Archaeological Knowledge Guide

Archaeology is an extensive study of the old remains left by past civilizations. Remains are the physical things people made or used and includes everything from clothes to buildings. Archaeology can be segregated into categories pertaining with a particular time period, culture, geographical area, or material.

An artifact is any object that was created, modified, or even just used by a human being. It can be difficult to tell if a natural object, such as a stone, was actually used by a human or not. Generally, the term artifact is applied to portable objects. Structures created by humans that are immobile, such as buildings, walls, agricultural terraces, step wells, temples, etc are called features.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is the principal statutory body of the Government of India, working under the purview of the Ministry of Culture. It is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural monuments in the country. Founded in 1861 by Alexander Cunningham, all the monuments across India are maintained by ASI. With help of UNESCO, ASI strives to list and protect all the endangered and unparalleled structures throughout the country.

India is home to 29 archaeological sites which consists of monuments, temples, rock shelters, caves, forts, tombs, palaces and much more. These 29 sites are verified, surveyed and excavated by the Archaeological Survey of India and are also designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Apart from these, there are 34 tentative sites which are submitted by the Indian government that are under consideration.

As mentioned on the official website of UNESCO, the criteria of choosing a cultural world heritage site is as follows:

1. "represents a masterpiece of human creative genius and cultural significance"
2. "exhibits an important interchange of human values, over a span of time, or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning, or landscape design"
3. "to bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared"
4. "is an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural, or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates a significant stage in human history"
5. "is an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture, or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change"
6. "is directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance"