The Story of Indian Scripts - Part 2 | The Potshard Inscriptions of Keeladi - Storytrails
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The Story of Indian Scripts – Part 2 | The Potshard Inscriptions of Keeladi

What can a few fragments of pottery tell us about how people wrote 5000 years ago? Quite a lot, as it turns out. The Keeladi excavations of 2015 pointed to the existence of a literate ancient Tamil civilisation that could go as far back as 800 BCE. Among the most significant finds was a series of potshards with different inscriptions, which offered many fascinating insights about the evolution of scripts in India.

Is Tamil Brahmi older than the Brahmi script? Could the Indus Valley script, which was in use in north-western India over 4500 years ago, be related to Tamil Brahmi, that was used in South India? Which are the oldest dated inscriptions in India? What languages and scripts are those inscriptions in?

In 2015, archaeologists excavated a host of ancient artefacts from a place called Keeladi near Madurai. Among other things, they found many potshards with different sets of inscriptions. While some of the inscriptions were in Tamil Brahmi, the oldest potshards had graffiti marks that looked a lot like the script of the Indus Valley Civilisation. That script remains undeciphered to this day. What does this discovery at Keeladi tell us about the evolution of scripts in India? 

In this video (the second in a two-part story), we continue tracing the fascinating journey of Indian scripts and languages. In the first part that you can view here: https://youtu.be/Ax5Hl-R_Xl0, we explored the evolution of scripts over the last 2000 years. In this video, we go even further back to explore how writing systems developed in India over the last 5000 years! 

  1. Stamp Seal and modern impression – This file was donated to Wikimedia Commons as part of a project by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. See the Image and Data Resources Open Access Policy, CC0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84613480
  2. Indus Valley Civilization, Mature Phase (2600-1900 BCE) – By Avantiputra7 – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33202416
  3. Delhi-Topra pillar Brahmi and Nagari – By Dhamijalok – This file has been extracted from another file, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73114791
  4. Indus valley civilization “Gilgamesh” seal (2500-1500 BC) – By Ismoon – This file has been extracted from another file, CC0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77583626
  5. Brahmi script on Ashoka Pillar, Sarnath – By ampersandyslexia – originally posted to Flickr as India, Day 15, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7715585
  6. Excavated ruins of Mohenjo-daro – By Nikesh chawla – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51419860
  7. Shiva Pashupati – By unknown Indus Valley Civilization sealmaker from Mohenjo-daro archaeological, Public Domain https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9325528
  8. Seal with Unicorn and Inscription – By https://clevelandart.org/art/1973.161, CC0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=76022340
  9. Brahmi pillar inscription in Sarnath – By free – wikimedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7024773
  10. Ashokan Rock Edicts (Dhauli, Bhubaneshwar) – By Ankur Panchbudhe, CC BY- SA 2.0 https://www.flickr.com/photos/ankurp/38273419106/
  11. Asokan Brahmi pillar edict – By No machine-readable author provided. Vadakkan assumed (based on copyright claims). – No machine-readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC SA 1.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=394166
  12. Lumbini – Pillar Edict in Brahmi Script, Lumbini – By Photo Dharma from Penang, Malaysia – 008 Pillar Edict in Brahmi Script, Lumbini, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37363661
  13. 2nd century BCE Tamil Brahmi inscription Arittapatti Madurai India – By Ms Sarah Welch – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73484131
  14. Mangulam Jain Inscriptions – By Sodabottle – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20865429
  15. Mangulam Tamil Inscriptions 01 – By எஸ். பி. கிருஷ்ணமூர்த்தி – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=46194395
  16. Pulimo-Kombai – By Kasivis13 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=91082149
  17. Ashokan pillar – By Varun Shiv Kapur from Berkeley, United States – Ashokan pillar, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7360517
  18. Lumbini – Pillar Edict in Brahmi Script, Lumbini – By Photo Dharma from Penang, Malaysia – 008 Pillar Edict in Brahmi Script, Lumbini, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37363661
  19. Delhi-Topra pillar edicts – By Wikimapia Paul65 – This file has been extracted from another file, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70719289
  20. Ashoka Lauriya Areraj inscription – By Sachin kumar tiwary – This file has been extracted from another file, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70710778
  21. Dholavira East Gate – By Nizil Shah – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66616643
  22. Dholavira Archaeological Site Excavation – By sarangib – https://www.needpix.com/photo/1699689/dholavira-archaeological-site-excavation-water-reservoir-khadirbet-kutch-kotada-timba-ruins-ancient
END OF STORY

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