Lost city

BBC News: Search for India's ancient city.

Archaeologists working on India's south-west coast believe they may have solved the mystery of the location of a major port which was key to trade between India and the Roman Empire - Muziris, in the modern-day state of Kerala.  For many years, people have been in search of the almost mythical port, known as Vanchi to locals.  Much-recorded in Roman times, Muziris was a major centre for trade between Rome and southern India - but appeared to have simply disappeared.

Now, however, an investigation by two archaeologists - KP Shajan and V Selvakumar - has placed the ancient port as having existed where the small town of Pattanam now stands, on India's south-west Malabar coast.  "It is the first time these remains have been found on this coast," Dr Sharjan told BBC World Service's Discovery programme.  "We believe it could be Muziris."

Question is, how did the port get lost?  It's not mentioned in a 6th century report on the area.