Tathagata Neogi
Department: Archaeology
Discipline: Archaeology
Research Centre/Unit: Exeter/NIAS Intangible Histories
Project Summary
I started my PhD at Exeter in 2012. Primary focus of my research is ethnoarchaeological study of extant iron-working communities of northern Telangana, India.
My research is funded by the College of Humanities and emanates from the UKIERI Pioneering Metallurgy project 2010, which was a joint venture between the Department of Archaeology at the University of Exeter and the National Institute for Advanced Studies in Bangalore, India.
In my research I am working closely with the blacksmiths and surviving iron-smelters of rural Telangana and Asur tribal smelters of Jharkhand to reconstruct pre-industrial iron smelting technology of these areas in the sub-continent. Another avenue that my research focuses on is to unravel the socio-cultural dynamics of these fast vanishing communities. I ask questions about inter and intra community relations of power and their evolution; trace evolving identities of these groups at the face of industrialisation and globalisation since the early 20th century in South India. This interdisciplinary research draws upon a large body of archaeological, ethnographic and archival material.
Supervisory Team
Dr. Gillian Juleff, Prof. Sharada Srinivasan
Wider Research Interests
1. Ethnoarchaeology of craft production 2. Identity & Power 3. Anthropology of food 4. Indigenous cultures 5. Folklore and Oral History
Authored Publications/Reports
Tathagata Neogi (December 2011) The Concept of Community Involvement in Archaeology and Heritage Management in India, Chitrolekha International Magazine on Art and Design, 1:3, 30-33
Tathagata Neogi & S. Jaikishan (November 2011) Telangana Ethnoarchaeological Survey: an interim report, Pioneering Metallurgy: The origins of iron and steel making in southern Indian Sub-continent, 15-19
Tathagata Neogi (2011) Food and Status in Ancient Egypt, Revista de la Sociedad Uruguaya de Egiptologia, 28, 17-22
Tathagata Neogi (August 2010) The Perception of the Egyptian Pyramids Before the Renaissance, Revista de la Sociedad Uruguaya de Egiptologia, 27, 25-34