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Tsunami throws up India relics
BBC News ^ | Friday, 11 February, 2005, 13:31 GMT | BBC News

Posted on 02/11/2005 8:30:44 AM PST by CarrotAndStick

The deadly tsunami could have uncovered the remains of an ancient port city off the coast in southern India.

Archaeologists say they have discovered some stone remains from the coast close to India's famous beachfront Mahabalipuram temple in Tamil Nadu state following the 26 December tsunami.

They believe that the "structures" could be the remains of an ancient and once-flourishing port city in the area housing the famous 1200-year-old rock-hewn temple.

Three pieces of remains, which include a granite lion, were found buried in the sand after the coastline receded in the area after the tsunami struck.

Undersea remains

"They could be part of the small seaport city which existed here before water engulfed them. They could be part of a temple or a building. We are investigating," says T Sathiamurthy of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Archaeologists say that the stone remains date back to 7th Century AD and are nearly 6ft tall.

They have elaborate engravings of the kind that are found in the Mahabalipuram temple.

The temple, which is a World Heritage site, represents some of the earliest-known examples of Dravidian architecture dating back to 7th Century AD.

The monument also has gigantic open air reliefs hewn out from granite.

The bronze Buddha which floated up the coast at Kalapakkam

The tsunami waves have also helped the archaeologists in desilting one such relief which had been covered with sand for ages.

A half-completed rock relief of an elephant got "naturally desilted" by the ferocious waves and is now drawing large crowds at this popular tourist destination.

For the past three years, archaeologists working with divers from India and England have found the remnants of the ancient port.

Archaeologists say they had done underwater surveys 1 km into the sea from the temple and found some undersea remains.

Legend

The myths of Mahabalipuram were first set down in writing by British traveller J Goldingham, who visited the South Indian coastal town in 1798, at which time it was known to sailors as the Seven Pagodas.

The myths speak of six temples submerged beneath the waves with the seventh temple still standing on the seashore.

The myths also state that a large city which once stood on the site was so beautiful the gods became jealous and sent a flood that swallowed it up entirely in a single day.

The tsunami has also washed up a 9 inch-tall bronze Buddha on the coast off Kalapakkam in the state.

"It was lying with some other objects. It must have been carried out to the sea from Burma or Thailand," says T Sathiamurthy.

The Buddha has been handed over to the local authorities, and may sound find a place in an Indian museum.

"We will protect it if nobody claims it," says Mr Sathiamurthy.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: archaeology; atlantis; barfalertsotospeak; buddha; catastrophism; dravidian; dwarka; ggg; godsgravesglyphs; grahamhancock; history; india; kalapakkam; mahabalipuram; mamallapuram; pallava; ramsethu; relics; sevenpagodas; srilanka; sumatraquake; tamilnadu; tsunami; us
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To: redtiger

NO Hindu temples were burnt to the ground in the USA you s****. There was one incident of a Sikh being mistaken for Osama Bin Laden but that was roundly condemned by the govt and all people -- and that could be condoned for the work of an idiot who had no idea who sIkhs were (I think the perp was drunk at the time too which doesn't condone him, just goes to show you Sikhs were not intentionally targetted) and after this, no incident took place.


21 posted on 02/11/2005 6:17:39 PM PST by Cronos (Never forget 9/11)
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To: Cronos; blam; FairOpinion; Ernest_at_the_Beach; SunkenCiv; 24Karet; 3AngelaD; ...
related:
Trickle of hope
by Padma Tata and Nicola Jones
February 21 2001
Water has suddenly appeared in the middle of an arid part of north-west India, as a result of January's devastating earthquake in Gujarat. As many as 20,000 people may have died in the magnitude 7.7 tremor. The region is regularly convulsed by earthquakes. Over the years these earthquakes have diverted watercourses and dried up rivers, turning the lush grassland of thousands of years ago into a barren wasteland. Local geologists hope the latest earthquake may help to reverse the process. Eyewitness reports say two-metre-high fountains of water appeared near Bhachau, a town that was totally destroyed by the earthquake. Janardhan Negi of the Geophysical Research Institute in Hyderabad, said the channels could belong to either or both of two ancient rivers in north India. One is the semi-mythical Saraswati, which legend says dried up 4000 years ago. Satellite images have found underground channels in areas where the Saraswati is supposed to have flowed. The second is part of the river Indus, which was diverted after a violent earthquake in 1819. Negi says the 1819 earthquake created a 100-kilometre-long fissure that diverted the river. However, tests have shown that the water is saline.
Thanks, Cronos!
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest
-- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)

22 posted on 02/11/2005 11:20:52 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Ted "Kids, I Sunk the Honey" Kennedy is just a drunk who's never held a job (or had to).)
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To: spetznaz

Sorry! My mistake.


