Australian Aborigines of Indian Origin?

14. Australian Aborigines of Indian Origin?

They Share Telltale Mutations With Modern-Day Indian Population, Reveals Genetic Research July 23, 2009 Washington: Genetic research conducted by a team of Indian scientists has indicated that aborigines, who initially arrived in Australia via south Asia, may have originated from India. 

     The evidence was found by Dr Raghavendra Rao, who worked with a team of researchers from the Anthropological Survey of India, to find telltale mutations in modern-day Indian populations that are exclusively shared by Aborigines. 

    For the research, the team sequenced 966 complete mitochondrial DNA genomes from Indian ‘relic populations’. 

     “Mitochondrial DNA is inherited only from the mother and so allows us to accurately trace ancestry. We found certain mutations in the DNA sequences of the Indian tribes we sampled that are specific to Australian Aborigines,” said Rao. 

     This shared ancestry suggests that the Aborigine population migrated to Australia via the so-called “Southern Route”. 

     The “Southern Route” dispersal of modern humans suggests movement of a group of hunter-gatherers from the Horn of Africa, across the mouth of the Red Sea into Arabia and southern Asia at least 50 thousand years ago. Subsequently, the modern human populations expanded rapidly along the coastlines of southern Asia, southeastern Asia and Indonesia to arrive in Australia at least 45 thousand years ago. 

     The genetic evidence of this dispersal from the work of Rao and his colleagues is supported by archeological evidence of human occupation in the Lake Mungo area of Australia dated to approximately the same time period. Discussing the implications of the research, Rao said, “Human evolution is usually understood in terms of millions of years. This direct DNA evidence indicates that the emergence of ‘anatomically modern’ humans in Africa and the spread of these humans to other parts of the world happened only fifty thousand or so years ago.”

      “In this respect, populations in the Indian subcontinent harbor DNA footprints of the earliest expansion out of Africa,” he added. “Understanding human evolution helps us to understand the biological and cultural expressions of these people, with far reaching implications for human welfare,” he added. ANI

 http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=CAP/2009/07/23/17/Img/Pg017.png Australian Aborigines Initially Arrived Via South Asia ScienceDaily (July 21, 2009) — Genetic research indicates that Australian Aborigines initially arrived via south Asia. Researchers have found telltale mutations in modern-day Indian populations that are exclusively shared by Aborigines. Journal reference: 1.                   Satish Kumar, Rajasekhara REDDY Ravuri, Padmaja Koneru, B P Urade, B N Sarkar, A Chandrasekar and V R Rao. Reconstructing Indian-Australian phylogenetic link. BMC Evolutionary Biology, (in press) [link] http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcevolbiol/

Reconstructing Indian-Australian phylogenetic link. Satish Kumar , Rajasekhara REDDY Ravuri , Padmaja Koneru , B P Urade , B N Sarkar ,A Chandrasekar  and V R Rao  BMC Evolutionary Biology 2009, 9:173doi:10.1186/1471-2148-9-173

Published: 22 July 2009 Abstract (provisional) Background An early dispersal of biologically and behaviorally modern humans from their African origins to Australia, by at least 45 thousand years via southern Asia has been suggested by studies based on morphology, archaeology and genetics.

 However, mtDNA lineages sampled so far from south Asia, eastern Asia and Australasia show non-overlapping distributions of haplogroups within pan Eurasian M and N macrohaplogroups. Likewise, support from the archaeology is still ambiguous. Results In our completely sequenced 966-mitochondrial genomes from 26 relic tribes of India, we have identified seven genomes, which share two synonymous polymorphisms with the M42 haplogroup, which is specific to Australian Aborigines. Conclusions Our results showing a shared mtDNA lineage between Indians and Australian Aborigines provides direct genetic evidence of an early colonization of Australia through south Asia, following the “southern route”. Adapted from materials provided by BioMed Central, viaEurekAlert!, a service of AAAS. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090721214628.htm

1400-year-old Lakshmi Deity Found in J&K

The Hindu [India], April 12, 2009

This shows the original and ancient Vedic connection that the area of Kashmir has always had. A rare granite sculpture of Goddess Lakshmi, believed to be 1,400 years old, has been found at Waghama village along the river Jehlum in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir. The sculpture, that was found by the farmers a few days ago, has been taken in possession by the state Archives and Archeology department and its antiquity and artistic details are being studied, its Deputy Director Peerzada Mohammad Ashraf said on Sunday. He said the farmers stumbled upon the image when they were digging a field in Waghama-Bijbehara, 45 kms from here. They kept the image with them but some villagers tipped the local police who recovered it and handed it over to the archaeology department. The image is seven inches high and 4.5 inches wide and is seen as one of the most important findings of the year, Mr. Ashraf said.

