ANCIENT HISTORY

BEGINNING , PRE HISTORIC

PERIOD.
 OUTLINE
What is Pre historic period?

On the trail of earliest people

Stone , stone tools, techniques.

Terms, Criteria to live in those

times,places fulfilling such criteria

Fire

Period classification and

conclusion of very old stone age.
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
 The distant past when there was no paper or
language
 or the written word, and hence no books or written
 documents, is called prehistory, or, as we often say,
 prehistoric times.
 In prehistoric time people were gatherers and then
hunters. They were travellers as well. So why people
travelled in prehistoric time , we ask again?
 ON THE TRAIL OF EARLIEST
PEOPLE
 Why did people travel ?
 In Indian subcontinent, life of people
started 2 million years ago.
They are the gatherers and then hunters.
Gathered plant products and hunted wild
animals. They are living this way , what is
issue than?
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
Many concerns for this type of livelihood for
survival.
Concerns :
Wild animal
Faster
Strong
Fishing needs skill
Same as killing bird
So this is challenging and sometimes not everyone
is able to do so.
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
 Concerns for plant produce.
 Which plant , what plant to be eaten ,they simply
don’t know. Entirely based on trial and error

 Poisonous plants.

Changes according to seasons.

PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
Reasons to move/travel

 For survival

 Recourses of locality finished.

 Pack of animal shifted.

 In different part of forest, particular vegetation(fruit)

in different different seasons, so to eat that people
moved according to different season.
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
 Seasonal water sources.

 How do we know?

 By archeology>> stone (tools) excavated. So people must have

used tools of wood ,stone , bones.

Used to cut
i. Meat
ii. Bark
iii. Hides
iv. Digging ,sewing
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
Attachments handles>>spear arrows.
 Technique of making tools

 Stone on stone
One stone used as hammmer over other.
 Pressure flaking

One bone/stone is between hammer stone and stone

from where tools to be made.
PRESSURE FLAKING
STONE ON STONE
PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
 Stone is the oldest friend of human being.

 Criteria to live in Paleolithic age/old stone age

Water is necessary, so near water resources.

safe/cold place >> Rock cave, Rock shelter.
Where we find our friend ,that is where we find
stone.
CRITERIA'S

River/water source

Caves

Near stone
PLACE WHICH FULFILLED THIS
CRITERIA

Criteria • Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh

• Hunsgi in Karnataka
is • Son valley, potwar platue
fulfilled • Adamgir hills, Narmada valley
• Shivalik hills.
by • Attirampakkam near Chennai
 TERMS
 Factory site:
 Where stone tools made.

 Habitation site:
 Where human being lived for longer times.

Factory cum habitation site:

 Where human being lived for long time and
made stone tools there for long time.
 FIRE
 Kurnool caves(AP)

 Evidences of fire.
 Fire 2nd best friend for human being.

Uses:
i. Light
ii. Cook meat

iii. Scare away animals.

 NEXT
 Hunsgi:
 Factory cum habitation site.
 Tools out of lime stone.

 Bhimbetka:
Habitation sites.
Caves and rock shelter.
 Famous for Paleolithic painting.
Similarity in France.
Lascaux-Paleolithic cave painting found.
MAP
 NEXT
 It was exceptional quality, size ,sophistication
and antiquate.
 20000 years old
 Large animal painting.

 Ostriches:
 found in Maharashtra.
 Paleolithic period.
 Ostrich shells designed and used for beads.
 PERIODS
2 million Paleolithic age(99%) Rough big tools

10000 BC Mesolithic Micro lithic tools

8000 BC Neolithic age Polished stone tool
 CONCLUSION OF VERY OLD STONE AGE

 10000 BC
 Climate change>>warmer climate>> increase in
grasslands>> increase in deer goat
sheep>>increase in hunting, learning for
domestication of small gentle animals

 Growth of grain bearing grasses(wheat barley

rice)But who did what cant be established.
 EVOLUTION

domestica
Food
Hunter tion of agriculture
gatherer
animals
FROM GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD.
 Let us see evolution from food gathering to
domestication of animals and agriculture.
Plants:
verities of food:
 Fruits
 Vegetables
 Grains

