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The Kashmir Timeline

Burzahom

The Valley's best-known prehistoric settlement.

Burzahom photograph

Photo: Ismoon ( talk ) 22:04, 21 February 2012 (UTC) · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

Burzahom sits on a raised terrace north-east of Srinagar. Its first residents lived in circular pits dug into the ground, some with steps cut into the sides, probably roofed with branches and bark. Later residents built above ground in mud and mud brick, farmed, kept animals and buried their dead within the settlement.

Facts

  • Some burials include dogs buried alongside people.
  • A stone slab carved with a hunting scene, one of the oldest images found in Kashmir, came from the site.
  • Excavations here found tools of stone and bone, including harpoons and needles.