The Personality of India: Pre- and Proto-historic Foundation of India and Pakistan c12: IV. Chronology
The Personality of India: Pre- and Proto-historic Foundation of India and Pakistan c12
- Language
- English
Contents
- c12.s1 Pre-Harappan — 3 parts
- c12.s2 Harappan — 1 part
- c12.s3 Post-Harappan — 25 parts
IV. Chronology
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History without dates is a grand-mother's tale. I very well remember this adage taught to me as a student. Though this over-emphasis on chronology is being relaxed in historical studies, the archaeologist needs a simple time scale, with which the different cultures can be inter-related in space and time.
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The history of man begins from the dim past, when he first appeared on the face of this earth. The geologists and the palaeontologists tell us that this took place about a million years ago. For these vast stretches of unmeasurable periods, Clark has rightly compared our small solar year of 365¼ days to a centimetre for measuring the Mount Everest. Hence the prehistorians take advantage of identifiable natural phenomena like the major changes in the climate of the earth to correlate certain phases of human development to those of the climate. But thanks to astronomy, it is possible to calculate the amount of heat radiated by the sun during the last million years. The graphical representation of this phenomenon showed again certain fluctuations of climate, and at such approximate intervals, as to coincide remarkably with the earlier calculations of the geologists about the duration of the various glacial and inter-glacial periods. Thus Prof. Zeuner¹ has correlated the astronomical and other geological time scales for Europe and the Mediterranean region, which are being studied in great detail for well over a century.
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¹ ZEUNER, F. E. Dating the Past. London (III Ed.) 1953.
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For India, no such systematic work has been carried out. A beginning was made by the Yale-Cambridge expedition in Upper Punjab and Kashmir. This demonstrated the evidence of glacial and inter-glacial deposits and have correlated them with the human cultures. Paterson and Zeuner have attempted a provisional correlation of European and Indian glaciations and projected the relevant dates to them, at least as far as North-west India is concerned.² These correlations will have to be corroborated by other means and we look forward to greater attention to this problem. On the basis of this provisional chronology, we can say that the earliest man in the Sohan valley lived some time at the end of the II Glacial period or about 435,000 years according to Zeuner.
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² ZEUNER. ibid.
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For Tropical India, Zeuner has recognized climatic fluctuations between "Wet" and " Dry " periods in Gujarat.¹ Cammiade and Burkitt² on the South-east coast of India, and Sen and Bose³ in Orissa, have done some preliminary work. Yet these areas will have to be studied in detail.
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¹ ZEUNER, F. E. Stone Age and Pleistocene chronology in Gujarat, Poona. 1950.
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² CAMMIADE AND BURKITT. op. cit.
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³ SEN AND BOSE. Excavations at Mayurbhanj, Calcutta. 1948.
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The greatest single advance in archaeological techniques is the knowledge of the rate of disintegration of the radio-active element of Carbon (Carbon-14) present in small quantities in archaeological antiquities.⁴ It is very gratifying to learn that the National Physical Laboratory of India has joined the chain of laboratories trying to help the archaeologist in dating the antiquities. This method, which is still in an experimental stage, gives large standard-deviations and hence its applicability to recent periods is somewhat doubtful, till the techniques improve. Zeuner is also studying the effects of soil-forming processes and other contaminating agencies on the quantity of C-14⁵. Yet, a few crucial dates from carefully sorted material would be a good starting point for our chronology. Fortunately, the recent work of Fairservis⁶ and Casal⁷ in Baluchistan and Afghanistan respectively, to which reference will be made later, has proved to be very useful for a general review of the position in the Indus basin.
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⁴ LIBBY. Dating by Radio-Carbon. Chicago. 1956.
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⁵ ZEUNER. F. E. Annual report of the Institute of Archaeology, London University—Eleventh Annual Report 1955, pp. 43-51.
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⁶ FAIRSERVIS, WALTER, A. Excavations in the Quetta Valley, West Pakistan. Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History. New York. 1956. Vol. 45, Pt. 2.
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⁷ CASAL, JEAN MARIE. "Mundigak"—Illustrated London News, 7th May, 1955. pp. 832-35.
