Prehistory and Protohistory in India and Pakistan c7.s15: Bundelkhand
Prehistory and Protohistory in India and Pakistan c7.s15
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- c7.s15.t1 Special Features — 32 parts
Bundelkhand
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Data of very important and far-reaching significance have been recently collected by Shri RAMESHWAR SINGH of the Deccan College. Extending the investigations to Northern Bundelkhand from Malwa where Dr. KHATRI had left, Shri SINGH has discovered a number of sites on the Dhasan. This is a tributary of the Betwa. Here at Sihora, Ghatsemtra, Hasrai, Mohasa, all in Sagar District of Madhya Pradesh, occur stone tools of fine flint, japser and quartzite. These include hand-axes and cleavers on side- and end-flakes as well as slightly smaller tools like points, scrapers and borers. Unfortunately no stratified section is available. But from the nature of the evidence, very shallow banks and freshness of tools, it appears that the makers of both the tool types were staying near the source of the raw material. Hence both the types of tools are found together. And hence it is possible to understand the transition from the earlier to the later culture. There are a number of small hand-axes and cleavers on prepared cores, but often without prepared platform and the tools of the Middle Palaeolithic character are also made on such flakes.
Special Features
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The character of the latter is proved independently when they occur un-associated with earlier material in a stratified context at Gonchi on the river Betwa in Guna District. Here the tools are fashioned out of jaspery flint. The detailed statistics are not yet worked out. But two or three things are remarkable. One has already been noted viz. the frequency of tools on prepared flakes.
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The second is their size. On the whole the tools are much larger in size than those seen from the Deccan. This feature is shared with Western Rajputana and Karnool. In fact one may say that wherever good raw material was available, fairly large points, borers, scrapers were made on flakes, blades or any flat piece.
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A few typical tools are illustrated.
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FIG. 48
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1. Large point or a lance-head made of a fine flake, having unfaceted platform, diffused bulb. The upper surface has mostly cortex, except one longitudinal flake scar, on the top and minute one near the point. The margins of the flake seem to be battered recently. Flint patinated dark brown. 1. GHNI in situ.
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2. A longish flake having a tongue-like projection with both its lateral sides steeply retouched. One of these sides has a slight projection, which is also worked, thus making it a borer-on-side. Thus this specimen could be described as a borer-cum-side-and-end-scraper. Flint patinated dark brown. SRA.
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3. Borer on a heart-shaped side-flake. The bulb is prominent and the platform unfaceted and angle very wide. The point marked by bold, steep retouch. Material same as above. SRA.
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4. A beautiful borer on a roundish, disc-like side flake. Both the surfaces of the flake seem to have been carefully worked by pressure-flaking. The borer point is effected by a deep notch on one side and by a shallow scar on the other. Chalcedony. GMHI. 8.
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FIG. 49
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1. Borer-cum-Scraper on a heart-shaped flake, finely faceted platform, steep retouch.
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2. Borer-cum-Scraper on a small flake, with steep retouch.
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3. Hollow or concave scraper on a flake, unfaceted butt, bulb erased. Deep concavity intentional, and its margin minutely retouched.
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4. Side-and end-scraper on a flake having unfaceted platform and prominent bulb. Margins steeply and boldly trimmed. Flint patinated dark brown. HSRI.
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5. Levallois-like core, two flakes have been removed from surface, the sides are prepared, and one of the shorter edges possibly retouched to make it a scraper. Material as above. SRA.
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Dr. R. V. JOSHI carried out a brief survey of Damoh district, besides Bhilsa and Sagar.⁷² In the valleys of the Sonar, Kopra and Bearma, a number of sites with Series II were found. These include flakes and blades, but none removed from fluted cores, scrapers, points, borers and core-choppers.
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⁷² I.A.R., 1958-59, p. 26, and 1960-61, p. 63. A full report has been published in A.I., No. 17 (1961), p. 3 ff. The most important sites are Khojakheri on the Kopra and at Rehli on the Sonar.
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*Other Sites*
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Further northwards, on the north-easternmost extension of the Vindhya hills, Bridget ALLCHIN⁷³ describes some four sites, Pandav Falls, Baghain River gravels, Kanhari Fields, and Rehuntiya. The last is in Banda district and is probably the most north-easterly point in the distribution of the Middle Palaeolithic Industries. The most important sites are however the first two, Pandav Falls being a factory site. The tools from the latter—whether made of limestone or fine quartzite—have undergone a peculiar weathering. The tools have a matt surface, instead of glossy, and have become porous like pumice. The collection includes (i) Several types of scrapers, (ii) Points, (iii) Cores including the "tortoise" type, (iv) Flakes, (v) Blade flakes, (vi) One hand-axe and (vii) Chopping tools. While the existence of hand-axe is not very surprising as small ones have been found in situ at Nevasa, the recording of "Points" is important, because the author says, elsewhere in the same paper,⁷⁴ that well defined points are absent from the Indian Middle Stone Age, which seems to go against our observation.
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⁷³ Op.cit., p. 15.
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⁷⁴ Ibid., p. 20.
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1
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2
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3
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4
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Fig. 48. Points and Borers, Bundelkhand (1/1).
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1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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Fig. 49, Points and Scrapers, Bundelkhand (1/1).
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The collection from the Baghain River gravels is of a similar nature. All the 9 flakes are struck from prepared cores, though none exhibits prepared platform. This is also a feature of SINGH's collection from the Betwa.