gms. “It is yet to be ascertained to which ornament it belongs to,” said an official. Meanwhile, the archaeological and anthropological experts have begun experimenting and researching on urns which were unearthed at the Sivagalai during 2022.