NEW DELHI, INDIA, June 5, 2018 (The Print): The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has claimed to have found the remains of two chariots and eight well-preserved bodies in a burial chamber in Sinauli, Uttar Pradesh. Sinauli is considered an important contemporary Harappan burial site in Bagphat district. The team, according to ASI director (excavations), Sanjay Manjul, found three of the bodies placed in pedestaled coffins, and recovered remains of the two chariots such as wheels, axles and poles, leading to speculation that those buried in the chambers may have been royalty.
The new discoveries, especially those of the chariots are a landmark moment since no such physical evidence has been found at a contemporary Harappan site, Manjul said. “This is the very first time such evidence has ever been recovered. The coffins and chariots are something we haven’t encountered before. This discovery is not only important in the context of India, but the world,” Manjul said. “The artefacts probably belong to a period between 2000-1800 BCE. It can help us determine how those people lived. It may help re-evaluate how we understood the late Harappan contemporary culture. It is a significant development in the Ganga-Yamuna doab,” Manjul told the ThePrint.