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Paramahamsa. Itihāsa of Bhāratam Janam through Indus

Script cipher

-- (Meluhha cipher),

Proto-Prakritam

A powerpoint presentation in 192 slides is a brief narration of the 5,300 year old history of

Bharata people, mostly on the banks of Rivers Sarasvati and Sindhu with contacts in civilization

areas of the Far East and in Eurasia (Fertile Crescent).

karaṇḍa ‘duck’ (Sanskrit) karaṛa ‘a very large aquatic bird’ (Sindhi) Rebus: [karaḍā] Hard

from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)

http://www.slideshare.net/JohnSykes/myanmar-the-black-swan-of-global-tin-gardiner-sykes-

may-2015-itri-conference Myanmar The Black Swan of Global Tin - Gardiner & Sykes - May

2015 - ITRI Conference

This is paramahamsa a black swan which could create a hard alloy. Copper alloyed with tin

(cassiterite) created Tin Bronze which substituted for the scarce naturally occurrin Arsenical

Copper which was used cire perdue (lost wax casting) to create the exquisite alloy artifacts of

Nahal Mishmar of 4th millennium BCE. The discovery of tin as an alloying mineral was a

revolution of the Bronze Age in which Bhāratam Janam participated as artisans and seafaring

merchants along the Maritime Tin Route from Hanoi to Haifa.

The narrative of the history of Bhāratam Janam as they transited from the neolithic to the Tin-

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Bronze Age is a history of artisans and metalworkers inventing new alloys and metal casting

methods using cire perdue (lost-wax) techniques, resulting in exquisite bronze artifacts.

Lost-wax casting. Bronze statue, Mohenjo-daro. Bronze statue of a woman

holding a small bowl, Mohenjo-daro; copper alloy made using cire perdue method (DK 12728;

Mackay 1938: 274, Pl. LXXIII, 9-11)

Muhly speculates on the possible reason for using of hard alloy for lost-wax castings: "...perhaps

arsenical copper was used at Nahal Mishmar not because it was harder, more durable metal but

because it would have facilitated the production of intricate lost-wax castings." (Muhly, J., 1986,

The beginnings of metallurgy in the old world. In Maddin R, ed., The beginning of the use of

metals and alloys, pp. 2-20. Zhengzhou: Second International conference on the beginning of the

use of metals and alloys.)

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Dancing girl of Sarasvati civilization. 4.3 in. h. Mohenjo-Daro. “Metallurgists smelted silver,

lead, and copper and worked gold too. Coppersmiths employed tin bronze as in Sumer, but also

an alloy of copper with from 3.4 to 4.4 per cent of arsenic, an alloy used also at Anau in

Transcaspia. They could cast cire perdue (lost wax) and rivet, but never seem to have resorted to

brazing or soldering.” (Childe, Gordon, 1952, New light on the most ancien East, New York,

Frederick A. Praeger)

"Archaeological excavations have shown that Harappan metal smiths obtained copper ore (either

directly or through local communities) from the Aravalli hills, Baluchistan or beyond. They soon

discovered that adding tin to copper produced bronze, a metal harder than copper yet easier to

cast, and also more resistant to corrosion."

Dance-step as hieroglyph on a potsherd, Bhirrana. Hieroglyph: meṭ sole of foot, footstep,

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footprint (Ko.); meṭṭu step, stair, treading, slipper (Te.)(DEDR 1557).

Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’(Munda); meḍh‘merchant’s helper’(Pkt.) meḍ iron (Ho.) meṛed-bica =

iron stone ore, in contrast to bali-bica, iron sand ore (Munda)

Yuval Gorden notes:"While the traditional manifestation of the technology has vanished from

many parts of the world, it has survived in some areas of India. The tradition is carried on in the

manufacture of small pieces by tribal groups or by Hindu metalworkers. These tribal people live

in the districts of Bankura, Burdwan, and Midnapore in West Bengal...The Dhokra apply two or

more layers of clay on top of the wax model. First, a thin clay paste is added and allowed to dry;

then a layer of rougher clay mixed with rice husks is added and also allowed to dry. A hole is

sometimes cut through the top of the clay coverings to allow for the entrance of the molten

metal. Likewise, a channel is made in the bottom to let the wax flow out of the mold. Metal wires

are then tied around the whole construction to keep it intact. The mold is heated

until the wax is melted and poured out...Once the mold mixture has set hard, the molds are

placed in a furnace and heated until the wax is melted and integrated into the rather spongy

fabric of the mold. Then the heating continues until the metal is melted, made evident by a green

tinge of the fire, at which point the molds are turned upside down and filled with the liquid metal

from the flask. This point is extremely important for our discussion, because it indicates that

crucibles are not necessarily used in the process of lost wax casting, in contrast to open casting,

where their use is mandatory."

