Roopkund (locally known as Mystery Lake or Skeleton Lake)[1] is a high altitude glacial lake in the Uttarakhand state of India. It lies in the lap of Trishul massif. Located in the Himalayas, the area around the lake is uninhabited and is roughly at an altitude of 5,020 metres (16,470 ft),[1] surrounded by rock-strewn glaciers and snow-clad mountains. Roopkund is a popular trekking destination.[2] The size of the lake varies substantially, but it is seldom more than 40 metres in diameter (1000 to 1500 square metres in area), and is frozen in the winter.[3]
With a depth of about three metres, Roopkund is widely known for the hundreds of ancient human skeletons found at the edge of the lake.[4] The human skeletal remains are visible at its bottom when the snow melts.[5] Initial investigations led some to believe they were the remains of a semi-legendary event when a single group was killed in a sudden and violent hailstorm in the 9th century,[6] but scientific research has subsequently shown that the remains belong to three distinct groups who died in two independent events; around 800 CE and 1800 CE respectively.[7] Because of the human remains, the lake has been called "Skeleton Lake" in recent times.[8]
Skeletons were rediscovered in 1942 by a forest ranger of the Nanda Devi National Park, named Hari Kishan Madhwal.[9] At first, British authorities feared that the skeletons represented casualties of a hidden Japanese invasion force, but it was found that the skeletons were far too old to be Japanese soldiers.[6] The skeletons are visible in the clear water of the shallow lake during one month when the ice melts.[1] Along with the skeletons, wooden artefacts, iron spearheads, leather slippers,[10] and rings were also found. When a team from National Geographic retrieved about 30 skeletons in 2003, flesh was still attached to some of them.[1]
Local legend says that the King of Kanauj, Raja Jasdhaval, with his pregnant wife, Rani Balampa, their servants, a dance troupe and others went on a pilgrimage to Nanda Devi shrine, and the group faced a storm with large hailstones, from which the entire party perished near Roopkund Lake.[11][12]
Identification
Remnants belonging to more than 300 people have been found. The Anthropological Survey of India conducted a study of the skeletons during the 1950s and some samples are displayed at the Anthropological Survey of India Museum, Dehradun.[13] The studies of the skeletons revealed head injuries;[14] according to some sources,[15] these injuries were caused by round objects from above, and were the common cause of death amongst the deceased. Those researchers concluded that the victims had been caught in a sudden hailstorm, just as described in local legends and songs.[6][15]Radiocarbon dating of the bones at Oxford University's Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit determined the time of death to be 850 CE ±30 years.[citation needed] More recently, radiocarbon dating combined with genome-wide analysis of 38 individuals from Roopkund Lake, found that the remains are from different eras and belong to three distinct groups.[16][7] A group of 23 individuals (dated ~800 CE) had typical South Asian ancestry, one individual (dated ~1800 CE) had Southeast Asian ancestry, and 14 individuals (dated ~1800 CE) had ancestry typical of the eastern Mediterranean, and specifically of present-day people from mainland Greece and Crete.[7] Those findings counter the theory that the individuals died in a single catastrophic event. The radiocarbon dating further suggests that the older, South Asian remains were deposited over an extended period of time, while the younger, eastern Mediterranean and Southeast Asian remains were deposited during a single event.[7]
Conservation concerns
There is growing concern about the regular loss of skeletons and it is feared that, if steps are not taken to conserve them, the skeletons may gradually vanish in the years to come.[17] It is reported that tourists visiting the area are in the habit of taking back the bones in large numbers and the district administration has expressed the need to protect the area.[13] The district magistrate of Chamoli District has reported that tourists, trekkers, and curious researchers are transporting the skeletons on mules and recommended that the area should be protected.[11] Government agencies have made efforts to develop the area as an eco-tourism destination to protect the skeletons.[18]
Tourism
Trekking path to Roopkund, passing near Bedni Bugyal
Roopkund is a picturesque tourist destination and one of the important places for trekking in Chamoli District, Himalayas, near the base of two Himalayan peaks: Trisul (7,120 m) and Nanda Ghunti (6,310 m).[19] The Lake is flanked by a rock face named Junargali to the North and a peak named Chandania Kot to the East. A religious festival is held at the alpine meadow of Bedni Bugyal every autumn with nearby villages participating. A larger celebration, the Nanda Devi Raj Jat, takes place once every twelve years at Roopkund, during which Goddess Nanda is worshipped.[19] The lake is covered with ice for most of the year, with the best time to trek being in autumn (mid-September to October).
