2,000-year-old Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions discovered inside Egypt’s Valley of the Kings royal tombs

Key facts

• Approximately 30 Tamil-Brahmi and Prakrit inscriptions dated to 2,000 years ago were documented inside six rock-cut royal tombs in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings.
• The inscriptions were recorded by Professor Ingo Strauch of the University of Lausanne and Professor Charlotte Schmid of the French School of Asian Studies.
• The name ‘Cikai Korran’ appears in eight locations, with one inscription reading ‘Cikai Korran vara kanta’ meaning ‘Cikai Korran came and saw’.
• The discovery confirms that ancient Tamil traders travelled beyond Egyptian port cities and visited inland heritage sites during the early historic period.
• The findings were presented on 11 February at the International Conference on Tamil Epigraphy organised by the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology in Chennai.
• Tamil Nadu accounts for nearly 30,000 documented inscriptions in India, providing an unbroken historical record from the 6th century BCE.