Ibex and birds on Nahal Mishmar artefacts

After examining several artefacts of Nahal Mishmar hoard, Goren concludes: "The results of this

study indicate that all the examined materials were the remains of the casting molds...This indeed

indiates that the Chalcolithic technology of mold construction for the lost wax casting technique

was well established and performed by specialists. Moreover, the emphasized homogeneity of

the materials and technology in use, regardless of the location of the find, stands against the

possibility of production by itinerary craftsmen and supports the idea that all of these items were

produced by a single workshop or workshop cluster. The results make it clear that, although

Chalcolithic mold production and casting techniques can be compared to some extent with the

methods of traditional craftsmen such as the Dhokra of India, they are far more sophisticated and

thus more analogous with the mold construction techniques used today by modern

workshops...some motifs...specifically depict ibexes and vultures...It is likely that these animals

were seen as protectors of this highly skilled metallurgy... (ibex) representation in the En Gedi

sanctuary might be related to the special role of this animal in the decoration fo the Chalcolithic

metal artifacts as well as ossuaries. (p.393)"

[Yuval Goren, 2008, The location of specialized copper production by the lost wax technique in

the chalcolithis southern Levant, Geoarchaeology: An international Journal, Vol. 23, No. 3, 374-

397 (2008), p. 377].

http://www.scribd.com/doc/220039411/Yuval-Goren-2008-The-location-of-specialized-copper-

production-by-the-lost-wax-technique-in-the-chalcolithis-southern-Levant-Geoarchaeology-An-

int

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Radiocarbon dating of Nahal Mishmar reed mat by Arizona AMS laboratory takes at least some

of (the finds to 5375 +_ 55 to 6020+_60 BP). (Aardsman, G., 2001, New radiocarbon dates for

the reed mat from the cave of the treasure, Israel, Radiocarbon, Volume 43, number 3: 1247-

1254). This indicates the possibility that cire perdue technique was already known to the

metallurgists who created the Nahal Mishmar artefacts. There is, however, a possibility that all

the artefacts of the Nahal Mishmar hoard may not belong to the same date and hence, cire

perdue artefacts might have been acquisitions of a later date. (Shlomo Guil

https://www.academia.edu/5689136/Reflections_Upon_Accepted_Dating_of_the_Prestige_Items

_of_Nahal_Mishmar)

I suggest that an alternative interpretation for the use of ibex and birds on Nahal Mishmar

artefacts. They may be Meluhha hieroglyphs describing the specific metallurgical skill of and

materials used by the artisans.

The double ibex was made using a complicated wax and ceramic mold..Standard (scepter)

with ibex heads.

Dm. mra m. ‘markhor’ kh. merg f. ‘ibe ’ (CDI 9 5) Tor. miṇḍ ‘ram’, miṇḍa l ‘markhor’

(CDI 10310) Rebus: meḍ (Ho.); mẽṛhet ‘iron’ (Munda.Ho.) dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast

metal'. āra‘si ’ Rebus: āra ‘brass’

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Nahal Mishmar. Crown with building facade decoration and birds.

karaṇḍa ‘duck’ (Sanskrit) karaṛa ‘a very large aquatic bird’ (Sindhi)

Rebus: [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast

metal'.

gāḍā m. ʻ frame of a building ʼ (M.)(CDIAL 12859) Rebus: jaṅgaḍ ‘entrustment

articles’ gaṛ m. ʻ line of entrenchments, stone walls for defence ʼ (Lahnda).(CDIAL

12845) Allograph: aṅgaḍa ‘lathe’. 'potable furnace'. sang ‘stone’, gaḍa ‘large stone’. dula 'pair'

Rebus: dul 'cast metal'. koḍ ‘horns’ Rebus: koḍ‘artisan’s workshop’.

