Pre-History(Palaeolithic Period, Mesolithic Period, Neolithic Period, Chalcolithic Period)

Paleolithic Period 

The word ‘Paleolithic’ derived its origin from the Greek words ‘Palaios’ and ‘Lithos’ which means ‘old’ and ‘stone’ respectively. Thus Paleolithic Period or the Stone Age has been divided into Paleolithic(early or Old Stone) Age, Mesolithic(Middle Stone) Age, and Neolithic(New Stone) Age. This is the largest period in the known history of mankind. It lasted for 1 million and 10,000 years while the human beings used stone tools for hunting and gathering their food. The tools used in this Early Age were handaxes, cleavers and choppers.

·         The Paleolithic Period is divided into three phases according to the nature of the stone tools used by the people and according to the nature of  climate’s change.

·         It was a period of Glacial ages during which large and heavy glaciers rolled on the earth and wiped out whatsoever progress was made by the then primitive man. Since four such glacial periods intervened between old and new stone age, therefore, efforts of the man were nullified four times which was a great set-back to human progress.

·         During this period man had neither shelter nor protection. He was at the mercy of powerful wild animals who were physically much stronger than him, though intellectually they were weaker than him. The result of all this was that during this period man was interested in protecting his life, rather than doing anything else.

·         This period was a period of rapid changes which were coming on the surface of the earth. Rains, earthquakes etc., were causing depressions and erosions on the surface of the earth. Once a fertile land, used to become suddenly either a hillock, a mountain or a sea. In this way what man achieved was soon lost by him.

 

Paleolithic Sites in India:

·         Bhimbetka cave paintings in Madhya Pradesh is the most striking site where more than 500 painted rock shelters of different periods are found. These paintings are done in green and dark red colours. The paintings are predominantly on bisons, elephants, tigers, rhinos and boars which reveals the fact of hunting life of Paleolithic people.

·         A Paleolithic hand-axe was discovered near Pahalgam in Kashmir on the Lidder river. The Sohan Valley of Punjab along with the banks of rivers of  Beas, Bangange and Sirsa also yielded Paleolithic tools.

·         Chittorgarh, Kota and Negarai of Rajasthan have yielded Paleolithic tools. Many Paleolithic artefacts have been found near the rivers of Sabarmati, Mahi and their tributaries. The rivers Tapti, Godavari, Bhima and Krishna also yielded Paleolithic artefacts.

·         Anagawadi and Bagalkot are two important Paleolithic sites in found in Karnataka. The rivers Palar, Penniyar and Kaveri in Tamilnadu are rich in Paleolithic tools.

·         In Odisha, some Paleolithic tools have been found on the banks of rivers of Brahmani, Baitarani and Mahanadi. The river Raro of Singhbhum, Jharkhand is rich in Paleolithic tools.

·         Facts from the evidences reveal that Paleolithic sites are found on many hilly slopes and in river valleys of India and are absent in the alluvial plains of the Indus and Ganga. 

Mesolithic Period:

·         This period intervened as a transitional phase between the Paleolithic Age and the Neolithic Age which began around 9000BC. During this period, the climate became warm and dry and brought about changes in flora and fauna which made easier for human beings to move to new areas.

·         The Mesolithic people lived on hunting, fishing and food gathering. At the later part of this period they also domesticated animals. Characteristic tools were microliths or small stone tools.

 

Mesolithic Sites in India:

·         Most of the Mesolithic Sites are found in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Southern and Eastern Uttar Pradesh and South India. Many microliths have been found on the rivers of the Krishna, Bhima and Godavari delta.

·         The Pachpadra basin and the Sojat area in Rajasthan are rich in microliths. Begar on the river Kothari is the largest Mesolithic Site in India. The site has been horizontally excavated which gives evidences of three cultural phases.

·         The rock paintings at Adamgarh, Bhimbetka, Pratapgarh and Mirzapur are rich in Mesolithic art. These paintings describe a good deal about the social life and economic activities of the Mesolithic people. Hunting, food-gathering, fishing and other human activities are reflected on these paintings. Animals like buffalo, bour, monkey and nilgiri are frequently depicted on the rocks. Activities like sexual union, childbirth, rearing of children and burial ceremony are depicted in the Mesolithic paintings.

 

Neolithic Period:(9000BC-4000BC)

·         Neolithic or New Stone Age has a very significant place and position in so far as history of world civization is concerned. The word ‘Neolithic’ is derived from the Greak words ‘neos’ meaning ‘new’ and ‘lithos’ meaning ‘stone’. In this period the equipments were more polished and finished as compared with the rough equipments of the earlier period.

·         This Neolithic period paved the way for settled life. The people began to live in the villages near the lakes. As they had family and animals, they didn’t wish to move from one place to another as nomads.

·         In the field of discovery the major discovery of this Neolithic Age was the use of fire and wheel.

 

Neolithic  Sites in India:

·         The most important Neolithic site is Burzahom, which means ‘the place of birth’ near Srinagar. The Neolithic people lived there by a lakeside in pits and probably had a fishing and hunting economy. Besides stone tools they also used bone implements.

·         The evidence of wheat and barley cultivation has been found in present day Pakisthan and Afghanisthan. Excavations of Mehrgarh in Baluchisthan have revealed the fact of cultures ranging from pre-pottery Neolithic to the Harappan period.

·         Excavations of the Belan valley indicates transition from the food-gathering stage to the food-producing stage.

·         The Neolithic settlements in South India are found in the hilly and Deccan plateau. Important excavated sites include Sangankallu, Maski, Brahmagiri, Tekkalakota, Piklihal and Hallur.

 

Chalcolithic Period:

·         Copper Age or Chalcolithic Period started immediately after the New Stone Age, approximately in about 5000BC and stretched for about 2000 years. Consequently, several cultures came to be based on the use of stone and copper implements.

·         With the discovery of copper, people began to use copper and few other metals for their equipments and found that with some metals it was difficult to keep edges due to their softness. Subsequently, they worked hard and they found that  by mixing two metals they could get hard metals which could be used in axes, daggers, knives and hammers. Likewise, with the Copper Age came the Bronze Age.

·         The Chalcolithic people practiced agriculture, venerated Mother Goddess and worshipped bull.

·         The Chalcolithic people were the first to use painted pottery. Black and Red Ware(BRW) was the most widely prevalent pottery form in Chalcolithic period.

·         The most extensive excavation have been done at the Chalcolithic sites like Jorwe, Nevesa, Daimabad, Inamgaon, Prakash, Nasik, etc. in Maharashtra. Several  Chalcolithic sites have been found in Allahabad and in West Bengal.