Animals
milk , meat
FROM GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD.
 At different places different varieties of crops are
available in different seasons and different
conditions.
 So , one can not rely to survive because condition
changes wont facilitate plant growth. So ultimately
they have to move.
 10000 BC climate change>> plants and animals also
changed(earlier wild , now more gentle) since they are
not harmful, they can be keep with us as they were
giving milk as well, thus domestication started.
 First dog, then sheep , got , cattle; they become
herders.
HOW AGRICULTURE STARTED?
Observation:
 Seed thrown on ground and resulted in
germination and crop, so giving it produce
 Then and there by throwing seed. So human
being thought at that time…
HOW AGRICULTURE STARTED?
This is nice, we will protect it because it is giving
, giving at this place only, no need to roam for
gathering. So we stay here till the time it give
grains, then human being started to live at one
place and tried to protect from wild , cut extra
weed. This is how agriculture grew.
Domestication:
 Process in which people grow plant and look
after animals.
AGRICULTURE
 Once agriculture started , sedentary life started.
 How?

 agriculture require long gestation period, not

occurring suddenly. Needs care, protection ,
cutting weeds and water. So for all this task and
waiting for gestation, person cant leave and
hence sedentary living started.
EVOLUTION:

Food Domestication Sedentary

Hunter agriculture
gathering of animals living
FOOD STORAGE
What is need of food storage?
 One seed>> thousands of seeds, so to store them.
 In future, they are fixed at one place where they are
growing. If they were roaming, they could have relied
on hunting , gathering. However with advent of
agriculture their movement became minimal.
Resulting future food crises if they wasted
agricultural surplus grains. So surplus grain have
been stored to deal in future.
 Storage of grain served two purposes 1. Planting
again in future and 2. eating in future.
FOOD STORAGE
 Means of storage.

Pottery

Weaving(basket) baskets

Dug pit
EVOLUTION
• Food gathering
A • Hunting

• Domestication of animals
B • Agriculture

• Sedentary life
C • Art(pottery)
PLACES
• Mehrgarh(Pakistan)
• Burzahome(Jammu and kashmir)
• Koldihwa(UP)
• Chairand(Bihar)
• Dioji heading(North east region,china
Bones of myanmar border)
different • Hallur(Karnataka)
animals • Paiyampalli(Tamil nadu)
PLACES
SATTLED LIFE
 So, now settled life began.
 For this, homes/houses and traces of it found.
 @Burzahome pit house found.
 Cooking hearth-inside and outside, Neolithic
polished stone tools, mortars, pestals found,
Paleolithic continued.
Earthen pots
 Decorated one
 cooking
 Storing
NEXT
 Weaving clothes
 cotton may be started to grown
 Different materials used.
 Customs
 less idea about tribal customs
 What is tribes?
 2 3 generations live together. They are mostly
related to each other. A big joint family.
 what this 2 3 generation work?
 Farming, fishing,herding, hunting, gathering.
MORE ABOUT TRIBES.
 Some men were leader in tribes.
 Old

 Experienced

 Young fighter

 Priest

 Unique culture, language, music, story, painting.

Joint ownership over resourses

 No inequality.
DIVISION OF LABOR
 Women- Agriculture
 Children-looking after crops, cleaning, milking.
 Men-searching for pastures.
Why man is not in agricultural field?
 Because domesticated animal pasture searching
is difficult task as it involves searching of new
places(New places might be dangerous)
 Men women>> Pots, basket, tools, huts. Singing
dancing and hut decoration in free time
MEHRGARH
MEHRGARH
 Near bolan pass.
 Wheat , barley,sheep, goat.
 Earliest village.
 Levels of fossil show timeline. Earlier fossils at very
deep level. Like deer fossile at most depth in ground
hence most early, later sheep goat. Cattle was
common.
 4+chamber , square rectangular houses, used for
storage sometimes.
 Burial:
 Life after death,they might be believing.
MEHRGARH HOUSE
DAOJI HADING
 Mortars, pestals found
 Grains grown,

 Jadeite stone of China.

 Fossile wood tools and pottery were common.