[quote] mong the items displayed in IS ’s Masters of Fire e hibit are Nahal Mishmar

finds—intricately crafted scepters and mace heads—that were made using the relatively

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advanced lost-wax castingtechnique, in which a mixture of copper, arsenic, antimony, and nickel

is poured into a mold. One highlight is a circular metal object with decorative horns and vultures

(birds) protruding from the top—but don’t let its shape fool you, notes curator Michael Sebanne

of the Israeli ntiquities uthority. This “crown” was probably too heavy, and too small in

circumference, to be worn; it’s more likely a model of a temple or a tomb, Sebanne says.

We know that people living in the Middle East more than 6,000 years ago raised livestock for

dairy, crafted exquisite vessels out of copper, and took great care in burying their dead. But what

did they believe? How did they view the world? Did they conceive of the beautiful objects they

made as art?

These are the questions at the heart of Masters of Fire: Copper Age Art From Israel, a current

NYU Institute for the Study of the Ancient World exhibit displaying 157 items from the

Chalcolithic Era (4500-3600 BCE)—otherwise known as the Copper Age. Over the past eight

decades of archaeological discovery, scholars have determined that this was the period in which

the people of the Southern Levant first settled in organized villages headed by tribal chiefs; first

imported raw metals from great distances to forge tools; and first dedicated sanctuaries for cults

and rituals. For the first time, workers specialized in agriculture and particular crafts, and wool,

cheese, olives, and dates were produced on a large scale.

But mysteries still remain. To look at these artifacts is to confront adistant, and yet recognizable,

ancestor—foreign, and yet somehow familiar.

...

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The Leopards weight from Shahi Tump - Photography and 30

MeV accelerator tomodensimetry showing the copper shell and the lead filling.(Science for

Cultural Heritage: Technological Innovation and Case Studies in Marine and Land Archaeology

in the Adriatic Region and Inland : VII International Conference on Science, Arts and Culture :

August 28-31, 2007, Veli ošinj, Croatia, orld Scientific, 2010. The aim of the conference was

to discuss the contribution of physics and other sciences in archaeological research and in the

preservation of cultural heritage.)

...

Meluhha metallurgy to Bronze Age civilizations

Mohenjo-daro seal depicts a hieroglyph composition, comparable to the horned, decrepit

woman with hanging breasts and ligatured to a bovine hindlegs and tail as shown on one side

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of the Dholavira tablet. There is an added narrative of two hieroglyphs: horned tiger and a

leafless tree.

I would like to comment on the following Fig. 16 of Parpola's paper (Beginnings of Indian

astronomy (Asko Parpola, 2013) With reference to a parallel development in China. in: History

of Science in South Asia 1 (2013), pp. 21-78):

Fig. 16 Two-faced tablet from Dholavira, Kutch, Gujarat, suggesting child sacrifice (lower

picture) connected with crocodile cult (upper picture). After Parpola 2011: 41 fig. 48 (sketch

AP). 'Crocodile in the Indus civilization and later south Asian traditions'. In Linguistics,

archaeology and the human past: occasional paper 12, ed. Toshiki Osada & Hitoshi Endo. Pp. 1-

58. Kyoto: Indus Project, Research Institute for Humanity and Nature.

To compare the details provided by AP's sketch on this Fig. 16, I reproduce below a photograph

of the tablet:

Even assuming that a seated person on the lower sketch figure with raised arms carries 'children'

I do not see how Asko Parpola (AP the sketch-maker) can jump to the conclusion of 'suggested

child sacrifice'.

Dholavira molded terracotta tablet with Meluhha hieroglyphs written on two sides.

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Some readings:

Hieroglyph: Ku. ḍokro, ḍokhro ʻ old man ʼ; B. ḍokrā ʻ old, decrepit ʼ, Or. ḍokarā; H. ḍokrā ʻ

decrepit ʼ; G. ḍokɔ m. ʻ penis ʼ, ḍokrɔ m. ʻ old man ʼ, M. ḍokrā m. -- Kho. ( or.) duk ʻ hunched

up, hump of camel ʼ; K. ḍo ku ʻ humpbacked ʼ perh. < *ḍōkka -- 2. Or. dhokaṛa ʻ decrepit,

hanging down (of breasts) ʼ.(CDI 5567). M. ḍhẽg n. ʻ groin ʼ, ḍhẽgā m. ʻ buttock ʼ. M. dhõgā

m. ʻ buttock ʼ. (CDI 55 5). Glyph: Br. kōnḍō on all fours, bent double. (DEDR 204a) Rebus:

kunda ‘turner’ kundār turner ( .); kũdār, kũdāri (B.); kundāru (Or.); kundau to turn on a lathe, to

carve, to chase; kundau dhiri = a hewn stone; kundau murhut = a graven image (Santali) kunda a

turner’s lathe (Skt.)(CDI 3295) Tiger has head turned backwards. krammara. adv.

