Maritime History of India

India has a rich maritime history spanning over 5000 years. The Rig Veda contains evidence of earlier maritime activities in India. It is also known that Indian merchant vessels dominated trade in the Indian Ocean littoral for more than four millennia. This rich history of maritime trade is what gives the Indian ocean its name, making it the only ocean in the world named after a country.

?EVIDENCE FROM ARCHEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS

Archaeologists first excavated a dry dock near Lothal (Gujarat) in 1954 and found microfossils of marine life in a rectangle-shaped civil structure. This indicated that once the entire area was part of the sea. Lothal remains shed light on ancient maritime trade during the Indus Valley Civilization in around 2400 B.C. The Lothal Dock is the oldest known dock in the world. It connected the Sabarmati River, an important trade route between Harappan cities and the peninsula of Saurashtra in Gujarat. In the east, vessels from Lothal traded with China and Africa. The Lothal scientists used compasses made of shells for navigation and divided the horizon and sky into eight or twelve equal parts for navigation.

India traded with Syria and Cyprus on their way to the west via Dwaraka, now submerged in the sea. Archaeologists in their excavation of the submerged city have discovered triangular sea anchors and rectangular sea anchors. Artifacts with holes drilled into hardwood, such as Kerala teak, have been discovered. Kerala teak was extensively used to build ships in India because the Indus Valley Civilization was unaware of iron. Coir yarn dipped in fish oil was tied between the timber to strengthen them.?

?EVIDENCE FROM ARTS AND SCULPTURES

Ancient Indian art has depictions of ships and boats. The oldest ones are those carved from Sanchi stone around the 2nd Century. An ancient sculpture within the caves of Kanhery depicts a shipwreck on the sea with two victims helplessly praying for rescue to the god Padmapani.

A very fine representation of old Indian vessel paintings is found in the cave temples of Ajanta. There are three main paintings in Ajanta which represent the foreign trade back in 500 BC.?

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The first represents "a seagoing vessel with a high stem and stern. There are three oblong sails attached to as many upright masts, each topped by a truck, and there is a lug sail carried for wind. The jib has plenty of wind. An out-flying jib, square in shape, indicates a kind of bowsprit projecting from gallows on deck.

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The second represents "the emperor’s cabin cruiser that appears like a heraldic Lymphad, with painted eyes at both ends of the boat, a Pillared canopy amidships, and an umbrella forward. The steersman sits on a sort of ladder that suggest the steersman's chair on modern Burmese row-boats, while a rower is in the bows."

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?The third represents the scene of “the landing of Vijaya in Ceylon, with his army, fleet and his installation. The circumstances of Vijaya’s banishment from Bengal with all his Followers and their families are fully set forth within the Pali works. No fewer than 1,500 passengers were carried by the Vijaya fleet “. The painting is said to be dated around 543 BC?

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India has been the center point of global trade in the early years of civilization. While the rest of the world was still figuring out the surroundings, Indians were establishing trade routes all around the globe. It won’t seem far-fetched if one calls India the cradle of globalization.

Article By- Shabareesh S P