A team of geochronologists has successfully applied a refined Argon-39/Argon-40 dating technique to mica inclusions found within the stone foundations of megalithic structures in the Nilgiri Hills of Southern India. The study, published in the Archaeological Science Review, provides a precise construction date of 3200 BCE, pushing the origins of large-scale stone architecture in the region back by several centuries.
This new methodology allows for the dating of stone surfaces with much higher precision than traditional radiocarbon dating of associated organic matter. The research confirms that these megalithic complexes were not merely burial sites but served as seasonal astronomical markers, indicating a highly organized society with advanced engineering capabilities long before the onset of the Iron Age in the peninsula.