or Same as (Telugu). Rebus: krəm backʼ(Kho.)(CDI 3145)

karmāra ‘smith, artisan’ (Skt.) kamar ‘smith’ (Santali) Hieroglyph: krəm

backʼ(Khotanese)(CDI 3145) Rebus: karmāra ‘smith, artisan’ (Skt.) kamar ‘smith’ (Santali)

Hieroglyphs to children held aloft on a seated person's hands: dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'

kuṛī 'girl, child' Rebus: kuṭ i ‘smelter furnace’ (Santali) kuṛī f. ‘fireplace’ (H.); krvṛI f. ‘granary

(WPah.); kuṛī, kuṛohouse, building’(Ku.)(CDI 3232) kuṭi ‘hut made of boughs’

(Skt.) guḍi temple (Telugu)

Pa. kōḍ (pl. kōḍul) horn; Ka. kōḍu horn, tusk, branch of a tree; kōr horn Tu. kōḍ , kōḍu horn Ko.

kṛ (obl. kṭ-)( (DEDR 2200) Paš. kōṇḍā ‘bald’, Kal. rumb. kōṇḍa ‘hornless’.(CDI 350 ). Kal.

rumb. khōṇḍ a ‘half’ (CDI 3792).

Rebus: koḍ 'workshop' (Gujarati)

kāruvu ‘crocodile’ Rebus: khar ‘blacksmith’ (Kashmiri)

kola 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'working in iron', 'pañcaloha, alloy of five metals'.

Hieroglyph: dhokra ‘decrepit woman with breasts hanging down’. Rebus: dhokra kamar 'artisan

caster using lost-wax technique'.

See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2014/01/meluhha-hieroglyphs-1-dhokra-lost-wax.html

Meluhha hieroglyphs: 1. Dhokra kamar lost-wax metal caster; 2. Dance-step of Mohenjo-daro

metal cast

k ā -- ʻgirlʼ (RV); kuṛäˊ ʻgirlʼ ( sh.); kola ‘woman’ (Nahali); ‘wife’( ssamese). *kuḍa1 ʻ boy,

son ʼ, °ḍī ʻ girl, daughter ʼ. [Prob. ← Mu. (Sant. Muṇḍari koṛa ʻ boy ʼ, kuṛi ʻ girl ʼ, Ho koa, kui,

Kūrkū kōn, kōnjē); or ← Drav. (Tam. kur a ʻ young ʼ, Kan.koḍa ʻ youth ʼ) T. Burrow BSO S ii

373. Prob. separate from RV. k ā -- ʻ girl ʼ H. . Bailey TPS 1955, 65. -- Cf. kuḍá i ʻ acts like a

child ʼ Dhātup.] NiDoc. kuḍ'aǵa ʻ boy ʼ, kuḍ'i ʻ girl ʼ; sh. kūˊṛə ʻ child, foetus ʼ, i rimalī --

kuṛäˊ ʻ girl ʼ; Kt. k ū, ku uk ʻ young of animals ʼ; Pr. kyútru ʻ young of animals, child ʼ, kyurú ʻ

boy ʼ,kurīˊ ʻ colt, calf ʼ; Dm. kú a ʻ child ʼ, Shum. kuṛ; Kal. kū *lk ʻ young of animals ʼ;

Phal. kuṛ ʻ woman, wife ʼ; K. kūrü f. ʻ young girl ʼ, kash. kōṛī, ram. kuṛ ī; L. kuṛā m. ʻ

bridegroom ʼ,kuṛī f. ʻ girl, virgin, bride ʼ, awāṇ. kuṛī f. ʻ woman ʼ; P. kuṛī f. ʻ girl, daughter ʼ, P.

bhaṭ. Pah. khaś. kuṛi, cur. kuḷī, cam. kǒḷā ʻ boy ʼ, kuṛī ʻ girl ʼ; -- B. ṭ -- kuṛā ʻ childless ʼ

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( ṭa ʻ tight ʼ)? -- X pṓta -- 1: WPah. bhad. kō ʻ son ʼ, kūī ʻ daughter ʼ, bhal. ko m., koi f.,

pāḍ.kuā, kōī, pa . koā, kūī. (CDIAL 3245)

kōla1 m. ʻ name of a degraded tribe ʼ Hariv. Pk. kōla -- m.; B. kol ʻ name of a Muṇḍā

tribeʼ(CDI 3532).

