Shillong: Oral traditions have long documented the history of Hima Shulong, the largest native state in the Khasi-Jaintia Hills before British arrival. Scholars Professor Marco Mitri and Elhanan Sahkhar recently utilized archaeological evidence to bridge the gap between myth and record. Their work centers on the legend of Ka Pah Syntiew, the progenitor of the Syiem clan who was purportedly discovered in the Ka Krem Marai cavern near Nongkrem. Her descendants established a seat of power in Nongkseh, where a megalithic complex and the Iew Rynghep market once thrived.
Internal power struggles fueled a brutal history. A civil war, known as Ka Thma Saw Kher Lai Lyngdoh, resulted in the destruction of the Iing Sad, the residence of the chief priestess and Syiem. Rebels burned the structure, killing the ruling family. Only one survivor, a girl named Jat Kiri, escaped to Hima Nongkhlaw. She later returned to see her son, Shon Manik, crowned as the new Syiem.
Violence erupted again during the reign of Shon Manik’s brother, Shon Rai I. Rival factions and allies from Sohra burned the Iing Sad a second time. Survivors fled to Nongkrem, leaving Nongkseh abandoned. These regional tensions persisted until the British exploited them, splitting the state into Hima Mylliem and Hima Khyrim in 1859.
Excavations at the Iing Sad site yielded bronze ornaments, Chinese Kaolinite pots, and Mughal green glazed ceramics. These finds confirm long-distance trade. Carbon dating from Florida’s Beta Analytic Lab provided definitive proof of the site’s destruction. Mitri notes, "the charcoal samples recovered from the excavation gives an absolute date of the burning incident of the iing Sad between 1590-1620 AD." Based on this, researchers estimate the origins of Hima Shulong and the appearance of Ka Pah Syntiew date back to 1380-1410 AD.
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