The Moidams in Chairadeo, in the way they are presented at the moment, are a meagre testimony to the culture of Assam’s Ahom Dynasty. These rulers, originally coming from what is now Yunnan in China, left this region with monumental brick buildings of which many still stand. But “we” got a series of unexcavated tumuli that wouldn’t be out of place in Korea or Bahrain. Most of them are fairly small. On-site information is almost nonexistent: maybe 4 information panels with about 2 sentences written on each, and the tumuli are signposted as Maidam 32, Maidam 33, etc only. According to the AB evaluation, there should be elements of ancestor worship, sacred use of the surrounding landscape and small shrines on the top of the mounds. But most tumuli that I came across lacked those.

It is also weird that the management of the site (which is “just” one contiguous field of tumuli) is split between the ASI (national level) and the Assam Directorate of Archaeology. This means two entrances right next to each other, two entrance fees (250rs and 10rs) and a low stone wall to demarcate the two zones. At inscription, they promised that the wall “will soon be removed” and that they would work toward “joint management”. As of late November 2024, this clearly hasn’t happened yet.

At the ASI side, work is still ongoing to make the interior of one large tumulus accessible to the public. At the Assam State side, they have already done so with one smaller tumulus (lower photo) – but I have my doubts about how authentic this interpretation is.

On the drive back to my hotel in Jorhat, we visited various other Ahom monuments in the nearby towns of Garhgaon and Sivsagar. Only adding these stops made the overall trip worthwhile: I would especially recommend the Shiva temple and the Rang Ghar (a pavilion from which the Ahom royals watched games like buffalo fights) in Sivsagar.

Practical information:

By car, it takes about 2.5 hours from Jorhat to reach the site in Chairadeo. They are "currently" (I heard later that they've been working on it for 10 years already...) expanding the road from 2 to 4 lanes, so it might become faster when all the road works are finished. It can be reached by public transport as well, with a change in Sivsagar. In that case, it’s better to stay overnight in that city to also be able to reach some of its Ahom heritage. Also, be aware that tickets for the ASI side can only be bought online (by scanning a QR Code on the spot) – my payment with a VISA credit card never succeeded, so I had to rely on my driver’s phone and his Google Pay or Indian digital payment system to get in.