Ratnagiri: An anthropologist has unearthed eight ancient geoglyphs, potentially dating back around 10,000 years, in Ratnagiri district.
Among these, seven have been uncovered in Umbarle village within Dapoli taluka, with one measuring approximately 17 feet in length.
The eighth geoglyph was found in Borkhat village situated in Mandangad taluka. Geoglyphs represent a type of prehistoric rock art carving, and numerous clusters of them span over 900 kilometres along the Konkan coast in Maharashtra and Goa.
Ratnagiri district boasts over 1,500 instances of such ancient art scattered across 70 locations, with seven of these sites even listed on UNESCO’s tentative world heritage list.
According to Shailesh Pangat, a resident of Dapoli, villagers from Umbarle and Borkhat had frequently encountered these geoglyphs during activities like cattle grazing, yet they were unaware of the profound historical and anthropological significance they held.
It was only through discussions about rock art with villagers that anthropologists stumbled upon these hidden treasures.
