Prehistory and Protohistory in India and Pakistan c3.4

c3.4

The aim has been to offer a critical review of the work done in these two branches of archaeology in this sub-continent during the last twenty years or so. Naturally the concepts of prehistory and protohistory have been briefly examined and clarified as far as the current evidence permits. But while doing so no new theories or hypotheses about the origin of civilization have been advanced. Though in any field of investigation or research, there should be some hypotheses to start with, yet the writer feels that these should legitimately follow when sufficient data have been gathered. The emphasis is therefore on careful collection of the material. Distribution charts and maps based on inadequate evidence are likely to mislead and give rise to false notions. Hence in the present work besides indicating the distribution of various industries or assemblages of objects in each region, the distribution of the entire group is shown against a specific background, viz. physiographical features of India so that it may help in independently evaluating certain theories about the spread of civilization in India.