Kalinga Ancient Trade Routes

Semi-precious stone beads

Probable Archaeology

Diggers at the port of Palur found tiny beads made of carnelian, agate, jasper and quartz, plus glassy faience. They lay buried alongside pottery from many different centuries, so nobody yet knows exactly when the beads themselves were made.

At Palur, archaeologists found beads of carnelian, agate, jasper, quartz and faience, small enough to fit in your pocket but valuable enough to trade.

Diggers at the port of Palur report finding tiny beads. They are made of carnelian, agate, jasper and quartz. Some are made of faience too, a glassy material with a shiny glaze. This find comes from a dig that is not yet fully published. So far it is reported only at a conference and in a newspaper [Sahu, 2026, Times of India, 1 August 2026].

The beads turned up next to pottery from many different centuries. That pottery spans from before the Mauryan period to the early medieval period. So nobody yet knows exactly when the beads themselves were made [Sahu, 2026, Times of India, 1 August 2026].

It is also not known where the beads were made. They may have been made right at Palur. Or they may have arrived there as finished ornaments [Sahu, 2026, Times of India, 1 August 2026].

Facts

Category
Gem
Direction
Traded both ways
Scholar notes

One newspaper report of a still-unpublished 2023-25 excavation is the only source for this find, so the tier stays Probable. The report does not say which of the site's nine layers the beads came from, so every period in that sequence is listed here rather than guessing a narrower range. It is also not known whether the beads were made at Palur or brought in as finished ornaments, so direction is left as 'both'. Radhanagar and Jaugada have their own, separately excavated bead finds, not the same discovery.

  1. Diana Sahu. *Digging at Palur reveals thriving maritime hub from pre-Mauryan era*. in The Times of India. 2026 , Times of India, 1 August 2026 ('The assemblage includes beads made of carnelian, agate, jasper, quartz and faience, besides glass bangles, ivory artefacts and shell objects, pointing to Palur's participation in long-distance trade networks linking eastern India with Southeast Asia.')