In popular culture
Roopkund's skeletons were featured in a National Geographic documentary, "Riddles of the Dead: Skeleton Lake".[20][21] The Indian Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) commissioned the documentary "The Mysterious Frozen Lake in the Himalayas",[22] where a scientific team and a film crew try to investigate the lake.
^ abcdAlam, Aniket (29 June 2004). . The Hindu. Archived from the original on 7 November 2004. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
^Kohli, M.S. (2000). The Himalayas : playground of the gods : trekking, climbing, adventure. New Delhi: Indus Publishing Co. p. 79. ISBN9788173871078.
^Harney, Éadaoin; Nayak, Ayushi; Patterson, Nick; Joglekar, Pramod; Mushrif-Tripathy, Veena; Mallick, Swapan; Rohland, Nadin; Sedig, Jakob; Adamski, Nicole; Bernardos, Rebecca; Broomandkhoshbacht, Nasreen; Culleton, Brendan J.; Ferry, Matthew; Harper, Thomas K.; Michel, Megan; Oppenheimer, Jonas; Stewardson, Kristin; Zhang, Zhao; Bartwal, Maanwendra Singh; Kumar, Sachin; Diyundi, Subhash Chandra; Roberts, Patrick; Boivin, Nicole; Kennett, Douglas J.; Thangaraj, Kumarasamy; Reich, David; Rai, Niraj (20 August 2019). "Ancient DNA from the skeletons of Roopkund Lake reveals Mediterranean migrants in India". Nature Communications. 10 (1): 3670. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-11357-9. PMC6702210. PMID 31431628.
^Andrews, Robin George (20 August 2019). "The Mystery of the Himalayas' Skeleton Lake Just Got Weirder: Every summer, hundreds of ancient bones emerge from the ice. A new genetic study helps explain how they got there". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
^Sati, Vishwambhar Prasad; Kumar, Kamlesh (2004). Uttaranchal: dilemma of plenties and scarcities (1st ed.). New Delhi: Mittal Publ. p. 82. ISBN9788170998983.
^ abc"Skeleton Lake of Roopkund, India". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
^ abcdHarney, Éadaoin; Nayak, Ayushi; Patterson, Nick; Joglekar, Pramod; Mushrif-Tripathy, Veena; Mallick, Swapan; Rohland, Nadin; Sedig, Jakob; Adamski, Nicole; Bernardos, Rebecca; Broomandkhoshbacht, Nasreen; Culleton, Brendan J.; Ferry, Matthew; Harper, Thomas K.; Michel, Megan; Oppenheimer, Jonas; Stewardson, Kristin; Zhang, Zhao; Bartwal, Maanwendra Singh; Kumar, Sachin; Diyundi, Subhash Chandra; Roberts, Patrick; Boivin, Nicole; Kennett, Douglas J.; Thangaraj, Kumarasamy; Reich, David; Rai, Niraj; Rai, N (December 2019). "Ancient DNA from the skeletons of Roopkund Lake reveals Mediterranean migrants in India". Nature Communications. 10 (1): 3670. Bibcode:2019NatCo..10.3670H. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-11357-9. PMC6702210. PMID 31431628.
^"Roopkund lake's skeleton mystery solved! Scientists reveal bones belong to 9th century people who died during heavy hailstorm". India Today. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
^Woodward, Aylin (22 October 2019). "A remote Himalayan lake holds up to 800 skeletons from people who died 1,000 years apart. The mystery remains unsolved". Business Insider. Retrieved 4 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
^Hari Menon (8 November 2004). "Bones Of A Riddle". Retrieved 31 May 2013.
