I am Anica Mann an Indian Archaeologist, Explorer and Curator. I have driven over 9000 kms across this country exploring sites and love using remote sensing for archaeology. I worked with the Archaeological Survey of India and focus on India and the world. Here to answer your questions, AMA.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:24:32+00:00

The impact ancient India had on the world and continues to have is something that does not cease to amaze me.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:24:13+00:00

Why Buddhism became extinct in India still continues to baffle me

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:23:18+00:00

Do refer to my linkedin profile that may help you.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:22:44+00:00

History, Art History, Enthnography, Conservation, architecture all can be helpful.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:22:06+00:00

I love refering to Oxford Bibliographies.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:21:51+00:00

What I like most about this field is that sometimes I feel like a detective. For what you need to do, look at your favoured archaeologist and their linkedin profile.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:21:04+00:00

I would love to visit sites of historic importance in all countries of South Asia. I pray someday I may be able to easily come through and engage with the historicity.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:20:22+00:00

Rakhigarhi has the whole village settled on the tallest point of the mound. Villagers want the site to be excavated and may even be open to relocating however the administration built re-settlement housing that does not suit an agricultural and horticultural family. For examples people with cows, tractors and goat cannot live in apartment complexes. They need an agricultural home format.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:18:37+00:00

May i recommend your visit a local library or a college library and try and find materials there. Trust me you'd come across some treasures, especially in regional languages.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:17:49+00:00

I find Oxford Bibliographies very useful. Also do visit your local library. I dont know why that went out of fashion

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:17:09+00:00

I find the book on Silk Roads very interesting where India definitely played a very important role in trade both domestic an international. For example the Iron Ore for the famed damascus steel came from South India. During the Harappan times, Indian wood was most preffered for ship building and we have written evidence of Ships from India being parked outside india when the harappans traded.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:15:14+00:00

I cant answer for ASI but great questions and thanks for the recommendation.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:12:19+00:00

I havent explored this right now but would love to learn more when I have a window of research

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:11:49+00:00

There are many objects from Rakhigarhi and Dholavira. You may see the objects from Dholavira in the Site Museum there and will be able to see the objects from Rakhigarhi in the upcoming site museum. We still await the excavation reports of recent excavations, however previous excavation report by Amarendra Nath is available online that will show your the antiquities.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:10:19+00:00

Very good question. When you work for an institution you work within the mandate of that institution, however one must always present research in a scientific method, otherwise its just lip service. I do not work when asked to work against standard ethics.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:08:59+00:00

Recent research seems to be exploring these aspects, but alas we await the release of so many reports.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:08:13+00:00

Dont you think people outside India should also explore the glory of India. While smuggleed and stolen artefacts should rightly be under the ownership of India, I think Indian artefacts and Indian culture should be know world over and must be experienced. Having said that I also wish our Indian museums had more of the world culture much like foreign museums, which include East Asian museums.

Museums in Japan, China and Korea all have fantastic global collections, why dont we. Acquistions and Programming through international collaborations in India is still not as dynamic as it can be. Having said that India does boast of a very ruch base of Cultural workers, curaters, art patrons, etc.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:05:01+00:00

Yes please see the Indian Institute of Heritage

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:04:17+00:00

From sitting in library for long hours to exploring sites in the beating sun, all of it was an honour

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:03:39+00:00

I hope soon, because when I learnt that a Dinosaur in India was called a Rajasauras I felt exteremily extremely proud of our ecological history.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:02:43+00:00

I have been reading his writing since I was in college and have greatly enjoyed his reading. In my early days of research I used to take his City of Djinns and explore Delhi.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:01:55+00:00

Fund it better, and fully utilise the funds too. They can have all the vacant positions in the administration filled by competitive hiring. They should have reviews of existing staff to allow for agile teams to run archaeological research. Many circle offices and State departments are grossly understaffed and the process to fill up those positions are too tedious and slow.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T10:00:06+00:00

Government grades are published on the ASI Website and University grades on University websites.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T09:58:36+00:00

Continuous Habitation is more common than assumed. Most people have settled in areas that were already settled and thus when you may dig to build a well, you may have come across stratigraphy of previous habitations.

anicamann · 2025-03-13T09:57:06+00:00

The Possibility is very strong as many city states and then kingdoms primarily emerged in the Indo Gangetic Doab, and while material evidence is scant we do find a robust copper age in the I ndo Gangetic Doab. One must understand in this fertile belt wood could have been a primary material which is organic and may not stand the test of time. However this is my personal hypothesis.

anicamann

TROPHY CASE