Archaeologist and Tamil professor S. Ravi and students of archaeology have found 5,000-year-old human habitation sites of the banks of River Kousika near Kovilmedu, Coimbatore.
A release from Mr. Ravi says that the team has also found pieces of pottery, bones, polishing stones and materials used to smelt iron from the river bed.
The team conducted the study in three phases in September-October this year after it got to learn about the river while reading a news on the Avinashi-Athikadavu scheme. Based on the information, the team gathered preliminary details from farmer-leaders interested in implementing the water supply scheme and started on a field work that led them to Narasimhanaickenpalayam.
On route it learnt that the river was named after sage Viswamithra, also known as Kousika, and found that there are references to it in Kousthalapuranam.
The river starts from Kurudimalai which is a transformation of Guru-rishi-malai. Guru-rishi refers to Viswamithra, Professor Ravi says.
In Arunagirinathar’s Thiruppugazh there are references to the river seeing copious flow of water.
There are small, old temples associated with tribes, stone structures that Stone Age people prayed and ‘sumai-thangi’ stones where workers kept their goods when in transit.
In the release, Prof. Ravi says that there are evidences to show that people who grazed cows frequented pastures along the river bank. Explaining the etymological meaning of Agrahara Samakulam and Sarcar Samakulam, he says that the places once had piles of ash obtained by burning cow dung that shepherds lit fire to before moving to the next pasture.
Near the Kalakaleswarar Temple, the team found broken pieces of potteries that suggested that there existed a civilisation.
There were designs on the pieces of potteries and there were painted earthenware too, Prof. Ravi says.
These suggest to a very high level of sophistication, he adds.
The team also found graffiti pot herds, polished stones used for smoothening yarn and iron objects.
These suggest that the people who lived then had cultivated cotton, practised weaving and also smelt iron, he adds.
