Prehistory and Protohistory in India and Pakistan c6.s8: Madras
Prehistory and Protohistory in India and Pakistan c6.s8
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Contents
- c6.s8.t1 Sequence of Cultures — 10 parts
Madras
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Kortalayar Valley
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Further south, around Madras where the first discoveries were made by BRUCE FOOTE in 1863 the work by PATERSON and KRISHNASWAMI has clarified the general picture of the Early Stone Age Cultures. Here the coastal plain was formed by laterite as in Orissa and elsewhere on the East Coast during the Early Pleistocene times. Over this was deposited by the Kortalayar or the old Palar river a white boulder conglomerate as at Vadamadurai. This was covered by the detrital laterite. The old river valley was then dissected and three terraces at a height of 60, 20 and 8 feet respectively were created. With these and the earlier boulder conglomerate the tools were related and thus an evolution in the Early Palaeolithic Culture is postulated.
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⁷⁴ Ibid., p. 81, fn. 1.
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⁷⁵ Ibid., p. 85.
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⁷⁶ I.A.R., 1959-60, p. 5, Fig. 2 and Pl. I A, B, C. Palaeoliths have also been found in Nalgonda and Chittoor District, I.A.R., 1960-61, p. 57.
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⁷⁷ For work in Nellore etc. See below.
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⁷⁸ DE TERRA and PATERSON, op. cit., pp. 327-30.
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⁷⁹ KRISHNASWAMI, V. D. "Changes of Prehistoric Man near Madras," Journal of Madras Geographical Association, Vol. XIII (1938), pp. 58-90, and "Prehistoric man round Madras," Indian Academy of Sciences, Madras 1938, No. 3, pp. 32-35.
Sequence of Cultures
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1. Primary Laterite Plain : sterile
2. Boulder Conglomerate with Three Groups of tools as under : Earliest Group : Non-latertized, with heavy cream-coloured patination. Tools rolled but divisible into
(a) *Early Series*. Abbevillian hand-axes with pebble butt and crude and irregular flaking.
(b) *Late Series*. Less patinated Hand-axes of Early Acheulian type, marked by "step flaking." Second group : Tools stained red, but not patinated; Fine-Acheulian hand-axes. Pear and ovate shapes appear; Third group : No laterite staining; Hand-axes by cylinder hammer technique, ovates with flat step flaking. A few cleavers.
3. Attirampakkam Terrace : Along with early forms of hand-axes which are generally rolled, very late Acheulian types of hand-axes—thin, flat, elongated and made on flakes.
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Some of these even recall Micoquian of France. In addition to these hand-axes there are cleavers of all types, some exhibiting Vaal technique and cores and flakes after the Sohan technique.
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The top of the loam yields Levallois-like flakes with faceted platform and much primary flaking on the upper surface.
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Two things may be noted in this sequence of cultures. First, that no stratigraphical evidence is available for the various groups of tools in the Boulder Conglomerate. Even in the Earliest group we see a mixture of Abbevillio-Acheulian elements. This is exactly the position elsewhere in the Handaxe World in India. We do not see, as in East Africa, the steps by which the hand-axes evolved out of the earlier types—pebble tools. Secondly, nowhere a reference is made to Series II and other types of tools. These should now be searched for in the loam and later terraces in the Kortalayar Valley.⁸⁰
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⁸⁰ These have now been found by the late Dr. SUBBARAO and the writer had the opportunity to handle them at Baroda. As for the laterite, it is not correct to say that the primary laterite is implementiferous, either in Madras or in Orissa, as KRISHNASWAMI'S statement seems to suggest. A.I. No. 3, p. 34. In both the regions this is probably Early Pleistocene, but it is the detrital laterite of Middle Pleistocene times which yields tools. The laterite needs an independent study and should not be dated here and there with the help of tools.
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No stratigraphical work has yet been done in other districts of Andhra viz. West and East Godavari, Krishna, Nellore, Anantpur and Cuddapah as well as those of Madras such as Chittoor (?)⁸⁰ North and South Arcot, Madura and Trichinopoly (Tiruchirappalli). But everywhere FOOTE⁸¹ had collected palaeoliths either from the derived laterite beds or the gravel (shingle) beds of rivers. Since then other collections have been made; of these the MANLEY Collection from Nellore has been described in detail by AIYAPPAN.⁸²
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⁸⁰ Recently some tools have been found at Tirupati, *I.A.R.*, 1960-61, p. 57.
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⁸¹ FOOTE'S work has been summarized in detail by SANKALIA, *Investigations into the Prehistoric Archaeology of Gujarat*, Baroda, 1946, p. 100.
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⁸² *MASI*, No. 68.
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It therefore seems certain that except the West Godavari District in the North and the Tinnevelly in the South, Early Man flourished all over south-east India.