In a major finding for archaeologists in India unique ancient terracotta figurines in different stages of🐼 preservation, with bone and iron pieces, have been found at Mudu Konaje near Moodbidri in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka.
The figurines can ꦗbe dated bac𒊎k to 800-700 BCE, said T Murugeshi, Retired Associate Professor at Department of Ancient History and Archaeology at Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty college, Shirva in Udupi district, PTI report said.
It said of the eight figuri🍃nes found, there 🍎are those representing two bovines, one mother goddess, two peacocks, a horse, a hand of a mother goddess and an unknown object.
Murugeshi, who was involved in the explorations, said in a release here that the megalithic site at Mudu Konaje൲ was discovered and reported by historian and researcher Pundikai Ganapayya Bhat in the 1980s, it said.
The 💧site is located on the Moodbidri-Shirthady road, 🅰about 8 km from Moodbidri.
It is the biggest megalithic dolmen site which consisted of nine dolmens on the slopܫe of a 𒀰stone hill, it said.
But only two dolmens are intact and the rest of the burials are ruined, h💧e was quoted as having said.
“Megalithic culture is known by its different types of burials and use of iron in India. Dolmen is one among them. Under a dolmen, huge stone slabs known as orthost♈ats were 𓆉erected in clockwise order, which created a square room. This square chamber was closed by another huge stone slab as a cap stone,” the report said.
The terracotta figur🍒ines found at Mudu Konaje in a megalithic context are a rare find of India.
They were found inside the surface of dolmens, which were disturbed by treasure hunters, it mentio♑ned.
It added the🍷 bovines found in the dolmens help to determine the chronology of the🐭 dolmens.
Terracottas found in the megalithic burial provide a ജsolid ground for the study of the Bhoota cult or Daivaradhane of coastal Karnataka.
Cow bovine or cowꦉ goddess had its parallels in Malampuzha megalithic terracotta figurin🍰es of Kerala and Egypt, it said.