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200904121353.htm

City archaeologists discover Harappan graves

The Times of India, 9 Apr 2009

A team of archaeologists from the Deccan College Post Graduate and Research Institute is back from Haryana where they stumbled upon a record 70 Harappan graves at a site in Farmana, discovering the largest burial site of this civilization in India so far. It is an extraordinary archaeological finding. A big housing complex that matured during the Harappan era was discovered by these archaeologists who have been working in this little known village for the past three years. The archaeological team here uncovered an entire town plan. The skeletal remains belong to an era between 2500 BC to 2000 BC.

http://snipr.com/fo1ug

New finds take archaeologists closer to Krishna

India Times
27 Dec 2008, 0330 hrs IST, Bhama Devi Ravi, TNN

CHENNAI: The conch and the Sudarshana Chakra are unmistakable. Although the figures do not match popular images of Kirshna sporting a peacock feather, archaeologists are convinced that the coins are of Krishna, revered as an avatar of Vishnu.
“These square coins, dating back to 180- BC, with Krishna on one side and Balram on the other, were unearthed recently in Al Khanoun in Afghanistan and are the earliest proof that Krishna was venerated as a god, and that the worship had spread beyond the Mathura region,” says T K V Rajan, archaeologist and founder-director, Indian Science Monitor, who is holding a five-day exhibition, In search of Lord Krishna,’ in the city from Saturday.
Having done extensive research in Brindavan, Rajan is convinced that a lot of the spiritual history of ancient India lies buried. “Close to 10,000 Greeks, who came in the wake of Alexander the Great, were Krishna’s devotees. There is an inscription by Heliodorus, the Greek ambassador at Takshila , which reads Deva, deva, Vasudeva. Krishna is my god and I have installed this Garuda Pillar at Bes Nagar (now in Bihar),’” says Rajan.
According to him the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has unearthed many sites that throw fresh light on the era of Krishna. “ASI is expected to release the full findings next year. Many of the unearthed artifact have a close resemblance to materials of what is believed to be the Harappan civilization. The findings may show that Krishna’s life was the dividing line between India’s spiritual history and the society’s gradual shift towards a materialistic one,” says Rajan.
Interestingly, a lot of what has been uncovered closely resemble the narration in the texts of Mahabharatha and the Bhagavatham,” he adds. Both the spiritual works are revered by the Hindus as their holy books.
It has been over five years since the discoveries were made at Tholavira near Dwaraka, close to Kutch. Much progress has been made due to the application of thermoluminous study (TL) in ascertaining the age of artifact. “It is possible to get the diffusion of atomic particles in the clay pottery unearthed and arrive at an accurate date,” points out Rajan. Tholavira itself is believed to be the capital city as detailed in the opening chapters of Bhagavatham. Rajan points to an image of a plough, made of wood, which is mentioned in the Bhagavatham.
The findings could lay a trail to understanding Krishna’s life (said to be 5,000 years ago) and times, as a historical fact, says Rajan. The exhibition will be open till December 31 at Sri Parvathy Gallery, Eldams Road.

Ancient weapons dug up in India

By Amitabha Bhattasali
BBC News, Calcutta

    Archaeologists in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal have discovered small weapons made of stone which are around 15,000-20,000 years old. The artefacts – dating to the Stone Age – were found during excavations in Murshidabad district, near Bangladesh. Archaeologists say the find is potentially significant as it suggests man’s presence in the area dates back much earlier than previously believed.
    Finds such as this on the floodplains of the River Ganges are very rare. However, there is ample evidence of stone age activity in India’s upland
regions.

‘Raw materials’

    The weapons – which include small axes – were discovered at Ekani-Chandpara village near Sagardighi, which is an ancient site. Archaeologists say the weapons were found from a soil layer belonging to the mid-Pleistocene period – much below the Holocene layer where present human habitation takes place.
    “We have not only discovered the weapons at this site, but raw materials and the scraps were also found,” Dr Gautam Sengupta, director of the State Archaeology Department, told the BBC. “This proves that the weapons were made at this place itself.”
    Another reason why the find is so significant, archaeologists say, is because Stone Age weapons are not normally found at such an old soil layer
in the Gangetic alluvial plains. However it is well known that raw materials for making weapons are easily found in the plateau region and most Stone Age discoveries are from this area.

