Shereen F. Ratnagar is an Indian

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

whose work has focused on the

Indus Valley civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation, was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE ...

. She is the author of several books and academic textbooks.

Education and Career

Ratnagar was educated at Deccan College,

University of Pune Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), formerly the University of Pune, is a public state university located in the city of Pune, India. It was established in 1949, and is spread over a campus in the neighbourhood of Ganeshkhind. The uni ...

. She studied

Mesopotamian Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary o ...

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

at the Institute of Archaeology,

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. She was a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of archaeology and

ancient history Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

at the Centre for Historical Studies at the

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU; ISO: Javāharalāla Neharū Viśvavidyālaya) is a public research university located in Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

. She retired in 2000, and is currently an independent researcher living in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

. She is noted for work on investigating the factors contributing to the end of the Indus Valley Civilization.

Ayodhya dispute

In May 2003, the Sunni Central Waqf Board—which rejected that the

Babri Masjid The Babri Masjid (ISO: Bābarī Masjida; meaning ''Mosque of Babur'') was a mosque located in Ayodhya, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was claimed that the mosque was built upon the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the legendary birthplace ...

used to be at the site of a Hindu temple—pleaded before the

Allahabad High Court Allahabad High Court, officially known as High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, is the high court based in the city of Prayagraj, formerly known as Allahabad, that has jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It was established o ...

for allowing Ratnagar,

Suraj Bhan Suraj Bhan (1 October 1928 – 6 August 2006) was an Indian politician who was elected to the Lok Sabha for four terms from Ambala. He also served as the Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha from July 1996 to December 1997. He served as governor o ...

, and Dhaneshwar Mandal to examine the excavation conducted by the

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexander ...

(ASI) at the then-demolished mosque; the request was promptly granted.Final Judgement Delivered on 11-03-2011 In Contempt Case No. 1 of 2010 - Allahabad High Court - In Re: O.O.S. No. 4 of 1989 Ratnagar visited the site twice — once in June and then in September, with Mandal, after the excavations had ceased. All of them went on to depose as expert witnesses for the Waqf Board in the case, faulting the ASI for maintaining a poor stratigraphic record of the finds and rejecting their conclusion about finding a temple underneath the structure. In 2007, Ratnagar and Mandal co-authored a highly critical appraisal of the excavation titled ''Ayodhya: Archaeology after Excavation'' (Tulika Publishers; New Delhi). This, however, brought the umbrage of the Court which held their public discussion of sub-judice matters—involving ''in-camera'' submissions like the ASI report and depositions by other witnesses—as contemptuous. Notwithstanding unconditional apologies on their part and the publisher withdrawing all unsold copies, they were subsequently ordered to submit token fines in what scholars have since characterized as judicial attempts to mediate as well as circumscribe the usual norms of academic debates.

Publications

*''Encounters, the westerly trade of the Harappa civilization'',

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(1981). *''Enquiries into the political organization of Harappan society'', Ravish Publishers (1991). *''The End of the Great Harappan Tradition'', New Delhi: Manohar, . (2000) *''Understanding Harappa: Civilization in the greater Indus Valley'', Tulika Books, (2002) *''Mobile and Marginalized Peoples'', New Delhi: Manohar (2003) *''Trading Encounters: From the Euphrates to the Indus in the Bronze Age,''

(2nd edition), (2006) *''The Other Indians - Essays on Pastoralists and Prehistoric Tribal People'', Three Essays Collective (2004) *''Ayodhya: Archaeology After Excavation'', New Delhi: Tulika Books (2007) *''The Timechart History of Ancient Egypt'', Worth (2007). . *''Makers and Shapers: Early Indian Technology in the Household, Village, and Urban Workshop'', Tulika Books (2007). *''Being Tribal'', Primus Books (2010). .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratnagar, Shereen Historians of South Asia 20th-century Indian archaeologists Indian social sciences writers 20th-century Indian women writers 20th-century Indian women scientists Indian women archaeologists Living people Savitribai Phule Pune University alumni Alumni of the UCL Institute of Archaeology Academic staff of Jawaharlal Nehru University Year of birth missing (living people) Indian women historians Scientists from Maharashtra Historians of India Women writers from Maharashtra Indian women science writers 21st-century Indian women scientists 21st-century Indian women writers Women scientists from Maharashtra 21st-century Indian archaeologists Archaeologists of the Indus Valley civilisation 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers 21st-century Indian non-fiction writers Parsi people Women educators from Maharashtra Educators from Maharashtra