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In a landmark infinitesimal for Indian archaeology, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin inaugurated the world-class Keeladi Open-Air Museum via video conferencing connected Friday.
The ₹.24.30-crore facility, which blends past past with modern architectural grandeur, officially opens a model into a 2,600-year-old urban civilisation that continues to rewrite the past of the Indian subcontinent.
The ceremonial astatine the tract was led by Minister for Finance Thangam Thennarasu and Minister for Cooperation K.R. Periakaruppan, alongside section dignitaries and archaeological experts.
Addressing the gathering, the Ministers emphasised that the Keeladi excavations shed caller airy connected the past of Tamil Nadu. “With technological grounds confirming an advanced, literate nine arsenic aboriginal arsenic the 6th Century BCE, Keeladi has emerged arsenic a awesome of pridefulness for the planetary Tamil diaspora,” said Mr. Thangam Thennarasu.
“Tamil Nadu is simply a onshore with 1.5 cardinal years of quality history,” he stated.
Chief Minister MK Stalin virtually inagurated Keeladi Open-Air Museum successful Sivaganga connected Friday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“The findings at Keeladi prove that our ancestors were surviving successful a highly developed municipality society, modern to the Indus Valley civilization, with chiseled taste and concern practices.”
Unlike accepted museums that location artefacts down glass, this open-air museum allows visitors to witness history successful its archetypal context. Spanning 4.5 acres and featuring 65,380 quadrate feet of built-up area, the installation includes 2 monolithic galleries designed to planetary standards.
Some of the key features of the site would beryllium its monolithic ceramic structures and drainage systems recovered during the excavations that are preserved successful the site.
Other specifications included the museum, which showcases a scope of finds, from precocious prime golden and terracotta jewellery to robust weapons and penning tools.
The displays also highlight the results of c dating and mineral analysis, proving the community’s mastery implicit textiles, pottery, and metallurgy.
They highlighted its committedness to transforming Keeladi into a large acquisition and tourism hub.
Following 10 palmy phases of excavation in Keeladi and surrounding areas like Kondangai, Agaram, and Manalur, the State aimed to guarantee that the technological and taste brilliance of the Sangam Era is preserved for the younker of today, said the Ministers.
The instauration for this circumstantial task was laid conscionable implicit a twelvemonth ago, connected January 23, 2025. Its accelerated completion marks a important triumph for the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology, which has been moving tirelessly to span the spread betwixt past lit and worldly proof, they added.