 TIMELINE
• 2 million(BP) Lower peleolithic
• 80000 Middle paleolithic
• 35000 Upper paleolithic
• 12000 Mesolithic
• 10000 Neolithic

• 2600 BCE Harrapan civilization

. • 1000 BCE Early iron, megalithic burials
• 600 BCE- 400 BCE Early historic
ANCIENT HISTORY
Prehistory
 OLD STONE AGE

Lower Middle Upper

paleolithic paleolithic paleolithic
 Lower(Hand axe and clevar industry)
 Middle(tools made on flakes)

 Upper(tools made on flakes and blades)

 Lower paleolithic:
 LOWER PALEOLITHIC AGE

 Greater part of ice age.

 Characteristics: Use of hand axe

 Sites: Pahelgam in kashmir, belan valley in

allahabad, valley of soan river in punjab. Belan
sites contain caves and rock shelters which would
have served as seasonal camps.Singli talav in
nagapur(Rajasthan),attirampakam(TN)
 LOWER PALEOLITHIC AGE

 Bori cave:
 First evidences of human sattlement.
 Pallavaram-first paleolithic site found in india by
robert ruce.
 Archeological survey of India- 1st director
alaxander cunningham.
 MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC AGE

 Based on flakes, principle tools are varieties of

scrapper made of flakes.
 NEXT
 Artifacts of this age found at several places of
narmada and tungbhadra river.
 Upper paleolithic-less humid, last phase of ice
age, when climate was comparativly warm.
 Caves and rock shelters have been used at
bhimbetka-axes,cleavers, blades, scrappers have
been found.
 Modern human appeared in upper paleolithic
age.
CHARACTERISTICS OF PALEOLITHIC
OR OLD STONE AGE
 In the Old Stone Age, food was obtained by hunting
animals
 and gathering edible plants and tubers. Therefore,
these people are
 called as hunter-gatherers.
 Stone implements are made of a
 hard rock known as quartzite
 little knowledge about their language and
 Communication
 hunting of large animals-combined effort of a group
 of people with large stone axes
CHARACTERISTICS OF PALEOLITHIC OR OLD
STONE AGE

 little knowledge about their language

 Their way of life became modified with the
passage
 of time since they made attempts to domesticate
animals, make crude
 pots and grow some plants.
OLD STONES
CHARACTERISTICS OF MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 next stage of human life is called Mesolithic or Middle
 Stone Age which falls roughly from 10000 B.C. to 6000 B.C.
 It was the transitional phase between the Paleolithic Age and
Neolithic Age.
 Langhanj in Gujarat, Adamgarh
 in Madhya Pradesh and also in some places of Rajasthan,
Utter
 Pradesh and Bihar.
 The paintings and engravings found at the rock
 shelters give an idea about the social life and economic
activities of Mesolithic people.
CHARACTERISTICS OF MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 a different type of
 stone tools is found. These are tiny stone artifacts,
often not more
 than five centimeters in size, and therefore called
microliths
 The hunting-gathering pattern of life continued
during this period.
 However, there seems to have been a shift from big
animal hunting
 to small animal hunting and fishing.
CHARACTERISTICS OF MESOLITHIC PERIOD

 The use of bow and arrow also

 began during this period. Also, there began a
tendency to settle for
 longer periods in an area. Therefore,
domestication of animals,
 horticulture and primitive cultivation started.
 burials of the dead along with some microliths
and
 shells seem to have been practiced.
NEOLITHIC AGE
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEOLITHIC PERIOD
 Remarkable progress in human civilization.
 dated from 6000 B.C to 4000 B.C.
 Kashmir valley
 Chirand in Bihar, Belen valley in Uttar Pradesh
 in several places of the Deccan.
 South Indian sites.
 Maski, Brahmagiri, Hallur
 and Kodekal in Karnataka, Paiyampalli in Tamil
Nadu and Utnur in
 Andhra Pradesh.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEOLITHIC PERIOD

