Sangam Seas: Tamil Ports and Maritime Connectivity with the Mediterranean World — Archaeology and Texts, c. 300 BCE–300 CE

Sadhish Sharma

The Tamilakam region, celebrated in Sangam literature, was deeply enmeshed in the commercial and cultural currents of the early historic Indian Ocean. Between c. 300 BCE and 300 CE, the vibrant port towns of the Tamil coast – Korkai, Puhar and Musiri (Muziris) – emerged as nodal points in a maritime world that stretched from Southeast Asia to the Mediterranean. Sangam texts such as Pattinappalai, Perumpanarruppadai, and Puranaanooru vividly describe bustling harbours, pearl fisheries, and the arrival of Yavana (Greek-Roman) ships laden with wine, gold, and luxury goods. These literary accounts resonate strikingly with archaeological discoveries at sites such as Arikamedu, Alagankulam, and Pattanam, where Roman amphorae, rouletted ware, beads, coins, and Mediterranean ceramics attest to sustained cross-cultural exchange. This paper situates Sangam literature within the archaeological record to reconstruct the maritime landscapes of early Tamil ports and their connections with the wider Mediterranean world. It argues that these ports were not merely conduits for pepper, pearls, ivory, and textiles flowing westwards, but also cosmopolitan contact zones where foreign traders, goods, and ideas intersected with local economies and cultures. Drawing upon both classical sources such as the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea and indigenous Tamil texts, the study highlights how the sea functioned as a bridge rather than a boundary, shaping new forms of material culture and social interaction. By integrating textual traditions with recent archaeological evidence, this paper underscores the centrality of the Tamil coast in the global circuits of exchange during the early centuries CE. It also reflects on the enduring legacies of this maritime connectivity, revealing how Sangam-age ports embodied both economic vitality and cultural entanglement across the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean worlds.