Charaideo Moidams, burial mounds of Ahom royalty, included in list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Current Context : The Moidams in eastern Assam, a 700-year-old mound-burial system of the Ahom dynasty added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

• It became the first cultural site from the Northeast to the list and the third World Heritage Property from Assam, following Kaziranga National Park and Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, both inscribed under the Natural category in 1985.
• This makes 43rd property from India to added in UNESCO World Heritage list.
• India stands at the 6th position globally for the most number of World Heritage Properties

ABOUT MOIDAMS

• A moidam is a tumulus, a mound of earth raised over a grave of Ahom royalty and aristocracy.
• Ahom kings and queens were buried inside these
• Unlike Hindus who cremate their dead, the predominant funerary method of the Ahoms, originating from the Tai people, was the burial.
• The height of a moidam is typically indicative of the power and stature of the person buried