Excerpts from: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2014/04/revisiting-cire-perdue-in.html

Roots of Bhāratam Janam have to be traced from the banks of Rivers Sarasvati and Sindhu

identifying their life-activity as metalworkers, metalcasters who made (p. 603) [ bharata

] n A factitious metal compounded of copper, pewter, tin &c. (p. 603) [ bharatācē

mbhāṇḍēṃ ] n A vessel made of the metal . 2 See . (p. 603) [ bharatī

] a Composed of the metal . (Marathi. Moleworth).

Cognate etyma (semantics of alloy) of Indian sprachbund: bhāraṇ = to bring out from a kiln (G.)

bāraṇiyo = one whose profession it is to sift ashes or dust in a goldsmith’s workshop (G.le .) In

the Punjab, the mixed alloys were generally called, bharat (5 copper, 4 zinc and 1 tin). In Bengal,

an alloy called bharan or toul was created by adding some brass or zinc into pure bronze. bharata

= casting metals in moulds; bharavum = to fill in; to put in; to pour into (G.lex.) Bengali. ভরন [

bharana ] n an inferior metal obtained from an alloy of coper, zinc and tin. baran, bharat ‘mi ed

alloys’ (5 copper, 4 zinc and 1 tin) (Punjabi)

http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/08/bharatam-janam-of-rigveda-rv-353-mean.html

(p. 603) [ bharata ] n A factitious metal compounded of copper, pewter, tin &c.

(p. 603) [ bharatācē mbhāṇḍēṃ ] n A vessel made of the metal . 2 See

. (p. 603) [ bharatī ] a Composed of the metal . (Molesworth Marathi

Dictionary).This gloss, bharata is denoted by the hieroglyphs: backbone, ox.

Seal published by Omananda Saraswati. In Pl. 275: Omananda Saraswati

1975. Ancient Seals of Haryana (in Hindi). Rohtak.

This pictorial motif gets normalized in Indus writing system as a hieroglyph

sign: baraḍo = spine; backbone (Tulu) Rebus: baran, bharat ‘mi ed alloys’ (5 copper, 4 zinc and

1 tin) (Punjabi) Tir. mar -- kaṇḍḗ ʻ back (of the body) ʼ; S. kaṇḍo m. ʻ back ʼ,

L. kaṇḍ f., kaṇḍā m. ʻ backbone ʼ, awāṇ. kaṇḍ, °ḍī ʻ back ʼH. k ṭā m. ʻ spine ʼ, G. k ṭ m.,

M. k ṭā m.; Pk. kaṁḍa -- m. ʻ backbone ʼ.(CDI 2670) Rebus: kaṇḍ ‘fire-altar’ (Santali) The

hieroglyph ligature to convey the semantics of ‘bone’ and rebus reading is: ‘four short numeral

strokes ligature’ |||| Numeral 4: gaṇḍa 'four' Rebus: kaṇḍa 'furnace, fire-altar' (Santali)

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This is one possible explanation for the ancient name of the Hindu nation: Bhāratam,

mentioned in R gveda – the Bhāratam janam were metalworkers producingbharat mixed alloy of

copper, zinc and tin.

bharatiyo = a caster of metals; a brazier; bharatar, b ara al, b ara aḷ = moulded; an article made

in a mould; bharata = casting metals in moulds; bharavum = to fill in; to put in; to pour into

(Gujarati) bhart = a mixed metal of copper and lead; b ar īyā = a brazier, worker in metal; b aṭ,

b rāṣṭra = oven, furnace (Sanskrit.)

http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2014/09/bharat-name-of-nation-root-bharatiyo.html

S. Kalyanaraman

Sarasvati Research Center

September 3, 2015

https://www.scribd.com/doc/277981068/Itih%C4%81sa-of-Bh%C4%81ratam-Janam-Through-

Indus-Script-and-Maritime-Tin-Route

Itihāsa of Bhāratam Janam Through Indus Script and Maritime Tin Route by Srini Kalyanaraman