^ ab. Deccan Herald. 24 September 2007. Archived from the original on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
^Vicki, Pomeroy (2007). Deep in the Indian Himalaya. Garhwal Publishing. p. 63. ISBN9780615156972.
^ abKazmi, SMA (12 November 2007). "Tourists to Roopkund trek back with human skeletons". The Indian Express.
^Pant, Alka Barthwal (2018). "Roopkund Mystery "Pathology Reveals Head Injury behind the Casualties" (PDF). Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology. 6 (2018): 1084‐1096. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
^ abOrr, David (7 November 2004). "Giant hail killed more than 200 in Himalayas". The Telegraph. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
^(PDF). isba8.de. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 September 2018.
^"Skeletons:AWOL". Satesman 16.7.2005. uttarakhand.org (Govt. website). Retrieved 30 May 2013.
^Kazmi, SMA (5 February 2009). "Roopkund's skeletal tales". The Tribune. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
^ abNigam, Devesh (2002). Tourism, environment and development of Garhwal Himalaya (1. ed.). New Delhi: Mittal Publ. p. 28. ISBN9788170998709.
^. Miditech.tv. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
Dunning, Brian (14 August 2012). "Skeptoid #323: 8 Spooky Places, and Why They're Like That". Skeptoid. 4. The Skelton Lake of Roopkund
January 07, 2023
roopkund, locally, known, mystery, lake, skeleton, lake, high, altitude, glacial, lake, uttarakhand, state, india, lies, trishul, massif, located, himalayas, area, around, lake, uninhabited, roughly, altitude, metres, surrounded, rock, strewn, glaciers, snow, . Roopkund locally known as Mystery Lake or Skeleton Lake 1 is a high altitude glacial lake in the Uttarakhand state of India It lies in the lap of Trishul massif Located in the Himalayas the area around the lake is uninhabited and is roughly at an altitude of 5 020 metres 16 470 ft 1 surrounded by rock strewn glaciers and snow clad mountains Roopkund is a popular trekking destination 2 The size of the lake varies substantially but it is seldom more than 40 metres in diameter 1000 to 1500 square metres in area and is frozen in the winter 3 RoopkundMystery LakeSkeleton LakeLake in August 2014RoopkundShow map of UttarakhandRoopkundShow map of IndiaLocationChamoli UttarakhandCoordinates30 15 44 N 79 43 54 E 30 26222 N 79 73167 E 30 26222 79 73167 Coordinates 30 15 44 N 79 43 54 E 30 26222 N 79 73167 E 30 26222 79 73167Average depth3 metres 9 8 ft Surface elevation4 536 metres 14 882 ft With a depth of about three metres Roopkund is widely known for the hundreds of ancient human skeletons found at the edge of the lake 4 The human skeletal remains are visible at its bottom when the snow melts 5 Initial investigations led some to believe they were the remains of a semi legendary event when a single group was killed in a sudden and violent hailstorm in the 9th century 6 but scientific research has subsequently shown that the remains belong to three distinct groups who died in two independent events around 800 CE and 1800 CE respectively 7 Because of the human remains the lake has been called Skeleton Lake in recent times 8 Contents 1 Human skeletons 1 1 Identification 1 2 Conservation concerns 2 Tourism 3 In popular culture 4 See also 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External linksHuman skeletons Edit Human skeletons in Roopkund Lake Skeletons were rediscovered in 1942 by a forest ranger of the Nanda Devi National Park named Hari Kishan Madhwal 9 At first British authorities feared that the skeletons represented casualties of a hidden Japanese invasion force but it was found that the skeletons were far too old to be Japanese soldiers 6 The skeletons are visible in the clear water of the shallow lake during one month when the ice melts 1 Along with the skeletons wooden artefacts iron spearheads leather slippers 10 and rings were also found When a team from National Geographic retrieved about 30 skeletons in 2003 flesh was still attached to