 The chief characteristic features of the Neolithic

culture are
 the practice of agriculture, domestication of
animals, polishing of
 stone tools and the manufacture of pottery. In
fact, the cultivation of
 plants and domestication of animals led to the
emergence of village
 communities based on sedentary life.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEOLITHIC PERIOD
 There was a great improvement in technology of making
tools
 and other equipment's used by man. Stone tools were now
polished.
 The polished axes were found to be more effective tools for
hunting and cutting trees.
 Mud brick houses were built instead of grass huts.
 Wheels were used to make pottery. Pottery was used for
cooking
 as well as storage of food grains. Large urns were used as
coffins
 for the burial of the dead.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEOLITHIC PERIOD
 There was also improvement in agriculture.
 Wheat, barely, rice, millet were cultivated in different
areas at
 different points of time. Rice cultivation was
extensive in eastern India.
 Domestication of sheep, goats and cattle was widely
prevalent.
 Cattle were used for cultivation and for transport.
The people of
 Neolithic Age used clothes made of cotton and wool.
METAL AGE
 The Neolithic period is followed by Chalcolithic
(copper-stone)
 period when copper and bronze came to be used. The
new
 technology of smelting metal ore and crafting metal
artifacts is an
 important development in human civilization. But the
use of stone
 tools was not given up. Some of the micro-lithic tools
continued to be essential items.
CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL AGE
 People began to travel for a long distance to
 obtain metal ores. This led to a network of
Chalcolithic cultures
 and the Chalcolithic cultures were found in many
parts of India.
 METAL AGE
 The presence of painted pottery is a hall mark of the
Chalcolithic period.
 The burial practice was another striking feature and
the dead were buried in a particular direction all over
a particular area.
 The largest site of the Chalcolithic period is
Diamabad situated on the left bank of the Pravara
River.
 The pottery ranges from Red ware , deep red ware to
deep brown and black, Pictographic red and black and
polished red.
SOME CHALCOLITHIC CULTURES
 Ahara Culture: The sites of Ahar Culture were Aahar
(Rajasthan), balathal, Gilund etc. The distinctive feature is
black and red ware.
 Kayatha Culture: Located in Chambal and its tributaries,
the sturdy red slipped ware with chocolate designs is main
feature
 Malwa Culture: Narmada & its tributaries in Gujarat.
One of the largest Chalcolithic settlements.
 Svalda Culture: The well-known sites are in Dhulia
district of Maharashtra.
 Prabhas & Rangpur Culture: Both of them are derived
from the Harappa culture. The polished red ware is the
hall mark of this culture.
CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL AGE

 Generally, Chalcolithic cultures had grown in

river valleys.
 Most importantly, the Harappan culture is
considered as a part of
 Chalcolithic culture. In South India the river
valleys of the Godavari,
 Krishna, Tungabhadra, Pennar and Kaveri were
settled by farming communities during this
period.
CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL AGE

 Although they were not using metals

 in the beginning of the Metal Age, there is
evidence of copper and
 bronze artifacts by the end of second millennium
B.C. Several bronze
 and copper objects, beads, terracotta figurines
and pottery were
 found at Paiyampalli in Tamil Nadu.
CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL AGE

 The Chalcolithic age is followed by Iron Age. Iron

is frequently
 referred to in the Vedas. The Iron Age of the
southern peninsula is
 often related to Megalithic Burials. Megalith
means Large Stone.
 The burial pits were covered with these stones.
MEGALITHIC BURIAL
CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL AGE
Important sites:

Hallur

Maski in karnataka

Nagarjunkonda in andhrapradesh.

Adichchanallur in Tamil Nadu.

Black and red pottery,

iron artifacts such as hoes and sickles and small weapons were

found in the burial pits.

 ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC
TIMES

 When the basic needs of food, water, clothing and

shelter were
 fulfilled people felt the need to express themselves.
 Painting
 and drawing were the oldest art forms practiced by
human
 beings to express themselves, using the cave walls as
their canvas.
 Why did prehistoric people draw these pictures?
ANCIENT HISTORY
Art and culture
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
 to make their homes more
 colorful and beautiful or to keep a visual record of their
 day-to-day life
 Like who maintain a diary.
 by the Upper Paleolithic
 times we see a proliferation of artistic activities.
 Around the world the walls of many caves of this time are
full of
 finely carved and painted pictures of animals which the
 cave-dwellers hunted
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
 The subjects of their drawings were
 human figures, human activities, geometric
designs and symbols.
 In India the earliest paintings have been
reported
 from the Upper Palaeolithic times.
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
 Remnants of rock paintings have been found on the
walls
 of the caves in Madhya Pradesh,
 Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and
Bihar.
 Some paintings have been reported from the Kumaon
hills in Uttarakhand also.
 The rock shelters on banks of the River
 Suyal at Lakhudiyar, about twenty kilometres on the
Almora–
 Barechina road, bear these prehistoric paintings.
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
 Lakhudiyar literally means one lakh caves.The paintings
 here can be divided into three categories: man, animal and
 geometric patterns in white, black and red ochre.
 Humans are represented in stick-like forms. A long-
snouted animal,
 a fox and a multiple legged lizard are the main animal
motifs.
 Wavy lines, rectangle-filled geometric designs, and groups
 of dots can also be seen here.
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
ART AND CULTURE IN PREHISTORIC TIMES
 There is some superimposition of paintings. The
earliest are
 in black; over these are red ochre paintings and the
last
 group comprises white paintings.
 From Kashmir two slabs
 with engravings have been reported. The granite
rocks of
 Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh provided suitable
canvases
 to the Neolithic man for his paintings.
REGIONAL PAINTING
 There are several such
 sites but more famous among them are Kupgallu,
Piklihal
 and Tekkalkota. Three types of paintings have
been reported
 from here—paintings in white, paintings in red
ochre over
 a white background and paintings in red ochre.
REGIONAL PAINTING
 These paintings belong to late historical, early
 historical and Neolithic periods. The subjects
 depicted are bulls, elephants, sambhars,
 gazelles, sheep, goats, horses, stylised
 humans, tridents, but rarely, vegetal motifs.
 But the richest paintings are reported from
 the Vindhya ranges of Madhya Pradesh and
 their Kaimurean extensions into Uttar
 Pradesh.
REGIONAL PAINTING
 These hill ranges are full of Palaeolithic and
Mesolithic remains, and they
 are also full of forests, wild plants, fruits,
 streams and creeks, thus a perfect place for
 Stone Age people to live.
 Among these the largest and most spectacular
rock-shelter is
 located in the Vindhya hills at Bhimbetka in
Madhya Pradesh.
REGIONAL PAINTING

 Bhimbetka is located fortyfive kilometres south

of Bhopal, in an area of
 ten square kilometres, having about eight

 hundred rock shelters, five hundred of which

 bear paintings.
BHIMBETKA CAVE ENTRANCE.
REGIONAL PAINTING
 The themes of paintings found here are of great
variety,
 ranging from mundane events of daily life in those
times to
 sacred and royal images. These include hunting,
dancing,
 music, horse and elephant riders, animal fighting,
honey
 collection, decoration of bodies, and other household
scenes
REGIONAL PAINTING

 The drawings and paintings can be

 catagorised into seven historical periods. Period
I, Upper
 Palaeolithic; Period II, Mesolithic; and Period III,

 Chalcolithic. After Period III there are four

 successive periods.
UPPER PALEOLITHIC PERIOD.
UPPER PALEOLITHIC PERIOD.

