Keezhadi

2022-04-20T00:14:51Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Keezhadi
| other_name =
| settlement_type = Village
| image_skyline = Keezhady (1).jpg
| image_alt = Keezhadi archeological site
| image_caption = Archaeological site
| nickname =
| pushpin_map = India#Tamil Nadu
| pushpin_label_position = right
| pushpin_map_alt =
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Tamil Nadu, India
| coordinates = {{coord|9.8630727|N|78.1820931|E|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = [[India]]
| subdivision_type1 = [[States and territories of India|State]]
| subdivision_name1 = [[Tamil Nadu]]
| subdivision_type2 = [[List of districts of India|District]]
| subdivision_name2 = Sivagangai
| subdivision_type3 = [[Region]]
| subdivision_name3 = [[Madurai]]
| established_title = 
| established_date =
| founder =
| named_for =
| government_type =
| governing_body = [[Panchayat]]
| leader_title = President
| leader_name = V Venkatasubramanian
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes =
| area_total_km2 =
| area_rank =
| elevation_m = 123
| population_total = 5140
| population_as_of = 2011
| timezone1 = [[Indian Standard Time|IST]]
| utc_offset1 = +5:30
| postal_code_type = [[Postal Index Number|PIN]]
| postal_code = 630611
| area_code_type = Telephone code
| area_code = 04574
| regristratiom_plate =
| blank2_name_sec1 = [[Assembly constituency]]
| blank2_info_sec1 = [[Manamadurai]]
| registration_plate =
| blank3_name_sec1 = [[Lok Sabha]] constituency
| blank3_info_sec1 = [[Sivagangai]]
| footnotes =
| official_name =
| native_name = கீழடி
| native_name_lang = ta
}}
'''Keezhadi''' ({{lang-ta|கீழடி|kīḻaṭi}}) is a village near the village of [[Silaiman]], on the border between [[Madurai district|Madurai]] and [[Sivagangai district|Sivagangai]] districts, in [[Tamil Nadu]], India. The [[Keeladi excavation site|Keezhadi excavation site]] is located in this area: excavations carried out by the [[Archaeological Survey of India]] (ASI) and the [[Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department]] (TNAD) have revealed a [[Sangam era]] settlement dated to the 6th century BCE by [[radiocarbon dating]].<ref>{{Cite news |author=Dennis S. Jesudasan |date=20 September 2019 |title=Keezhadi excavations: Sangam era older than previously thought, finds study |newspaper=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/keeladi-findings-traceable-to-6th-century-bce-report/article29461583.ece}}</ref> Claims that the results show that there was writing at that time have been challenged. It is not clear whether the potsherds containing inscriptions were found in the same [[Stratigraphy (archaeology)|archaeological layer]] as the 6th century samples, and University of Calcutta archaeologist Bishnupriya Basak said that "This unfortunately is not clear from the report and is very crucial", adding that the issues of "layer, period and absolute dates" needed clarity. Dravidian University archaeologist E. Harsha Vardhan said that a single report was not enough to "state scientifically that the [[Tamil-Brahmi]] script belongs to the sixth century BC".<ref name="Charuch">{{cite web |last1=Charuch |first1=Sukanya |title=Experts Question Dates of Script in Tamil Nadu's Keeladi Excavation Report |url=https://science.thewire.in/society/history/keeladi-settlement-tamil-nadu-department-of-archaeology-tamil-brahmi-script-indus-valley-civilisation/ |website=The Wire Science |publisher=[[The Wire (India)]] |access-date=12 April 2020 |date=17 October 2019}}</ref>

== Excavations ==
{{Main|Keezhadi excavation site}}
An archaeological survey team under Archaeologist [[K. Amarnath Ramakrishna|Amarnath Ramakrishna
]]<ref>{{cite web |author=The Hindu Net Desk |date=16 May 2017|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/keezhadi-excavation-the-story-till-now/article18464920.ece|title=Keezhadi excavation leads to ancient civilisation on the banks of Vaigai|newspaper=The Hindu }}</ref> was first conducted in 2013 in the vicinity of the [[Vaigai River|Vaigai]] river from [[Theni district]] to [[Ramanathapuram district]] where the river meets the sea.<ref>{{Cite news |author=Sruthisagar Yamunan |date=11 May 2017 |title=Sangam-era site at Keezhadi is as complex as Indus Valley, proof of a glorious Tamil civilisation |newspaper=Scroll.in |url=https://scroll.in/article/836427/sangam-era-site-at-keezhadi-is-as-complex-as-indus-valley-proof-of-a-glorious-tamil-civilisation}}</ref> During the study, 293 sites, including Keezhadi, were identified to have archaeological residues.<ref>{{cite web |author=The Hindu Net Desk |date=13 June 2017 |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/keezhadi-excavation-what-was-found-and-what-it-means/article18991279.ece|title=Keezhadi excavation: what was found and what they mean |newspaper=The Hindu }}</ref> The first three phases of excavation at Keezhadi were conducted by the [[Archaeological Survey of India]], and they dropped it from doing further research. A public interest litigation was filed and following that the court ordered the regional depart to carry forward, following which the fourth and fifth phases were conducted by the [[Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department]].

== Carbon nanomaterials in Keeladi pottery ==
A team of researchers identified pottery shards at Keeladi that contain carbon nanomaterials, including single-walled and multi-walled carbon nanotubes.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Kokarneswaran |first1= Manivannan |last2= Selvaraj |first2= Prakash |last3= Ashokan |first3= Thennarasan |last4= Perumal |first4= Suresh |last5= Sellappan |first5= Pathikumar |last6= Durai Murugan |first6= Kandhasamy |last7= Ramalingam |first7= Sivanantham |last8= Mohan |first8= Nagaboopathy |last9= Chandrasekaran |first9= Vijayanand |date= 13 November 2020 |title= Discovery of carbon nanotubes in sixth century BC potteries from Keeladi, India |journal= Scientific Reports |volume= 10 |issue= 1 |pages= 19786 1–6 |doi= 10.1038/s41598-020-76720-z|pmid= 33188244 |pmc= 7666134 |bibcode= 2020NatSR..1019786K |doi-access= free }}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Sivaganga]]
* [[Madurai]]

== Notes and references ==
{{commonscat|Keezhadi}}
{{Reflist}}6. The New Indian Express (2 Sept 2020) https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2020/sep/02/findings-hint-keezhadi-was-continuously-inhabited-since-sixth-century-bce-2191353.html<nowiki/>{{Madurai district}}

[[Category:Villages in Madurai district]]
[[Category:Tamil history]]
[[Category:Ancient Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Prehistoric India]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Tamilakam]]

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