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The more basic techniques, based on stratigraphic excavation, enable one to build up a sequence of objects, as they were deposited at the sites. Such a chronology, unless related to a known system of absolute dates, is relative. For European archaeology, the development of a calendar at a very early age in the historic civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt has been a boon, to give a system of relative and absolute chronology.
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In India, we have no such facilities and much more intensive explorations and excavations are needed before we can correlate archaeological and literary chronology. But the contacts of India with our neighbours in Western Asia provide some very valuable links to enable us to fix up a few terminal dates to start with. Hence our chronology is in an absolutely fluid state and requires constant revision for some time. It is well-known that the whole chronology of the Indus Valley civilization depends on the association of certain Indian objects in Sargonid and Post-Sargonid Mesopotamia with a central dating of about 2350 B. C. for Sargon of Akkad. This primary evidence is corroborated by certain datable Western Asian antiquities in India and vice versa, as well as a fairly satisfactory series of C-14 dates for the Pre-Harappan cultures on the Indo-Iranian border. Since the publication of Stuart Piggot's first synthesis,¹ the most important work covering the entire field of culture sequence in the Indus basin and the borders of Pakistan is that of Fairservis. Fairservis has made a very reasonable case for a reconsideration of the dates of Harappan culture itself.²
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¹ PIGGOT, STUART. *Prehistoric India*, Penguin Book. England, 1950.
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² FAIRSERVIS. *ibid.*
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"Culture cycles"
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It seems we have a sufficiently clear idea of the archaeological picture of the Indus basin with the extensive explorations and some of the recent excavations. Using an analogy of the analysis of European Prehistory by Late Prof. Gordon Childe we may refer in main to three "Culture cycles",³ a group of cultures relates in time and space, yet showing quite significant divergences—or to put it in another way, a group of contemporary cultures with contacts. Thus we can divide the Proto-historic period into 3 broad groups:
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³ CHILDE, GORDON V. *op. cit.* p. 22 He explains: "Since the types thus produced are not everywhere identical and are associated with other different types in each province, prehistorians are today inclined to regard this 'culture' or industry rather as a cycle of cultures..."
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1. Pre-Harappan.
2. Harappan.
3. Post-Harappan.
Pre-Harappan
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We have already described the relation of India, to Western Asia, as that of "a periphery of the nuclear Near East".⁴ The recent work of Fairservis in Baluchistan, throws a new light on this problem. Here, we have a sequence beginning with a Pre-pottery Neolithic Stage, and as pointed out by Childe,⁵ this stage is represented at Kili Ghul Mohammed in Baluchistan. But the radio-carbon age of the last-named site is not more than 3500 B.C. Who can now dispute the validity of the geographic contention? We shall discuss the other C-14 dates in our section on Proto-history. In view of the plausible relations revealed between the cultures of the Indus basin and the Indo-Iranian border lands, we can group the whole group of Pre-Harappan cultures beginning with the Neolithic stage as the first cycle of cultures.
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⁴ BRAIDWOOD, R. J. *Near East and the foundations of civilization*. Oregon. 1952.
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⁵ CHILDE. *op. cit.* p. 37.
Harappan
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We have already indicated the main premise on which the Harappan Chronology depends, viz. the Sargonid link. But the newly revised dates of Kili Ghul Mohammed and Damb Sadat will have to be taken into consideration.
Post-Harappan
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In the last few years, a good deal of work has been done in Central and Southern India on the Chalcolithic cultures, which are Post-Harappan and which precede the Historic period commencing about 500 B. C. Enough light has been shed on their interrelation and these cultures are characterized by the common use of painted pottery and a highly specialized blade-technique. While some of them represent survivals of the Harappan, others show certain older traits mixed with new elements which penetrated into this sub-continent about the beginning of the first millennium.
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The valuable link with Western Asia is lost when we come to the end of Indus Valley civilization. Nowhere, except at Harappa, has an overlap been noticed between the main Harappan civilization and the succeeding cultures of the Punjab.
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Till 1944, the whole of the Deccan peninsula remained a vague cross-word puzzle. But Sir Mortimer Wheeler has left behind a fine working system of chronology based on the impact of Roman trade and the consequent deposition of Roman coins and coin hoards of known date, and other antiquities. Now the recent work in India has, more or less succeeded in disentangling a fairly satisfactory system of early historic and proto-historic chronology. It is not possible to go into the details of chronologies of individual regions, but it is proposed to discuss a few crucial types of pottery, which serve as definite diagnostic traits, and of Brahmagiri, on account of its importance to South Indian archaeology.