23 posted on 02/12/2005 7:13:53 AM PST by Piquaboy (22 year veteran of the Army, Air Force and Navy, Pray for all our military .)
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To: CarrotAndStick

IIRC, India not only helped itself, but joined in the aid missions for others as well.


24 posted on 02/12/2005 7:20:23 AM PST by Smokin' Joe (The floggings will continue until morale improves......)
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To: ARridgerunner

Ping.


25 posted on 02/12/2005 10:53:56 AM PST by Allan
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To: mdmathis6; redtiger; Cronos

mdmathis6......... I would like to tell you that even I am an Indian. And incase you havent yet noticed already, there are quit a few Indians here at FR. You free to assume anything about but for my part I will tell you that I am just a 24 year old working professional from India and I lobby for no political party or government.

Gujarat a state bordering Pakistan and has been plagued with religious violence of late. Its not just the Christians who were attacked there but even Hindus and Muslims. In fact Christians actually got away with much less of violence when compared to Muslims and Hindus. Lets not forget a whole train load of Hindus were burnt (supposedly by a handful of Muslims) and thereafter in religious riots a lot of Muslims and Hindus were killed. A lot of Hindus were also killed in Gujarat when Hindu temples were attacked by Islamic terrorists. In contrast Christians were subjected to much less I would say.

While I condemn attack on anybody regardless of his/her religion. A few random attacks on Christians is not worthy of the comment that "Christians are suffring persecution in Gujarat".

I suppose your "fair and objective" western media havent yet told you anything about the genocide of Hindus in Kashmir. A number close to 500 000 have been rendered as refugees in what is supposedly there own country. This is what I would call "religious persecution" a few Christians being attacked by madmen is not exactly "persecution".


26 posted on 02/12/2005 12:25:03 PM PST by Gengis Khan ("There is no glory in incomplete action." -- Gengis Khan)
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To: redtiger
What about the Hindu temples that were burned to the ground in the US after 9/11

That is bullc--p. You will lose your account if you continue that line of reason.

27 posted on 02/12/2005 3:00:27 PM PST by RightWhale (Please correct if cosmic balance requires.)
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To: SunkenCiv

This was on the radio news all this morning. I guess we never know when the major news media will take an interest in archaeology.


28 posted on 02/12/2005 3:01:53 PM PST by RightWhale (Please correct if cosmic balance requires.)
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To: RightWhale
Here's the graphic for your post.


29 posted on 02/12/2005 3:12:33 PM PST by ASA Vet (Glad I could help.)
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To: Gengis Khan

The persecution of Christians and attempts to suppress their religion are a matter of state policy and law in Gujarat. Notice however I am not naming the whole of India as guilty of this, but Gujarat is home to very nationalistic Hindu's who would like to make the whole of India an exclusive Hindu state. The recent elections that installed a Catholic woman head of state and a delicate balance of Communists and Rightists in the government is proof to me that the struggle that Ghandi suffered to create a truly tolerant democracy, tolerant of all religions is still very much alive.


30 posted on 02/12/2005 3:43:21 PM PST by mdmathis6
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To: Allan
Thanks.

Interesting.

31 posted on 02/12/2005 6:14:18 PM PST by ARridgerunner
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To: CarrotAndStick
As for Indonesia, which is a Muslim country, may those ungrateful b@stards rot on their islands.

Amen to that...
32 posted on 02/12/2005 6:21:26 PM PST by Cronos (Never forget 9/11)
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To: Gengis Khan
A few random attacks on Christians is not worthy of the comment that "Christians are suffring persecution in Gujarat".