 The paintings of the Upper Palaeolithic phase

 are linear representations, in green and dark
 red, of huge animal figures, such as bisons,
 elephants, tigers, rhinos and boars besides
 stick-like human figures.
 A few are wash
 paintings but mostly they are filled with geometric
patterns.
 The green paintings are of dancers and the red ones
of hunters.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 The largest number of paintings belong to Period
II that
 covers the Mesolithic paintings.
 During this period the themes multiply but the
paintings are smaller in size.
 Hunting scenes predominate.
 The hunting scenes depict people hunting in
groups, armed with barbed spears,
pointed sticks, arrows and bows.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 In some paintings these primitive men are shown
with traps and snares probably
 to catch animals.
 The hunters are shown wearing simple clothes
and ornaments. Sometimes, men have been
 adorned with elaborate head-dresses, and
sometimes
 painted with masks also.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 Elephant, bison, tiger, boar, deer,
 antelope, leopard, panther, rhinoceros, fish, frog,
lizard,
 squirrel and at times birds are also depicted.
 The Mesolithic artists loved to paint animals. In
some pictures,
 animals are chasing men.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 In others they are being chased
 and hunted by men. Some of the animal
paintings,
 especially in the hunting scenes, show a fear of
animals,
 but many others show a feeling of tenderness and
love for them.
 There are also a few engravings representing
mainly animals.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 Though animals were painted in a naturalistic style,
 humans were depicted only in a stylistic manner.
Women
 are painted both in the nude and clothed.
 The young and the old equally find place in these
paintings. Children are
 painted running, jumping and playing. Community
dances
 provide a common theme.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
 There are paintings of people
 gathering fruit or honey from trees, and of
women grinding and preparing food.
 Some of the pictures of men, women
 and children seem to depict a sort of family life.
In many
 of the rock-shelters we find hand prints,
 fist prints, and dots made by the fingertips.
MESOLITHIC PERIOD
CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 Period III covers the Chalcolithic period.
 The paintings of this period reveal the
association, contact, and mutual
 exchange of requirements of the cave dwellers of
this area with settled
 agricultural communities of the Malwa plains.
CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 Many a time Chalcolithic ceramics and rock paintings
bear common motifs,
 e.g., cross-hatched squares, lattices Pottery and metal
tools are also shown. But
the vividness and vitality of the earlier periods
disappear from these paintings.
 The artists of Bhimbetka used many colours,
including various shades of white,
 yellow, orange, red ochre, purple, brown,
 green and black.
CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 But white and red were their favorites colours.
The paints were
 made by grinding various rocks and minerals.
 They got red from hematite
 (known as geru in India).
 The green came
 from a green variety of a stone called
 chalcedony. White might have been made out of
limestone.
CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 The rock of mineral was first ground into a powder.
This
 may then have been mixed with water and also with
some
 thick or sticky substance such as animal fat or gum or
 resin from trees.
 Brushes were made of plant fibre. What
 is amazing is that these colours have survived
thousands
 of years of adverse weather conditions.
CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 It is believed that
 the colours have remained intact because of the
chemical
 reaction of the oxide present on the surface of the
rocks.
 The artists here made their paintings on the walls
and
 ceilings of the rock shelters. Some of the paintings are
 reported from the shelters where people lived.
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 But some others were made in places which do not seem to
have been
 living spaces at all. Perhaps these places had some
religious importance.
 Some of the most beautiful paintings are very
 high up on rock shelters or close to the ceilings of
rockshelters.
 One may wonder why early human beings chose
 to paint on a rock in such an uncomfortable position. The
paintings made at these places were perhaps for people to
 be able to notice them from a distance.
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 The paintings, though from the remote past, do
not lack
 pictorial quality. Despite various limitations such
as acute
 working conditions, inadequate tools, materials,
etc., there
 is a charm of simple rendering of scenes of the
 environment in which the artists lived.
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 The men shown in
 them appear adventurous and rejoicing in their lives.
The
 animals are shown more youthful and majestic than
 perhaps they actually were. The primitive artists
seem to
 possess an intrinsic passion for storytelling.
 These pictures
 depict, in a dramatic way, both men and animals
engaged
 in the struggle for survival.
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CHALCOLITHIC PERIOD
 Above was one such scene
 where a group of people are shown hunting a
bison. Some injured men are
 depicted lying scattered on the ground. These
paintings show mastery in the
 skill of drawing these forms.
 These kinds of paintings might have given man a
sense of power over
 the animals he would meet in the open.
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 This practice is common among primitive people
of
 today also. They engrave or paint on rocks as
part of
 the rituals they perform at birth, at death, at
coming
 of age and at the time of marriage. They dance,
 masked, during hunting rites to help them kill
 animals difficult to find or kill.
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 The paintings of individual animals show the mastery
 of skill of the primitive artist in drawing these forms.
 It is interesting to note that at many rock-art sites
 often a new painting is painted on top of an older
painting.
 At Bhimbetka, in some places, there are as many as
20
 layers of paintings, one on top of another. Why did
the
 artists paint in the same place again and again?
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 Maybe this was because the artist did not like his
creation and
 painted another painting on the previous one, or
some of
 the paintings and places were considered sacred
or special
 or this was because the area may have been used
by
 different generations of people at different times.
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 These prehistoric paintings help us to
understand about
 early human beings, their lifestyle, their food
habits, their
 daily activities and, above all, they help us
understand
 their mind—the way they thought.
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 Prehistoric period
 remains are a great witness to the evolution of human
 civilisation, through the numerous rock weapons,
tools,
 ceramics and bones. More than anything else, the
rock
 paintings are the greatest wealth the primitive
human
 beings of this period left behind.
THANK YOU
INSPIRATION