Chennai: British geologist and archaeologist Robert Bruce Foote conducted geological surveys in India and discovered old stone age tools at Pallavaram – the first anywhere in Asia – on 30 May 1863. And in September the same year, he found old stone age tools at Athirampakkam, in Tiruvallur, said Sharma Centre for Heritage Education secretary Shanti Pappu.
Delivering a lecture on ‘The Relevance of Robert Bruce Foote in Modern Indian Pre-History: Examples from Tamilnadu’ organised by the Department of Archaeology here 30 May, she said tools located at Athirampakkam have been found to be over 16 lakh years old by a dating process conducted at the initiative of the Sharma Centre.
This changed the entire concept of the emergence of early mankind in India and the world, she said.
“Robert died 29 December 1912 in Kolkata at the age of 78. Though cremated in Kolkata, his ashes were buried in Trinity Church, Yercaud,” she said.
Shanti further said, “Robert was a scientist with an open, logical, inquisitive mind with knowledge in a variety of subjects. One can easily realise this if one reads his writings, especially a book published by the Madras Government Museum, titled ‘The Foote Collection of Indian Prehistoric and Protohistoric Antiquities, Notes on their Ages and Distribution’.
Assistant Archaeologist at the Archaeological Survey of India, C R Gayathri, speaking about the archaeological findings at Pallavaram, said, “Pallavaram is one of the oldest inhabited places in south India.”
And added that in 1863, a major archaeological discovery was made by Foote. She went on to explain that a team of archaeologists excavated the foothills of a hillock at Zamin Pallavaram where they chanced upon the rim of the sarcophagus at a depth of two feet.
Further exploration led to the discovery of the terracotta coffin. Though the artefact was covered with redware lid, it was damaged by boulders which might have rolled down the hillock due to soil erosion. The sarcophagus is displayed at the Fort Museum in Chennai
“It is a very significant discovery. We would be placing the coffin inside a glass case at the museum,” Gayathri said.
“The unearthing of the sarcophagus has highlighted the importance of protecting the site for future excavations at Pallavaram,” she added.
Historian Chitra Madhavan spoke about ancient temples in and around Chennai. “Some of our city’s temples were built in the third century. But we have forgotten to maintain the historical monuments. We live in an age where we have replaced all monuments by upgrading it and as a result its significance has been lost,” she observed.
Foote discovered 459 prehistoric site in India, many of them in the Greater Chennai region and other parts of Tamilnadu, said Chennai 2000 Plus Trust president R Rangaraj.
“In his 40-year career, Foote discovered 459 prehistoric sites. In the end, he sold his entire collection to the Madras Government Museum in 1904 for Rs 33,000 as he believed these artefacts should rightfully remain in the city where early mankind lived,” he said. Foote was sent by the British to do mineral prospecting, pointed out Rangaraj.