ANCIENT INDIA-1: PRE-HISTORY

COMPLEMENTARY INITIATIVE UNDER CURRENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM

1. TABLE OF CONTENTS
2. Paleolithic and Mesolithic Age ........................................................................................................ 1
3. Neolithic Age .................................................................................................................................. 2
4. Culture: Stone Age .......................................................................................................................... 4

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2. PALEOLITHIC AND MESOLITHIC AGE
- Example Questions
» Discuss the key features of Mesolithic Bhimbetka Paintings. [10 marks, 150 words]
» What are the key sources to study the stone age of India. How does the paintings of stone age
help us to understand the society of the period. [15 marks, 250 words]

- Introduction
» The period of pre-history when humans were using stone tools is known as stone age. We don’t
have any literary evidence from the period and the important source of information include
stone tools, burials, structural remains, bones of humans and animals, and rock art (painting,
carvings etc).
» The stone age in India can be categorized in the following three categories:
Historical Age Geological Age Stone Types used Main Subsistence base
Paleolithic Pleistocene Pebble and Core Tools Hunting & Gathering
like hand axe,
choppers, cleavers etc
(lower Palaeolithic)
Smaller and lighter
flake Tools (M.
Palaeolithic)
Blade Tools made of
flakes (e.g. parallel side
blades & burials)
(Upper Paleolithic)
Mesolithic(10 Holocene Microliths (used as Hunting & Gathering,
00 BCE- 7000 tools or composite Fowling, Fishing,
BCE) tools) evidence of animal
domestication at some
places
Neolithic Holocene Celts (ground and Animal husbandry and
polished hand axes) Agriculture

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 Upper Paleolithic Chert Blades from Narmada Valley

- Microliths and Composite tools made of Microliths

3. NEOLITHIC AGE

- Example Questions:
» Discuss the key characteristics of the Neolithic Age in India. [10 marks, 150 words]
» "Though the beginning of a number of features of sedentary life is associated with Neolithic Age
but the reality is more complex" Elaborate [12.5 marks, 200 words]

- Introduction
» Neolithic stage refers to the last stage of the stone age and in the Indian Subcontinent it begins
from around 7,000 BCE. The earliest known stone age settlement in the subcontinent is from
Mehrgarh, which is situated in Baluchistan, a province of Pakistan.
» Some important Neolithic Sites in Indian other than Mehrgarh
§ Harappa on Ravi River
§ Kunal and Bhirana in Fatehabad district of Haryana
§ Koldihwa and Mahagara in Belan Valley Uttar Pradesh
§ Burzahom and Gufrakal in Kashmir (3000-2000 BCE)

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 - Key Characteristics of the Neolithic phase
» Beginning of domestication of plants and animals
§ For instance Mehrgarh gives earliest evidence of domestication of wheat and barley.
Koldihwa and Mahagara are known for domestication of rice.
§ The remains of animal bones from these sites clearly indicate that they were
domesticated.
» With beginning of cultivation, there was a need of storage which eventually gave birth to
pottery.
» Innovation in stone tools technology is clearly visible
§ Making of ground, pecked and polished stone tools had become more popular
» Life was becoming more and more sedentary
» With sedentary life emerged small and relatively self-sufficient village communities
» Beginning of Agriculture also increased the division of labor based on sex.

- Though the above features are generally believed to have begun with Neolithic phase, but the reality
is more complex
» The roots of some of the features can be traced to Mesolithic age.
§ Evidence of Pottery and animal domestication can be seen at certain Mesolithic sites (for
instance Lankhnaj in Gujarat)
§ There are several Neolithic sites without the use of pottery.
» Sedentism is also a complex issue.
§ Some Mesolithic hunter gatherers may have lived a fairly sedentary life. And there could
have been some communities which were domesticating plants and animals but lead a
nomadic life.
» Similarly, the food production (domestication of plants and animals) in the regions of Rajasthan
began only in the Chalcolithic age and there is not proof of Neolithic period here.

- Changes in the Cultic Belief System with Agriculture

» It is difficult to define religious or cultic activities in the absence of literary evidence. Most of the
ideas derived from archaeological evidence are subjective in nature.
» The Cultivation of Crop and the domestication of animals must have led to an increased concern
with fertility and magico-religious way of controlling them.
§ Terracotta Female Figurines associated with several Neolithic sites are often given the
label of mother goddess. It is very likely that farming communities connected women
with fertility.
• However, interpretation of female figurines in this manner is very subjective.
These could have been toys, decoration items or anything else.
§ Humped Bull Figures found mostly from the North-Western Sites and Chirand are also
associated with fertility.
§ Burials which are purposeful and standardized increased in Neolithic age.
• This indicates significance (respect or fear) attached to bodily remains of the
deceased.
• Simple vs elaborate burials may indicate some kind of ranking in the society
• Grave goods may be indicating a belief in after life
• Secondary burials suggest a number of funerary practices.

