Indian Ocean connections and regional trade: an elemental and isotopic study of the glass of Vadnagar, Gujarat

Abstract

This article draws attention to the glass found in Gujarat, a region of India that, until now, has been poorly studied as far as this material is concerned. Glass objects from Vadnagar, including beads, bangles, fragments of containers and glass wastes were analyzed to obtain their elemental and isotopic compositions, with the goal to determine places of glass production and reconstruct trade networks. Dating for the glass material ranges from the 3rd c. BCE to the contemporaneous period, providing an opportunity for a diachronic approach. Results show a wide variety of glass types, including glasses manufactured in South Asia (India and Sri Lanka) and glasses imported from the Mediterranean area and later from the Middle East via Indian Ocean routes. This study sheds light on two recently discovered Indian glasses: types m-Na-Al 7 and m-Na-Al 13. Type m-Na-Al 7 is heterogeneous and not yet clearly defined, while type m-Na-Al 13 is a local production of Gujarat with a diffusion that seems to have been limited to the immediate region. The diversity of glass types identified at Vadnagar testifies to the dynamism of the trade conducted in the region and of multiple connections, with ramifications sustained over very long periods of time, throughout South Asia and the Indian Ocean trade network.