Sinauli
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A rich history of ancient civilisation
2018: Kushan period coins
Sandeep Rai, Kushan period coins discovered in Baghpat, November 18, 2018: The Times of India
From: Sandeep Rai, Kushan period coins discovered in Baghpat, November 18, 2018: The Times of India
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From: Kushan period coins discovered in Baghpat, November 18, 2018: The Times of India
Months after Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) discovered the remains of a chariot from Baghpat village, dating back to the ‘Copper-bronze Age” (2000-1800 BC) at Sinauli village, a local found a small pot full of Kushan era coins on a mound at Khaprana village in Barnawa area of Baghpat.
Amit Rai Jain, a resident of Baraut and member of Culture & History Association (CHA), an organization comprising historians and amateur archaeologists, found a small pot containing the copper coins.
Baghpat has a rich history of ancient civilization dating back to the Harappan era. There are a couple of mounds on the banks of river Hindon near Barnawa.
“Discovery of ancient pottery and clay items is not new to this place but on Friday, while digging a few specific spots eroded by the river during the monsoon, I found a pot with 33 copper coins. They are identical to those of Kushan period, particularly the coins believed to be in circulation during King Vasudeva’s reign from 200-220 AD, which means these coins are 1,800 years old,” said Jain. He plans to send his observation and collection to ASI and demand elaborate excavation of the site.
“This area is rich in mounds that contain ample link to the past. We have already seen jaw dropping findings in June at Sinauli village where the discovery of coffins and chariots perplexed even seasoned historians. I think this region in dire need of government’s special attention,” Jain said.
In May, ASI had undertaken excavation work of Barnawa and had found considerable number of relics. ASI’s Sanjay Manjul, head of excavation project, had then said, “Among other things, we found remains of later cultures like painted greyware pottery of the Kushan period.”
In June, ASI had stumbled upon the remains of chariot dating back to Copper-Bronze Age (2000-1800 BC) at Sinauli village in Baghpat. Decorated with copper motifs, the finding had opened up further research opportunities into ancient world. The excavation also unearthed eight burial sites and several artifacts.
Chariots
The Discovery of Chariots at Sinauli
Location and Discovery
Sinauli is an archaeological site located in the Baghpat district of western Uttar Pradesh, India, in the Ganga-Yamuna Doab region, about 70 km from New Delhi. The site first gained attention in the early 2000s when agricultural activities unearthed ancient remains, including skeletons and pottery. Systematic excavations were initiated by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in 2005, with significant renewed excavations taking place in 2018 under Dr. Sanjay Kumar Manjul, revealing more extraordinary finds.cambridge+1
Chronology and Dating
Radiocarbon dating and material culture analysis date the site to roughly 2000–1500 BCE, corresponding to the Ochre Colored Pottery (OCP) culture and Copper Hoard Culture, contemporaneous with the late Harappan civilization. The timeline places Sinauli as a key transitional site during the early 2nd millennium BCE.wikipedia+1
Major Findings
Human Burials
Excavations at Sinauli uncovered around 116 burials, including wooden coffins that were often richly decorated with copper sheeting and floral motifs. Notably, some coffin lids display high-relief anthropomorphic carvings, such as figures with bull horn headgear and a pipal leaf. The burials typically had the bodies oriented with the head facing north or northwest. The graves were surrounded by pottery vessels and often contained copper weapons and artifacts placed inside or beneath the coffins.infinityfoundationindia+1
Chariots
Among the most remarkable discoveries at Sinauli are three full-sized carts identified by the director as chariots. These chariots exhibit: Solid wooden disc wheels covered with decorative copper sheets featuring triangular copper inlays arranged in concentric circles. Wooden frames also sheathed in copper.
A semi-circular wooden seat framed with copper pipes and an attachment pipe for an umbrella. The wheels were mounted on a fixed axle linked to a wooden yoke and a long pole, resembling chariot construction technology of the Bronze Age. The chariots likely were pulled by oxen rather than horses, as there were no horse remains found at the site.academia+4
Weapons and Armaments
The site yielded a sophisticated array of copper weaponry which includes swords with wooden hilts, spearheads, copper shields adorned with geometric patterns, copper helmets, and antenna swords relevant to the Copper Hoard culture. Several weapons were found adjacent to the chariots or placed with burials. These findings signify a martial culture with advanced metallurgical skills.cambridge+2
Other Artifacts
Other notable items include Ochre Colored Pottery vessels, copper pots, faience goods, beads, copper mirrors, combs, and copper nails. Evidence of food offerings in the form of pots and animal sacrifices within burial pits suggest elaborate ritual practices. Some burials had wooden superstructures or were covered by mud tumuli, indicating complex mortuary customs.infinityfoundationindia+1
Interpretation and Significance
Cultural Identity and Historical Context
Sinauli is considered a crucial archaeological site that reflects a complex society in the early 2nd millennium BCE Gangetic plains. The community had distinct burial and ritual practices with clear indications of a warrior elite. Some scholars relate the deposits to the Ochre Colored Pottery or Copper Hoard cultures, which were prevalent post-Harappan urban decline. The finds may represent either local cultural evolution or an early Indo-Iranian presence with Proto-Indo-Aryan connections.historika+2
Vedic and Harappan Connections
The burials at Sinauli show parallels with some Vedic rites, such as the orientation of bodies and placement of grave goods, though the solid wheel chariots and absence of horse remains distinguish it from the later spoked wheel, horse-drawn chariots described in Vedic texts. This emphasizes a transitional or precursor stage in Indian history bridging the late Harappan and early Vedic periods.jagranjosh+2
Role of Women and Social Structure
A surprising aspect of the site is the presence of chariots and weapons with female skeletons, suggesting that women may have held elite or warrior status in Sinauli society, challenging traditional assumptions about gender roles at the time.timesofindia.indiatimes
Technological and Artistic Achievements
The craftsmanship of copper sheeting on coffins, weaponry, and chariot decorations demonstrate high metallurgical skill and artistic sophistication. These findings revise earlier assumptions about the technological stagnation after the decline of Harappan cities and reveal sustained development in the Chalcolithic period in northern India.cambridge+1
Ongoing Scholarly Debates
While the excavation director describes the vehicles as war chariots, some scholars debate this, proposing that the solid disc wheels and oxen-pulled carts served primarily ceremonial or funerary functions rather than battlefield use. The exact cultural identity of the Sinauli people and their relationship to Indo-Aryan migrations remains contested but the site nonetheless represents a formative chapter in India's prehistoric social and technological evolution.wikipedia+1
Impact on Indian Archaeology
The Sinauli site has transformed understanding of the second millennium BCE in India by providing concrete evidence of burial customs, warfare technology, and cultural continuity. It challenges the notion of a cultural vacuum post-Harappan civilization and highlights indigenous achievements contributing to the later Vedic age. Excavations at Sinauli continue to inspire scholarly reassessment of ancient Indian history.historika+1
The discovery of chariots and associated royal burials at Sinauli reveals an advanced Bronze Age culture in northern India circa 2000–1500 BCE with unique burial rites, sophisticated copper metallurgy, and a martial social hierarchy, including elite women warriors. These excavations bridge important cultural transitions linking the late Harappan period and early Vedic traditions while raising important debates about early chariot technology and Aryan migration theories. Sinauli remains a vital archaeological landmark for reconstructing India's protohistory and Bronze Age civilization. This comprehensive overview synthesizes current knowledge from archaeological reports, radiocarbon dating, and artifact analyses.pdfs.semanticscholar+6