- Conclusion

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 » The features and advancement of the phase clearly indicate that they prepared the base for
emergence of later civilization. It can be exemplified by Neolithic phase of Harappa, which
moved to chalcolithic and Eventually to the Harappan Civilization phase

4. CULTURE: STONE AGE

- Mesolithic ART
▫ Past Questions: GS
i. Mesolithic rock cut architecture of India not only reflects the cultural life of the times
but also a time of aesthetic sense comparable to modern painting. Critically evaluate this
comment.[12.5 marks, 200 words] [2015 CSM]
▫ Other Example Questions
i. Write a short note on Mesolithic Art? [150 words, 10 marks]
ii. Portable Mesolithic art forms are rare, but the rock paintings are distributed throughout
the country. Comment [10 marks, 150 words]
iii. What does Mesolithic rock painting depicts about the socio-economic conditions of the
time? [10 marks, 150 words]
iv. Discuss the key features of Mesolithic rock paintings of India. What does these tell us
about the society of the time [12.5 marks, 200 words]

- Key Points
1. Portable Mesolithic Art
- Very few examples
▫ A chert core engraved with an interesting geometric design was found at
Chandravati (Sirohi District) in Rajasthan.
▫ Few engraved bone objects have been discovered at sites such as Bhimbetka.
▫ A human tooth with faint geometric marks have also been discovered from the
Mesolithic period (currently kept at Deccan college in Pune)
2. Rock Paintings
- Introduction
▫ Rock paintings are one of the earliest art forms that have survived. They are
crucial for understanding the social, economic and cultural conditions of the
time.
- Discovery
▫ A.C.L Carlleyle, an assistant surveyor with ASI discovered the first rock paintings
in 1867-68 at Sohagighat in the Kaimur Hills in the present day Mirzapur district
(UP).

- Distribution
▫ More than 150 Mesolithic rock art sites have been found in various parts of the
subcontinent so far.
▫ Central India has the most rich concentration of these rock paining sites.
§ Bhimbetka, Kharwar (Sindhi district), Joara (Mandsaur district), Kathotia
(Sehore district) and Lakhajoar are some important sites in Madhya
Pradesh.
▫ Eastern India is also abundant in prehistoric rock art.

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 § Western districts of Orissa, especially the Sundargarh and Sambalpur
districts have many rock art sites. Presence of microliths confirms the
Mesolithic period of the art form.
§ Interesting features of Rock Art of Orissa
1. The co-existence of paintings and engravings in the same shelter.
2. Art is mostly non-figurative, with an emphasis on abstract pattern
and decorative designs, both geometric and non-geometric. Animals
and humans are rare in these paintings.
▫ Kerala also has many rock art sites with paintings and carvings. One of the oldest
is the Ezhuthu Guha cave, situated in the midst of dense sandal-wood forest in
Idukki district.
§ In the earliest stage of the rock art in the area, animals were depicted, but
no humans.
§ One problem is that some of the paintings have been assigned to the late
Mesolithic phase, no Mesolithic tool have been found so far in any of the
Kerala rock shelters.

- Why did pre-historic people make such paintings

§ Probably, for variant reasons.
a. To express their creative urges
b. To decorate their homes
c. To tell a story in pictures - some scenes may have been picture-stories of memorable
events in their lives.
d. As part of Ritual - rituals connected with hunting and gathering

- Key Features
i. Striking Thematic Similarity throughout the country.
ii. Paintings are found in both shelters and non-shelter caves.
§ The best and the most elaborate paintings were not made in shelters which were living
spaces. Some of these paintings would have required scaffolding and the cooperation of
many people.
§ Such paintings and those made in layers, suggest some kind of ritualistic significance.
iii. Animals form the most important subject of depiction. They are depicted as part of hunting
scenes or even in otherwise.
§ Hunting Scenes of animals
§ Peaceful sympathetic scenes of animals
§ Other than hunting scenes, animals appear in more peaceful sympathetic scenes
such as those depicting pregnant animals, a panther or tiger with cubs
§ Chital running after a fawn, grazing buffaloes, rabbits hopping, and monkeys
leaping about. There is a lot of movement in the scenes
§ Fantastic Animals
§ The famous Bhimbetka 'boar' has the body of a boar, but a snout like rhino, the
underlip of an elephant, and the horns of buffalo.
§ X-Ray Style
§ A few paintings are in x-ray style, showing inner organs, including foetuses in the
womb of female animals.
iv. Humans scenes depict both men and women as well as young and old.

