Rare Menhir Discovered in India

Story from the Hindu.com:

Megalith menhir with rock engravings found
P. Samuel Jonathan
May 9, 2010

GUNTUR: A megalith menhir with rock engravings, called petroglyphs, carved on it has been discovered on an open field on the left bank of Nagaleuru, a tributary of the Krishna at Karampudi, 100 km from Guntur.

The menhir is a significant remnant of the pre-historic megalithic civilisation, when humans used signs to communicate, and dates back to 1000 B.C-300 B.C. Menhirs throw light on socio-ritualistic and ancestral beliefs. Archaeological evidence indicates they were also used as places of worship. (Image: T. Vijaya Kumar)


A freelance archaeologist, K. Venkateshwara Rao, based at Tenali, discovered the menhir on a vast stretch of open field, which is believed to be a necropolis (cemetery), adjacent to the Karampudi-Dachepalli Road.

The necropolis was first discovered during 1870-71 by J.S. Boswell, Collector, Krishna, himself a keen archaeologist.

The lone and imposing Menhir, a standing stone erected in memory of the dead ones, measures 19.2 inches in height, 4.2 inches in width and is 7 inches thick.

‘Rare discovery'

Mr. Rao, who traced the Menhir after years of research, calls it a “rare and unusual discovery and probably the first-of-its kind in the country.”

While menhirs have been found in parts of Khammam, Warangal, Madhumala in Mahaboobnagar and Medak districts in Andhra Pradesh and at Boorj Home in Jammu and Kashmir, it is the first time a menhir with petroglyphs was found.

The rock engravings are at a height of 8-9 feet from the ground. The upper row has four concentric circles with four small lines and a small pointed base. Archaeological reports point that the figures resemble the Muslim religious symbols ‘peer.' Below these circular figures, shapes of a crawling animal with an elongated head, probably that of a mongoose, a humped bull with V-shaped antlers and a peacock are found. In the last row, two men are seen carrying a pole on their shoulders and moving east (sun).

A close observation of the menhir shows that it is erected facing north-east, pointing to the fact that it could have been erected during ‘uttarayana punya kalam' considered an auspicious period.

While the circular figures in the shape of a human head on the upper row depict the ancestral and ritualistic worship of the pre-historic human race, the row below it has figures of domestic animals and show that pre-historic man co-existed with animals and also domesticated them. The engravings of a tiger show that man hunted for livelihood.

“The rare discovery is of great historical importance and could lead to further study on pre-historic civilisations in the country,'' Mr. Rao said.

Carved Megalith Discovered at Lismullin, Ireland

Ancient Tomb Art Found in Path of Irish Highway

James Owen for National Geographic News
January 14, 2008

Tomb engravings dating back 6,000 years are among the latest discoveries unearthed on the route of a controversial highway under construction in Ireland.

The historic site, at Lismullin in County Meath, was handed over to road builders last month, just weeks after the Stone Age art was found inside a medieval bunker.

The engravings have been removed to allow construction of the highway to proceed.

The new find follows the discovery last spring of a prehistoric open-air temple nearby, causing construction along the 37-mile-long (60-kilometer-long) M3 highway northwest of Dublin to be temporarily suspended (see map).

The timber ceremonial enclosure was found just 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) from the Hill of Tara, once the seat of power of ancient Celtic kings.

The latest excavations at Lismullin revealed part of a large stone monument, or megalith, decorated with engravings dating to the Late Stone Age, according to archaeologists from Ireland's National Roads Authority (NRA).

Discovered some 165 feet (50 meters) from the temple's enclosure, the stone features a series of zigzags, concentric circles, and arcs.

"It's classic megalithic art," said Mary Deevy, NRA's chief archaeologist.

The engravings are similar to those that decorate other burial chambers in the region known as passage tombs, Deevy noted. "We've only got half a boulder, but we think originally it was probably a curbstone from a passage tomb," she said.

The stone would have formed a wall that kept the burial mound together, with the artwork displayed on the outer surface, Deevy said.

What the motifs symbolized remains a mystery, the archaeologist added.

The stone was discovered within an early medieval souterrain, an underground structure that may have been used by local inhabitants to defend themselves against Viking raiders, the excavation team reported.

Dating to around the 10th century A.D., the souterrain was probably constructed using the broken megalith as building material.
"The souterrain builders robbed or quarried the stone from a Neolithic [Late Stone Age] monument," Deevy said.

"Souterrains are common in Ireland, and it's not unusual to have stones from earlier monuments reused on them," she added.

The rock art will eventually go on public display, according to Deevy, who describes the Lismullin site as "100 percent excavated."

The site was handed over to road builders on December 18, with construction work expected to start soon.

Campaigners who want the highway re-routed away from the Hill of Tara area have attacked the decision. "Significant damage has already been done," said Vincent Salafia of Dublin-based protest group TaraWatch.

"But until the road is built on top of the site, I suppose there is still hope."

One of the "Top Discoveries"
Irish citizens opposed to the road project are currently fielding legal advice with a view to obtaining a court injunction to halt construction, the campaigner said.The European Commission has reportedly criticized the Irish government for failing to properly reassess the impact of the road project after the ruins of the open-air temple were uncovered last year.

Under European law, the discovery should have triggered a so-called environmental impact assessment, Salafia said.

While the Lismullin site was declared a national monument, "this has made no difference whatsoever," he added.

NRA spokesman Sean O'Neill said the find led to a government-ordered review of the Lismullin site by a panel of independent experts. The panel concluded that the excavations had been properly conducted "and that all appropriate actions had been taken," O'Neill said. The concerns expressed by the European Commission related to Irish road projects in general and not specifically to the Lismullin site, he added.Salafia said that as many as 40 archaeological sites have been uncovered along the route of the M3 highway.

"The bigger argument that's at stake is that Lismullin is connected to all these other 40 sites, and that they are all part and parcel of one single large national monument, which is the Hill of Tara complex," he said.

"If a new environment impact assessment were done, that's what would be shown, and that the motorway should go outside that complex rather than straight through it."

Lismullin's timber enclosure site was recently named one of the top ten discoveries of 2007 by the magazine Archaeology, published by the Archaeological Institute of America.

"Construction of the new M3 highway, meant to ease traffic congestion around Dublin, threatens not only the Hill of Tara's timeless quality, but also newly discovered archaeological sites in the surrounding valley," the magazine said.