some of them 1 Local legend says that the King of Kanauj Raja Jasdhaval with his pregnant wife Rani Balampa their servants a dance troupe and others went on a pilgrimage to Nanda Devi shrine and the group faced a storm with large hailstones from which the entire party perished near Roopkund Lake 11 12 Identification Edit Remnants belonging to more than 300 people have been found The Anthropological Survey of India conducted a study of the skeletons during the 1950s and some samples are displayed at the Anthropological Survey of India Museum Dehradun 13 The studies of the skeletons revealed head injuries 14 according to some sources 15 these injuries were caused by round objects from above and were the common cause of death amongst the deceased Those researchers concluded that the victims had been caught in a sudden hailstorm just as described in local legends and songs 6 15 Radiocarbon dating of the bones at Oxford University s Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit determined the time of death to be 850 CE 30 years citation needed More recently radiocarbon dating combined with genome wide analysis of 38 individuals from Roopkund Lake found that the remains are from different eras and belong to three distinct groups 16 7 A group of 23 individuals dated 800 CE had typical South Asian ancestry one individual dated 1800 CE had Southeast Asian ancestry and 14 individuals dated 1800 CE had ancestry typical of the eastern Mediterranean and specifically of present day people from mainland Greece and Crete 7 Those findings counter the theory that the individuals died in a single catastrophic event The radiocarbon dating further suggests that the older South Asian remains were deposited over an extended period of time while the younger eastern Mediterranean and Southeast Asian remains were deposited during a single event 7 Conservation concerns Edit There is growing concern about the regular loss of skeletons and it is feared that if steps are not taken to conserve them the skeletons may gradually vanish in the years to come 17 It is reported that tourists visiting the area are in the habit of taking back the bones in large numbers and the district administration has expressed the need to protect the area 13 The district magistrate of Chamoli District has reported that tourists trekkers and curious researchers are transporting the skeletons on mules and recommended that the area should be protected 11 Government agencies have made efforts to develop the area as an eco tourism destination to protect the skeletons 18 Tourism Edit Trekking path to Roopkund passing near Bedni Bugyal Roopkund is a picturesque tourist destination and one of the important places for trekking in Chamoli District Himalayas near the base of two Himalayan peaks Trisul 7 120 m and Nanda Ghunti 6 310 m 19 The Lake is flanked by a rock face named Junargali to the North and a peak named Chandania Kot to the East A religious festival is held at the alpine meadow of Bedni Bugyal every autumn with nearby villages participating A larger celebration the Nanda Devi Raj Jat takes place once every twelve years at Roopkund during which Goddess Nanda is worshipped 19 The lake is covered with ice for most of the year with the best time to trek being in autumn mid September to October In popular culture EditRoopkund s skeletons were featured in a National Geographic documentary Riddles of the Dead Skeleton Lake 20 21 The Indian Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology CCMB commissioned the documentary The Mysterious Frozen Lake in the Himalayas 22 where a scientific team and a film crew try to investigate the lake See also EditList of unsolved deathsReferences Edit a b c d Alam Aniket 29 June 2004 Fathoming the ancient remains of Roopkund The Hindu Archived from the original on 7 November 2004 Retrieved 29 May 2013 Kohli M S 2000 The Himalayas playground of the gods trekking climbing adventure New Delhi Indus Publishing Co p 79 ISBN 9788173871078 Harney Eadaoin Nayak Ayushi Patterson Nick Joglekar