A megalithic laterite dome with pottery, found near Kakkodi on the outskirts of the city, seemed to be a secondary burial site of the megalithic culture around 1000 B.C. “In fact, the megalithic people were the first to construct memorials in laterite,” said N.K. Ramesh, an archaeological anthropologist, who visited the site.
This typical megalithic laterite dome was discovered while clearing the shrubbery in the backyard of a property in the possession of Mekkeparambath Krishnaprasad at Koodathumpoyil. It has a rectangular entrance with three frames with a width of six cm each but the remaining parts are seen destroyed.
“The entrance has a width of 25 cm. There is an in situ cut pillar in the middle of the dome, which is well polished and has a height of one metre. The dome is semi-spherical in shape, its roof is well pasted with clay and their walls are well decorated,” he said.
Inside the cave-type clay structure are more than 20 items of pottery and most of them are filled with soil. The types are seen black and red ware, black ware, and red ware. Iron hooks are seen on the roof of the dome.
Mr. Ramesh said that the pottery evidences clearly showed the expertise of Megalithic people in ceramic technology. Similar types of laterite domes were discovered near Vadakara earlier.
The sighting of the dome has led to many people queuing up to have a glimpse of the rare findings. The State Department of Archaeology has plans to excavate the site for collecting more valuable evidence, he said.
Evidences for pre-historic and proto-historic life have already emerged in Kozhikode with many findings, including a megalithic urn burial site at Maruthongara, and the discovery of a large number of iron ingots at other megalithic urn-burial and cist burial sites at Manikkovilakam, Kuitheri.