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The most crucial pottery, on which the whole fabric of proto-history depends is the so-called Northern Black polished ware on account of its bright black surface, which seems to be the more common and characteristic type.
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We are not in a position, yet to decide its origin and the exact technique of manufacture, except that it is made of very finely levigated clay and fired to a very high temperature under reducing conditions, probably in a sagger, as suggested by Rawson.¹ Dr. Wheeler recognized its importance for the North Indian sites where it occurs in comparative profusion, and attributed it to the Pre-Alexandrian levels at Taxila.¹ While this pottery occurred from 6 to 13 feet, a hoard of coins with one of Alexander, in a mint condition, was found at six feet. But the more recent excavations at Kausambi, Rajagriha and Vaisali have shown that the focus of this pottery is the Gangetic basin, particularly the ancient Magadha, where it occurs in very large quantities and varieties and that Taxila marks a peripheral distribution. The chief type site is the ancient capital of Vatsa, Kausambi, on the left bank of the river Jamuna. Here, N. B. P. occurs at the lowest levels of the Historic period, and the construction of city's ramparts has been placed to the beginnings of the 6th century B. C.² There are quite a good thickness of deposits below the main monastery of Ghoshitarama, dated to the 3rd century, B. C. But the importance of this section can only be appreciated when the report of these excavation is published. Before we close this note, it is necessary to caution the use of this Gangetic Valley date to the peripheral areas of Central, Western and Southern India. Since the most probable agency of these movements was trade and political conquest, it may be dated a little later, even upto the 3rd century B. C.
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¹ RAWSON, P. S. "Surface treatment of Indian pottery" *Man*, 1953. Art. No. 58.
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¹ WHEELER AND KRISHNADEVA. *Ancient India*, No. 1. Jan. 1946. pp. 55-8.
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² GHOSH, A. *Presidential Address—Archaeology section*. XVII Session of the All India Oriental Conference. Ahmedabad. 1953.
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The N. B. P. spread over various parts of the country from Taxila in the north-west to Gaur and Pandua in the east and Amaravati in the South. But outside the Gangetic valley, it occurs in very small quantities and usually at the Buddhist sites. Does it signify that they were the carriers? For example, at Bairat, an N. B. P. bowl, nicely mended with copper wires, occurred in the excavation. This pottery seems to have spread very rapidly in view of what we have seen at Taxila. At Maheshvar and Ujjain, the N. B. P. occurs at the intermediate levels of black-and-red ware and iron, suggesting again, an infiltration into this area about 5th century or slightly later. Hence this ware can safely be dated to the five centuries preceding the Christian Era, in view of its occurrence also with the coins of the Satavahanas at Nasik³ and Nevasa.⁴ The whole chronology of the Grey Ware depends on this pottery, as they stratigraphically belong to the Pre-N. B. P. Phase.
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³ SANKALIA, H. D. AND DEO, S., B. *Excavations at Nasik and Jorwe*, Poona. 1956.
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⁴ Government of India. *Indian Archaeology 1955-56*. New Delhi. 1956.
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In central India, the black-and-red ware occurs in the Pre-N. B. P. Phase but it becomes profuse with the N. B. P. (Fig. 29).
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Another very important fabric of pottery, which has a very wide distribution, is the Red polished Ware. Its focus is Gujarat and Kathiawad, where it occurs in nearly forty sites and in profusion. It is very distinctive by its fine clay body and its high resemblance to the Roman Samian and other Red wares of western Asia. Curiously it has the circumstantial association of Graeco-Roman antiquities; Cameo, bronze handle with the figure of Eros, Sculpture of Poseidon, Roman coins and clay bullae at a number of sites.¹ Some of the forms are characteristically Indian and it may be inferred that it represents the adoption of the Roman technique, as a result of commercial contacts. Though the forms are Indian, their chronology, luxurious character, limited occurrence at all sites and the characteristic association of Roman antiquities is too much of a coincidence to ignore this compromise. The Gangetic valley red wares are much inferior in fabric as well as in the treatment of the surface.