Pramod Mushrif Tripathy Veena Mallick Swapan Rohland Nadin Sedig Jakob Adamski Nicole Bernardos Rebecca Broomandkhoshbacht Nasreen Culleton Brendan J Ferry Matthew Harper Thomas K Michel Megan Oppenheimer Jonas Stewardson Kristin Zhang Zhao Bartwal Maanwendra Singh Kumar Sachin Diyundi Subhash Chandra Roberts Patrick Boivin Nicole Kennett Douglas J Thangaraj Kumarasamy Reich David Rai Niraj 20 August 2019 Ancient DNA from the skeletons of Roopkund Lake reveals Mediterranean migrants in India Nature Communications 10 1 3670 doi 10 1038 s41467 019 11357 9 PMC 6702210 PMID 31431628 Andrews Robin George 20 August 2019 The Mystery of the Himalayas Skeleton Lake Just Got Weirder Every summer hundreds of ancient bones emerge from the ice A new genetic study helps explain how they got there The New York Times Retrieved 14 October 2019 Sati Vishwambhar Prasad Kumar Kamlesh 2004 Uttaranchal dilemma of plenties and scarcities 1st ed New Delhi Mittal Publ p 82 ISBN 9788170998983 a b c Skeleton Lake of Roopkund India Atlas Obscura Retrieved 25 October 2016 a b c d Harney Eadaoin Nayak Ayushi Patterson Nick Joglekar Pramod Mushrif Tripathy Veena Mallick Swapan Rohland Nadin Sedig Jakob Adamski Nicole Bernardos Rebecca Broomandkhoshbacht Nasreen Culleton Brendan J Ferry Matthew Harper Thomas K Michel Megan Oppenheimer Jonas Stewardson Kristin Zhang Zhao Bartwal Maanwendra Singh Kumar Sachin Diyundi Subhash Chandra Roberts Patrick Boivin Nicole Kennett Douglas J Thangaraj Kumarasamy Reich David Rai Niraj Rai N December 2019 Ancient DNA from the skeletons of Roopkund Lake reveals Mediterranean migrants in India Nature Communications 10 1 3670 Bibcode 2019NatCo 10 3670H doi 10 1038 s41467 019 11357 9 PMC 6702210 PMID 31431628 Roopkund lake s skeleton mystery solved Scientists reveal bones belong to 9th century people who died during heavy hailstorm India Today 31 May 2013 Retrieved 12 June 2013 Woodward Aylin 22 October 2019 A remote Himalayan lake holds up to 800 skeletons from people who died 1 000 years apart The mystery remains unsolved Business Insider Retrieved 4 December 2021 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Hari Menon 8 November 2004 Bones Of A Riddle Retrieved 31 May 2013 a b Roopkund s human skeletons go missing Deccan Herald 24 September 2007 Archived from the original on 28 January 2015 Retrieved 31 May 2013 Vicki Pomeroy 2007 Deep in the Indian Himalaya Garhwal Publishing p 63 ISBN 9780615156972 a b Kazmi SMA 12 November 2007 Tourists to Roopkund trek back with human skeletons The Indian Express Pant Alka Barthwal 2018 Roopkund Mystery Pathology Reveals Head Injury behind the Casualties PDF Heritage Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology 6 2018 1084 1096 Retrieved 27 July 2020 a b Orr David 7 November 2004 Giant hail killed more than 200 in Himalayas The Telegraph Retrieved 27 July 2020 8th International Symposium on Biomolecular Archaeology PDF isba8 de Archived from the original PDF on 19 September 2018 Skeletons AWOL Satesman 16 7 2005 uttarakhand org Govt website Retrieved 30 May 2013 Kazmi SMA 5 February 2009 Roopkund s skeletal tales The Tribune Retrieved 30 May 2013 a b Nigam Devesh 2002 Tourism environment and development of Garhwal Himalaya 1 ed New Delhi Mittal Publ p 28 ISBN 9788170998709 Skeleton Lake Miditech tv Archived from the original on 6 February 2012 Retrieved 2 June 2012 Riddles of the Dead Episode Guide National Geographic Channel The Mysterious Frozen Lake in Himalayas retrieved 18 March 2021Further reading EditAitken Bill The Nanda Devi Affair Penguin Books India 1994 ISBN 0140240454 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roopkund Uttarakhand travel guide from Wikivoyage Roopkund Trek District Administration Almora Roopkund Lake Garhwali Traveller Dunning Brian 14 August 2012 Skeptoid 323 8 Spooky Places and Why They re Like That Skeptoid 4 The Skelton Lake of Roopkund Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Roopkund amp oldid 1124635976, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