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 • Men are often presented as match sticks whereas women are sometimes given fuller
forms.
• Hunting depicted widely
§ Either singular or in groups.
§ Sometimes accompanied by dogs.
§ Sometimes hunters are shown wearing mask/ head dresses crowned with antlers
and horns.
• Animal Husbandry and Fishing are other forms of subsistence activity depicted.
• Weapons
§ Some of the hunters are unarmed while others carry sticks, spears, bows and
arrows, or slings.
• Ornaments
§ Hunters are adorned with ornaments such as necklaces, bangles, wrist bands,
elbow bands etc, and knee bands.
• Clothes
§ Men are shown wearing loin clothes, probably made of leaves, animal skin, or
pieces of tree bark.
• Hairstyles
§ Men wear their hairs loose but women wear it braided.

v. Society
• Division of labor based on gender
§ Men hunt and women are shown gathering and preparing food, for instance
grinding food in querns.
• Hierarchy and Specialization to some extent
§ Some humans are depicted broad and decorated with geometric designs, and
from their attitude seems to represent men of authority.
§ Masked dancers (referred to pre-historians are sorcerers) represent ritual
specialists.
• Sexual activities have been depicted in some scenes
• Dance has been depicted in some paintings - dancers have conveyed a sense of rhythmic
movement; occasionally they lose balance and fall.
vi. Economic Activities
• Hunting and Gathering (scenes depicting collection of honey and fruits)
• Animal husbandry (to some extent) and fishing
vii. No Pottery depicted
• Basket like containers must have been used to store food, but no pottery is depicted.
• Dry gourds and leather bags may have been used to hold water.

- Comparison with European Pre-historic painting

§ In Europe, most prehistoric paintings tend to be located in dark, relatively inaccessible parts of
the caves, but those in Indian rock shelters are usually in well-lit areas, seen easily.
- Significance
§ Paintings are the important source of information regarding the lives of Mesolithic communities.

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 - Important Sites
i. Bhimbetka Rock Art site
- Discovered in 1957 by V.S. Wakankar.
- Bhimbetka is one of the 7 hills marked by picturesque natural environment.
- There are more than 700 rock shelters here of which around 500 have paintings,
engravings and bruising. This is the largest repository of prehistoric art in India and
possibly in all of Asia.

- Bhimbetka Paintings
» Bhimbetka paintings have been studied by V.S. Wakankar, Yashodhar Mathpal
and Erwin Neumayer (1983).
» Three Phases of Paintings at Bhimbetka have been identified (and 9 sub-phases)
by Yashodhar Mathpal
§ First five sub-phases are Mesolithic ( sixth is transitional and the last 3
belong to historical period)
§ So recent studies also show that some of the paintings may be

from upper Paleolithic (around 30,000 years ago)

» 'Zoo rock' is one of the highlights of Bhimbetka rock shelters. It includes painting
of a variety of animals covering a large rock face. Many have been super-imposed
over others, as the artists who made these paintings often use the same rock
faces as their ancestors.

- Key Features
i. Colours: 16 different colour shades have been identified with white and light red used most
often.
§ Sources of colours:
§ Minerals which were ground and then mixed with water or other substance like
fat, marrow, or egg white.

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 § Red : Iron Oxide (geru)
§ White: Lime Stone
§ Green: Green Chalcedony
§ Some of the paintings are monochromes while others are polychrome.

ii. Equipment
§ The handles of brushes must have been made from twigs, and the brush itself out of
squirrel tail, animal fur, or semal (silk cotton).
iii. Animals dominate the Bhimbetka Paintings
§ 29 species of animals are depicted in the Mesolithic paintings of Bhimbetka. These
include Chital (most common), leopard, tiger, panther, elephant, rhino, antelope, deer,
squirrel etc.
§ Different kinds of birds, fish, lizards, frogs, crabs, scorpions etc also make an
appearance.
§ Animals are represented at their own or as part of a hunting scenes.
§ Interesting Point: No snakes have been depicted at Indian Mesolithic Paintings (in
Bhimbetka or anywhere else) Other Mesolithic painting sites.
iv. Other features
§ Thematic similarities with others

ii. Joara
§ Rock shelter in Joara (MP) shows a very interesting, rather abstract painting.
• Perhaps it reflects a view of world consisting of air, earth, and fire.
• But it is possible that it may mean something very different.

iii. Other Important painting Sites

§ Madhya Pradesh
• Kharwar (Sidhi district)
• Joara (Mandsaur district)
• Kathotia (Sehore district)
• Lakhajoar.

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