Mesolithic Age Transitions and Adaptations

• Hiran Valley (Gujarat), Bhimbetka (MP), and Belan Valley Mirzapur (UP) are important Paleolithic sites.
• These sites date from 500,000 BCE to 50,000 BCE.
• The Paleolithic Age covers the greater part of the Ice Age.
• Sanghao Cave (near Peshawar, Pakistan) is another significant Paleolithic site.
• It dates from 50,000 BCE to 40,000 BCE.
• Bone tools are found only at cave sites like Kurnool and Muchchatla Chintamani Gavi in Andhra Pradesh.
• Homo sapiens first appeared at the end of the Upper Paleolithic phase (40,000 BCE - 10,000 BCE).
• The Upper Paleolithic phase coincided with the last phase of the Ice Age.
• The climate became comparatively warm and less humid during this period.

Mesolithic Age (Hunters and Herders)

• The Mesolithic Age is an intermediate stage in Stone Age culture.
• Both Mesolithic and Neolithic cultures belong to the Holocene era (from around 10,000 years ago).
• Mesolithic people survived by hunting, fishing, gathering food, and later, domesticating animals.
• A key feature of the Mesolithic Age is the reduction in size of established tool types.
• Microliths (miniature stone tools) were characteristic tools, often made of crypto-crystalline silica, chalcedony, or chert.
• Microliths had both geometrical and non-geometrical shapes and were used as tools themselves and to create composite tools.
• These composite tools included spearheads, arrowheads, and sickles, hafted onto wooden or bone handles
• Pottery is rare at Mesolithic sites, but present at Langhnaj in Gujarat and the Kaimur region of Mirzapur (UP).
• Plant cultivation began during the last phase of the Mesolithic Age.
• The Mesolithic era marked the beginning of rock art.
• The first rock paintings in India were discovered in 1867 at Sohagighat (Kaimur Hills, UP).
• Over 150 Mesolithic rock art sites have been found across India, with a concentration in Central India.
• These sites include Bhimbetka Caves, Kharwar, Jaora, and Kathotia (M.P.), Sundargarh and Sambalpur (Orissa), and Ezhuthu Guha (Kerala).

Chalcolithic Culture

• Ganeshwar (near Khetri Mines of Rajasthan), Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Banawali (Haryana), and Kot Diji (Sindh, Pakistan) were prominent pre-Harappan Chalcolithic sites.
• Chalcolithic people domesticated cows, sheep, goats, pigs, and buffaloes, and hunted deer.
• They consumed beef, but did not like pork and were unfamiliar with horses.
• Domesticated animals were primarily slaughtered for food.
• The practice of not milking animals for dairy products is still continued among the Gond people of Bastar.
• Chalcolithic people primarily produced wheat and rice, along with bajra and pulses like lentil, black gram, green gram, and grass pea.
• In eastern regions, people relied on fish and rice.
• Slash-and-burn (jhum) cultivation was practiced.
• Neither the plough nor the hoe has been found at Chalcolithic sites.
• Black and red pottery was the most popular type, made on a potter's wheel and painted with white line designs.
• Female potters did not use the potter’s wheel, only men did.
• People lived in thatched houses made of mud bricks.
• The Chalcolithic economy was village-based.
• Chalcolithic people did not know how to write.
• Villages were small, with huts located close to each other.
• The Chalcolithic people cooked their food.
• Small clay images of earth goddesses suggest they venerated the Mother Goddess.
• Chalcolithic people were fond of ornaments and decoration.
• Women wore ornaments of shell and bone and used combs in their hair.
• The bull was likely a symbol of their religious cult.
• Chalcolithic people were skilled coppersmiths and stoneworkers.
• They manufactured beads of semi-precious stones like carnelian, steatite, and quartz crystal.
• They knew spinning and weaving.
• Chalcolithic settlements existed in south-eastern Rajasthan, western M.P., western Maharashtra, and parts of southern and eastern India.
• Regional differences existed in terms of cereals, pottery, etc.
• The Chalcolithic phase refers to pre-Harappan cultures technologically, but in some areas appeared after the end of the Harappan culture.

Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600–1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation

• The Harappan civilisation was the first urban civilisation in South Asia.
• It was contemporaneous with the civilisations of Mesopotamia and Egypt.
• It was the largest of the three, covering about 800,000 sq km.
• It was initially called the Indus Valley Civilisation, but later renamed after Harappa, the first excavated site, due to settlements found beyond the Indus region.
• The Harappan civilisation is part of India’s proto-history and the Bronze Age.
• It was more developed than Chalcolithic settlements.

