The Pre-Historic Period in India

The prehistoric period in the history of mankind is the age before the invention of writing. In India, like the rest of the world, this period is primarily reconstructed based on archaeological remains, particularly stone tools, pottery, and bone implements. It is broadly classified into the Stone Age, the Chalcolithic Age (Copper-Stone), and the Iron Age.

1. The Stone Age

The Stone Age is divided into three distinct phases based on the type of stone tools used and the gradual transition from a hunting-gathering lifestyle to settled agriculture.

A. Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age) [c. 5,00,000 BCE – 10,000 BCE]

The term "Paleolithic" is derived from the Greek words "palaeo" (old) and "lithic" (stone). The people of this age were essentially nomadic hunters and food gatherers. They had no knowledge of agriculture, fire, or pottery. They primarily used unpolished, rough stone tools, mainly hand axes, cleavers, choppers, and scrapers, mostly made of a hard rock called quartzite.

The Paleolithic age is further subdivided into three phases based on the nature of stone tools:

1. Lower Paleolithic (c. 5,00,000 BCE - 50,000 BCE):

• Tools: Hand axes, choppers, and cleavers. These were large, heavy, and crude.
• Key Sites: Soan Valley (Punjab, now in Pakistan), Belan Valley (Uttar Pradesh), Didwana (Rajasthan), Bhimbetka (Madhya Pradesh).
• Lifestyle: Dependent almost entirely on hunting large animals and gathering roots and fruits.

2. Middle Paleolithic (c. 50,000 BCE - 40,000 BCE):

• Tools: Flake tools, which were smaller, lighter, and sharper. Scrapers, borers, and blade-like tools emerged.
• Key Sites: Nevasa (Maharashtra), Luni Valley (Rajasthan), Narmada River Valley.
• Lifestyle: Continuation of hunting-gathering, but tools became more specialized for processing animal skins and wood.

3. Upper Paleolithic (c. 40,000 BCE - 10,000 BCE):

• Tools: Blades and burins. Tools made of bone and horn also became prominent. The climate became relatively warmer towards the end of this phase.
• Key Sites: Kurnool caves (Andhra Pradesh), Chota Nagpur plateau (Jharkhand). The Kurnool caves have shown evidence of the use of fire (ash remains).
• Art: The earliest evidence of rock paintings, like those at Bhimbetka (MP), dates primarily to the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic phases. These paintings largely depict hunting scenes and wild animals.

B. Mesolithic Age (Middle Stone Age) [c. 10,000 BCE – 6,000 BCE]

The Mesolithic period marked a transitional phase from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic. It saw significant climatic changes; the climate became warmer and drier, leading to changes in flora and fauna, effectively ending the Ice Age.

Key Characteristics:

• Microliths: The defining hallmark of the Mesolithic age is the use of 'microliths'—tiny, sharp stone tools, often not more than 5 cm in length (like blades, core, point, triangle, lunate). These were often hafted onto wooden or bone handles to make spears, arrows, and sickles.
• Domestication of Animals: This period witnessed the earliest attempts at animal domestication. The dog was likely the first animal to be tamed, followed by sheep and goats.
• Diet: While hunting and gathering continued, fishing and fowling became more important. The hunting of smaller animals replaced the hunting of megafauna.
• Important Sites:
  • Bagor (Rajasthan) and Adamgarh (Madhya Pradesh): Provide the earliest evidence of animal domestication.
  • Langhnaj (Gujarat) and Chopani Mando (Uttar Pradesh): Show evidence of early pottery (towards the end of the phase) and community burials.

C. Neolithic Age (New Stone Age) [c. 6,000 BCE – 1,000 BCE]

The Neolithic age represents a true revolution in human history. It marks the transition from a nomadic hunting-gathering life to a settled agricultural economy.

Key Characteristics:

• Agriculture: The most significant development was the beginning of organized agriculture. People started cultivating crops like wheat, barley, ragi, and horse gram.
• Settled Life: With agriculture came the need to settle in one place. People began living in circular or rectangular houses made of mud and reed.
• Polished Tools: The stone tools became highly polished, sharp, and specialized. Celts (polished stone axes) were widely used for clearing forests for agriculture.
• Invention of Pottery: The need to store surplus grain and cook food led to the invention of pottery. Initially hand-made, the potter's wheel was introduced later in the phase.
• Invention of the Wheel: A crucial technological leap, facilitating transport and pottery making.

Important Neolithic Sites:

• Mehrgarh (Balochistan, Pakistan): One of the earliest Neolithic sites (c. 7000 BCE). Shows the earliest evidence of agriculture (wheat/barley) and settled village life in the Indian subcontinent.
• Burzahom and Gufkral (Kashmir): Known for pit-dwelling (living underground to escape the cold), bone tools, and the unique practice of burying pet dogs with their masters.
• Chirand (Bihar): Notable for a large number of bone implements made from deer antlers.
• South Indian Sites (Piklihal, Brahmagiri, Maski): Characterized by ash mounds (burnt cow dung) and extensive pastoralism.
• Koldihwa and Mahagara (Uttar Pradesh): Show early evidence of rice cultivation.