True -- and I agree that the Indian population as a whole has condemned the acts, but with the Modi government in power, one could say that persecution has the political okay -- purely because that guy is using it to stay in power.
33 posted on 02/12/2005 6:22:58 PM PST by Cronos (Never forget 9/11)
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To: mdmathis6; TBP

Boy you sure do all the legendary India baiters at this site proud, dont you. TBP you got yourself an underling


34 posted on 02/12/2005 8:51:49 PM PST by akash
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To: Maneesh
India is a genuinely pro-U.S. nation and an essential bulwark against terrorism

India has a long record of anti-Americanism. It was an ally of the Soviet Union and votes against the US at the UN more often than any country except Cuba. In 1999, teh Indian Defense Minister met with representatives of Iraq, Red China, Cuba, Libya, Russia, and Serbia-Montenegro to discuss setting up a security alliance "to stop the U.S."

According to the January 2, 2002 edition of the Washington Times, India is supporting cross-border terrorism in Sindh. The Indian newspaper Hitavada reported that the Indian government paid the late governor of Punjab, Surendra Nath, $1.5 billion to foment and support terrorism in Kashmir and in Punjab. India's leading newsmagazine, India Today, reported that India created the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and put up their leaders at the finest hotel in Delhi.

India is 80% Hindu and the Hindu;s have no problem with Christianity

Except, of course, that Christians have been the focus of an internal terror campaign since Christmas Day 1998.

Missionary Joseph Cooper was beaten so severely that he had to spend a week in the hospital and then was expelled from the country. Missionary Graham Staines and his two young sons were burned to death in their jeep by militant Hindus chanting "Victory to Hannuman."

Hindus have murdered priests, raped nuns and forced them to drink their own urine, burned down churches, attacked and vandalized prayer halls and Christian schools, and carried out other such acts. A Christian religiosu festival with the theme "Jesus is the Answer" was broken up by police gunfire.

No, no animosity at all.

35 posted on 02/12/2005 10:26:12 PM PST by TBP
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To: akash

Hey...I didn't say all Indians....or all Hindu's.... sheesh mighty touch with the spin aren't you!


36 posted on 02/13/2005 5:38:59 AM PST by mdmathis6
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To: akash

Where have you been since May 2004....? Nothing posted from you since May 2004 but you post a response to me.

My point was that all religions seem to have their extremist wings, and if some Hindu's feel a little wounded that I pointed that out about some of their own, well that's just life isn't it?!


37 posted on 02/13/2005 5:45:07 AM PST by mdmathis6
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To: mdmathis6; Maneesh
Yes but what has it got to do with the topic above? I don't think that anybody here said that Hinduism was the best religion in the world. I don't know why you had to bring up Gujarat. All Maneesh said was that Indians are pro Americans and Hindus dont have very many problems with Christians (at least as compared with Muslims).

This thread has already become another India bashing thread as I can see and which are not so uncommon at FR.

It seems you have been going thru' previous post of many FR members of this thread. If you care to go thru' my previous posts you will know more about my views on Gujarat.
38 posted on 02/13/2005 6:57:39 AM PST by Gengis Khan ("There is no glory in incomplete action." -- Gengis Khan)
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To: Gengis Khan

I brought up Gujarat in response to Maneesh's post number 8. A great many Hindu's do have problems with Christians in India, but the issue seems most concentrated in Gujarat state. By the way it is very telling to me that you interpret my specific comments on a particular problem state in India as Indian bashing,or as an attack on all INDIA.

You'll find many freepers back India on the issues of Kashmir and we completely sympathize with the sufferings of Hindu families and Seiks as well who have been butchered by Muslim extremists there!

I comprhend India's need to pursue its own course independently of US interests by negotiating occaisionally with Russia and Europe regarding its security needs at the same time pursuing a good working relationship with the US. She is struggling to acheive a stable balance of power in Asia. India has nuclear armed hostile neighbors to its east(China) and west(Pakistan) and cannot entirely trust China not to invade should she be involved in a fight with Pakistan at the same time. She also knows that the US cannot be everywhere at once and that she'll need to provide much of the bulk of her own self defence.

Now do I still sound like a total India basher? My only regret is that India didn't get Kashmir before her neighbor became nuclear armed!


39 posted on 02/14/2005 5:15:48 AM PST by mdmathis6
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To: mdmathis6

Agreed!!The US can't be everywhere,everytime.But it can atleast think of stopping armssales & talk of more sales(in particular F-16s) to Pakistan.It maybe too late before an F-16 equipped with a N-bomb & a Jihadi pilot crashes on Diego Garcia.


40 posted on 02/14/2005 7:32:08 AM PST by sukhoi-30mki
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