BBC News
25 Jan 2022
The ancient India city of Dwarka, (“Gateway to Heaven” in Sanskrit) is said to have sunk beneath the Arabian Sea. Now, underwater archaeologists are looking for the foundations of its city walls to prove its existence.
One of the seven holy pilgrimage centres in India, the city of Dwarka is not only of religious importance, but also archaeological. The city's ancient incarnation, referred to in the epic Mahabharata as the ancient kingdom of Krishna, was spread across almost 84km as a fortified city where the Gomti River and the Arabian Sea meet. According to the text, the ancient city was sunk beneath the Arabian Sea upon Krishna's death.
In the second half of the last century, archaeologists made attempts to find physical evidence of the sunken city off the coast of the modern-day Dwarka so they can prove its existence beyond doubt. Many semicircular, rectangular, and square stone structures, as well as stone anchors have been documented, indicating a thriving overseas trade coming through this port city on the west coast of India. Scientists believe the area was submerged as ice caps melted at the end of the last ice age nine to ten thousand years ago. Mainstream science holds that ancient Indian culture goes back some four to five thousand years. Yet these ruins are at least nine thousand years old. Now, archaeologists are planning an underwater dig to look for the foundations of the ancient city walls. If they find the exact location of the settlement, it'll be of tremendous historical significance to India.
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