The Archaeology of Seafaring in Ancient South Asia [Hardcover]

This is an archaeological study of the Indian subcontinent's ancient maritime history, before European expansion.In this new archaeological study, Himanshu Prabha Ray looks at the maritime orientation of communities of the Indian subcontinent prior to European expansion. She uses archaeological data to reveal the connections between the early history of peninsular South Asia and its Asian and Mediterranean partners in the Indian Ocean region. The book differs from traditional works on the subject, discussing maritime history in its broader sense of seafaring activity, religious travel and political economy in this ancient period, rather than focussing specifically on maritime trade and shipping.In this new archaeological study, Himanshu Prabha Ray looks at the maritime orientation of communities of the Indian subcontinent prior to European expansion. She uses archaeological data to reveal the connections between the early history of peninsular South Asia and its Asian and Mediterranean partners in the Indian Ocean region. The book differs from traditional works on the subject, discussing maritime history in its broader sense of seafaring activity, religious travel and political economy in this ancient period, rather than focussing specifically on maritime trade and shipping.Himanshu Prabha Ray looks at the maritime orientation of communities of the Indian subcontinent prior to European expansion. She uses archaeological data to reveal the connections between the early history of peninsular South Asia and its Asian and Mediterranean partners in the Indian Ocean region. Differing from traditional works on the subject, the book discusses maritime history in the broader sense of ancient seafaring activity, religious travel and political economy rather than focusing specifically on maritime trade and shipping.Part I. Historiography and the Maritime Landscape: 1. The perspective; 2. Historiography; 3. The maritime landscape; 4. Geographical knowledge of the Indian Ocean ilC+