Chance

    So far, no human fossils or remains other than some charcoal have been found at the site. Scientists have yet to confirm how old the charcoal is.
“The history of civilisation in this region has suddenly gone back by around 20,000 years,” one archaeologist said. After the discovery, two eminent geo-archaeologists – Prof SN Rajguru and Dr Bhaskar Deotare – visited the excavation site and confirmed that the weapons date back to the smaller Stone Age. The discovery was made by chance, Dr Sengupta said.
    “We were digging the site for some archaeological evidence of the Sultanate period. We were expecting some ancient artefacts related to Sultan Hussein Shah,” he said – referring to a former ruler from the area.
    “We did find those, but our archaeologists kept on digging to unearth some more historical evidence of that period and now we have found these Stone Age weapons,” Dr Sengupta said. After winding up the excavation at Ekani Chandpara in a couple of weeks, archaeologists are planning to launch a search for ancient human habitation in a wider area.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/7315386.stm

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44522000/jpg/_44522477_203remains.jpg Stone age weapons are not usually found in such an old soil layer

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44522000/jpg/_44522478_203pot.jpg  This is one of a number of pots found at the site

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44522000/jpg/_44522479_203dig.jpg  The archaeologists were surprised by what they found

 

South American Apple Seeds Discovered in Ancient India Sites

Mar 16, 2008 11:26 pm (PDT)

Anil K. Pokharia
Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53, University Road,
Lucknow 226 007, India

        Investigation of botanical remains from an ancient site, Tokwa at the confluence of Belan and Adwa rivers, Mirzapur District, Uttar Pradesh (UP), has brought to light the agriculture- based subsistence economy during the Neolithic culture (3rd-2nd millennium BC). They subsisted on cereals, viz. Oryza sativa, Triticum aestivum and Hordeum vulgare, supplemented by leguminous seeds of Lens culinaris, Pisum arvense and Vigna radiata.
Evidence of oil-yielding crops has been documented by recovery of seeds of Linum usitatissimum and Brassica juncea. Fortuitously, an important find among the botanical remains is the seeds of South American custard apple, regarded to have been introduced by the Portuguese in the 16th century. The remains of custard apple as fruit coat and seeds have also been recorded from other sites in the Indian archaeological context, during the Kushana Period (AD 100-300) in Punjab and Early Iron Age (1300-700 BC) in UP. The factual remains of custard apple, along with other stray finds discussed in the text, favour a group of specialists, supporting with diverse arguments, the reasoning of Asian€ ¦’¶American contacts, before the discovery of America by Columbus in 1498. Further, a few weeds have turned up as an admixture in the crop remains.”

Full article at: http://www.ias. ac.in/currsci/ jan252008/ 248.pdf

Ancient Camel Bones Found in Arizona

Sat. March 15, 2008

        Workers digging at the future site of a Wal-Mart store in suburban Mesa have unearthed the bones of a prehistoric camel that’s estimated to be about 10,000 years old.
        Arizona State University geology museum curator Brad Archer hurried out to the site Friday when he got the news that the owner of a nursery was carefully excavating bones found at the bottom of a hole being dug for a new ornamental citrus tree.
        “There’s no question that this is a camel; these creatures walked the land here until about 8,000 years ago, when the same event that wiped out a great deal of mammal life took place,” Archer told The Arizona Republic.

        I thought most of he extinctions look place well before 8k

http://www.google.com/search?gbv=2&hl=en&safe=off&q=Ancient+Camel+Bones+Found+in+Arizona&btnG=Search

Ancient City Discovered in India

 BHUBANESWAR, INDIA, February 20, 2008: Indian archaeologists say they have found remains which point to the existence of a city which flourished 2,500 years ago in eastern India. Discovered at Sisupalgarh, near Bhubaneswar, capital of Orissa, the items found during point to a highly developed urban settlement. The population of the city could have been in the region of 20,000 to 25,000, the archaeologists claim.

The excavations include 18 stone pillars, pottery, terracotta ornaments and bangles, finger rings, ear spools and pendants made of clay.

R.K. Mohanty of the department of archaeology, Deccan College, Pune, who is one of the two researchers involved in the excavations, said “The significance of this ancient city becomes clear when one bears in mind the fact that the population of classical Athens was barely 10,000.” Mr. Mohanty, along with Monica Smith of the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University of California, has been carrying out limited excavations at the site every year since 2005.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7250316.stm

Tamil Brahmi Script Found in Egypt

 QUSEIR-AL-QADIM, EGYPT, February 20, 2008: A broken storage jar with inscriptions in an ancient form of Tamil script, dated to the first century BCE., has been excavated in Egypt.

Dr. Roberta Tomber, a pottery specialist at the British Museum, London, identified the fragmentary vessel as a storage jar made in India. Iravatham Mahadevan, a specialist in Tamil epigraphy, has confirmed that the inscription on the jar is in Tamil written in the Tamil Brahmi script of about the first century.

Earlier excavations at this site about 30 years ago yielded two pottery inscriptions in Tamil Brahmi from the same era. Additionally, a pottery inscription was found in 1995 at Berenike, a Roman settlement of the Red Sea coast of Egypt. These discoveries proved material evidence to corroborate the literary accounts by classical Western authors and the Tamil Sangam poets about the flourishing trade between the India and Rome, via the Red Sea ports, in the early centuries CE.

http://www.ifpindia.org/ecrire/upload/press_ifp_website/tamil_brahmi_21nov07.jpg