Harappan Phases

• Early/Pre-Harappan phase (c. 3200−2600 BCE)
• Mature Harappan phase (c. 2600−1900 BCE)
• Late Harappan phase (c. 1900−1300 BCE)
• A cultural continuity existed among all phases of the Harappan civilization.
• The Early Harappan phase, also known as the Regionalisation Era, was formative and proto-urban.
• This phase is associated with the Hakra phase settlements.
• Settlements were fortified and showed expertise in stone-working, bead-making, and metal-crafting.
• Wheeled transport and trade networks existed.
• Most raw materials were similar to those used in the Mature Harappan phase (except jade).
• The Early Harappan phase lacked large cities and as much craft specialization as the Mature Harappan phase.

Agricultural Practices of the Harappans

• The Harappans cultivated wheat (especially in Mehrgarh), barley, horse gram, peas, melon, watermelon, sesame, dates, millets, grapes, henna (mehndi), garlic, mustard, rice (Lothal).
• They utilized riverine and marine resources.
• Molluscs were a protein source in coastal Gujarat sites.
• They extensively domesticated animals, including cattle (oxen, buffaloes, goats, humped bulls, sheep, pigs, asses, camels), cats, and dogs.
• Although horses were not regularly used, Harappans knew the elephant and rhinoceros.
• Harappan culture was not horse-centred.
• Rabbits, peacocks, ducks, pigeons, wild fowl, and monkeys are depicted on pottery.
• Ploughed fields, likely using wooden ploughs, have been found at Kalibangan.
• Terracotta models of ploughs have been found at Banawali and Bahawalpur.
• Horse remains at Surkotda and dog burials with men at Ropar have been discovered.

Decline of the Harappan Civilisation

• The Harappan decline is dated around 1900 BCE.
• No definitive archaeological evidence explains the de-urbanisation.
• The Mature phase was followed by the Late Harappan phase.
• Possible decline theories:
  • Aryan Invasion (Wheeler, Gordon)
  • Ecological disturbance (Fairchild)
  • Change in river course (Dales, M.S.Vatsa, H.T.Lambrick)
  • Low Rainfall (Stein)
  • Flood (Macay, S.R.Rao)
  • Drying of Ghaghar and Increasing Aridity (D.P.Aggarwal and Sood)
  • Earthquake (Raikes and Dales)

Lothal (Gujarat)

• Located near the Bhogava river
• Discovered by S.R. Rao
• Findings include:
  • A large granary
  • Piece of woven cotton cloth
  • Superficial evidence of horse
  • Bronze dancing girl
  • Violent deaths of some inhabitants (skeletons found together)
  • Seals representing Mother Goddess, Pashupati, a bearded man, and a woman to be sacrificed
  • Evidence of ship/big boat
  • Bangles made of clay

Theories about the Original Home of the Aryans

• European Continent Theory

  • Postulate: Europe is the homeland of Aryans.
  • Supported by: Sir William Jones (1786)
  • Rationale: Comparative linguistics of Greek, Latin, German, Gothic, Celtic, and Sanskrit reveal structural similarities and cognates.
  • Examples: Sanskrit "matri" and "pitri" similar to Latin "mater" and "pater"; Hittite "Inar" similar to Vedic "Indra"; Kassite "Suryyas" and "Maruttash" equivalent to Vedic "Surya" and "Marut".
  • Indo-Aryans originated from Eurasia, specifically the plains of Eastern Europe north of the Black Sea.
  • Other Supporters: Giles (Hungary), Shroeder (France), P. Nehring (Steppes of S. Russia), Morgan (Western Siberia)

• Central Asian Theory

  • Postulate: Central Asia is the homeland of the Aryans.
  • Supported by: Max Muller, E. Meyer, Herzfeld
  • Rationale: Comparative analysis of 'Avesta' (Iranian text) and 'Vedas' reveals linguistic connections in words and concepts.
  • Example: Interchangeability of "h" and "s" (e.g., hepta hindu/sapta sindhu, Ahura/asura, haoma/soma, daha/dasa).

• Arctic Region Theory

  • Postulate: The homeland is in the Northern Arctic region.
  • Supported by: Dr. Bal Gangadhar Tilak
  • Rationale: Vedas mention long days and nights of 6 months each, typical of the Arctic region.

• Tibet Theory

  • Postulate: Tibet is the original home of Aryans
  • Supported by: Swami Dayanand Saraswati
  • Rationale: Based on the Vedas and other Aryan texts.

• Indian Theory

  • Postulate: Indigenous to the subcontinent

Explore the Mesolithic Age's transitional features, including microlith usage and environmental shifts from the Pleistocene to the Holocene. Examine pottery finds in Langhnaj and Kaimur, and rock art in Bhimbetka that reveal cultural and artistic developments.