Gandara, A Newly Discovered Ancient Port Site on the Southern Coast of Sri Lanka
Dublin Core
Title
Gandara, A Newly Discovered Ancient Port Site on the Southern Coast of Sri Lanka
Description
This paper deals with Gandara Sea Port, located on the southern coast of Sri Lanka. In March and April 2022, an
underwater archaeological impact assessment (UAIA) was undertaken by the Underwater Archaeology Unit (UAU)
of the Department of Archaeology and the Maritime Archaeology Unit (MAU) of the Central Cultural Fund as the
Ministry of Fisheries of Sri Lanka proposed to begin the Gandara Fisheries Harbor Development Project (GFHDP)
for developing this natural port site at Gandara. The antiquity laws in the country require such AIAs. During the UAIA,
the survey team prepared a virtual grid (50m x 50m) for the port area by using Arc GIS and Google Earth and
established buoys at the main points on the grid for identifying the survey area. All grids in the port site have been
surveyed using line, secular, and underwater searching methods. Six circular and square stone anchors that contain
inner circular or square holes and one cannon were uncovered through the surveys in the inner and outer areas of the
port. Similar stone anchors have been found at ancient Godavaya and Galle ports on the southern coast of Sri Lanka
and in the Andhra, Odisha, and West Bengal areas of the Indian subcontinent. These stone anchors and metal artifacts
discovered from the port site indicate Gandara as an ancient seaport that had connections with the external world
during the historical period of Sri Lanka.
underwater archaeological impact assessment (UAIA) was undertaken by the Underwater Archaeology Unit (UAU)
of the Department of Archaeology and the Maritime Archaeology Unit (MAU) of the Central Cultural Fund as the
Ministry of Fisheries of Sri Lanka proposed to begin the Gandara Fisheries Harbor Development Project (GFHDP)
for developing this natural port site at Gandara. The antiquity laws in the country require such AIAs. During the UAIA,
the survey team prepared a virtual grid (50m x 50m) for the port area by using Arc GIS and Google Earth and
established buoys at the main points on the grid for identifying the survey area. All grids in the port site have been
surveyed using line, secular, and underwater searching methods. Six circular and square stone anchors that contain
inner circular or square holes and one cannon were uncovered through the surveys in the inner and outer areas of the
port. Similar stone anchors have been found at ancient Godavaya and Galle ports on the southern coast of Sri Lanka
and in the Andhra, Odisha, and West Bengal areas of the Indian subcontinent. These stone anchors and metal artifacts
discovered from the port site indicate Gandara as an ancient seaport that had connections with the external world
during the historical period of Sri Lanka.
Creator
Mahinda Karunarathna
Palitha Weerasinghe
Kasun Weerasekara
W.M. Chandrarathne
Rukshan Priyandana
Lakmal Samarasinghe
Ruwan Jayantha
Bibliographic Citation
Karunarathna, Mahinda. 2023. “Gandara, a newly discovered ancient port site on the Southern Coast of Sri Lanka.” Edited by Jennifer Craig, Jay Mok, T. Kurt Knoerl, and Wijerathne Bohingamuwa. In Proceedings of Fifth Asia Pacific Regional Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage: Gwangju, The Republic of Korea, November 13-18 2023. The Museum of Underwater Archaeology. URL: https://apconf.omeka.net/exhibits/show/apconfproceedings/item/1949
Files
Citation
Mahinda Karunarathna et al., “Gandara, A Newly Discovered Ancient Port Site on the Southern Coast of Sri Lanka,” Asia Pacific Regional Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage Proceedings, accessed January 15, 2026, https://apconf.omeka.net/items/show/1949.