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¹ SUBBARAO, B., *Baroda through the Ages*. M. S. University Archaeology series No. 1. Baroda 1953. Appendix 1.
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This pottery with its focus in Western India has been very well-dated to the Kshatrapa Period (the first four centuries of the Christian era) by the excavations at Baroda, Timbarva (Karvan), Variav, Vadnagar, Amreli and Vasai by the association of large number of coins. Fortunately, we can trace its further expansion all over the country by the widespread occurrence in small quantities of a very characteristic diagnostic type—a narrow necked "sprinkler type"—right from Rupar in the Punjab to Bangarh in Bengal and Chandravalli in Northern Mysore. This occurs nowhere before the Christian era and inspite of a number of sites where they occur together, it is nowhere reported to overlap with the N. B. P.²
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² At Rupar and Prakasha, Dr. Sharma and B. K. Thapar have dated their sequence on the basis of the N.B.P., which they have assigned a date between 500-100 B.C. Hence, here sprinklers have been included in the Post-N.B.P. phase beginning with 100 B.C. This does not vitally affect the date of this ware consequently.
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Now, we pass on to Brahmagiri, on which the whole south Indian chronology rests.³ The solid datum for the chronology of the site is the Rouletted ware, dated to about the 1st century A. D.
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³ WHEELER. *Brahmagiri and Chandravalli*—1947. *Ancient India* No. 4. New Delhi. 1947-48.
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The associated local pottery is the so-called Russet coated criss-cross painted ware, described as the "Andhra" ware for convenience. The next earlier culture, namely the Megalithic, was found overlapping with the Andhra. Wheeler estimated the duration of the Megalithic culture to about 250 years and was greatly influenced by the dramatic context, provided by the break up of a "universal state" as being instrumental for a folk wandering from the south. Hence he ascribed it to the beginning of the 3rd century B. C. or a little earlier about 236 B. C. (death of Asoka). Dr. Wheeler himself has warned us against any "theoretical attempt to build up a time scale on the depth of the strata". Now the more recent work described later, calls forth a slight revision of the chronology at Brahmagiri without disturbing the main datum. The most important factor is the occurrence in large areas of Northern and Central India of the typical megalithic black-and-red ware in unimpeachable earlier deposits dating almost to the beginning of the first millennium B. C. Its gradual spread southwards will be indicated later. The most important fact is the close affinities of the chalcolithic burials at Bahal and the incompletely investigated pits near the cists V and VI at Brahmagiri which, on Wheeler's own admission, are appreciably earlier than the designated megalithic culture.
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The second factor is the 'Andhra' pottery itself. At Brahmagiri, Maski and Sanganakallu, a fine distinction could be made in the technique. The so-called Russet coated pottery technically, retains the forms of the black-and-red ware. B. K. Thapar has pointed out that there seems to be a difference in the firing, since the exterior rim portion is well-burnt.¹ We see the survival of a few 'Megalithic types'. As Wheeler put it, "The two commonest types on which this characteristic decoration is found are dishes with an internally beaked rim, and particularly partially straight sided bowls. The former occasionally bear concentric rings of rouletted pattern on the upper side of the base. The straight-sided bowls seem to be an inheritance from the simple ceramic of the Megalith culture".² Besides, the amount of the bright red-slipped ware increases. There is a nice negative evidence for this very significant ceramic change. Salihundam, on the east coast of India, yields larger quantities of bright red-slipped wares, and the Red Polished Ware and there is a significant absence of the black-and-red ware. The site can be dated otherwise to the 3rd Century A. D. Similarly Nagarjuna-Konda, the Ikshvaku capital of the III century A.D., on the banks of the river Krishna, also yielded very little quantity of black-and-red ware. Thus the chronology of the Russet coated Andhra ware, which is absent at Salihundam and Nagarjuna Konda, can now be dated to about 100 B.C. to 200 A.D. Besides, this pottery has nothing to do with the political dynasty of Andhras, since it does not occur in a very large portion of the old Andhra Empire in Central and Western India, at a number of well-investigated sites. It curiously confines itself to the lower valleys of the Krishna and Godavari. Besides, it has very close affinities in technique to the well-known Coimbatore and other Megalithic painted pottery. It seems to be a local but widespread south Indian pottery.³
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¹ At the Symposium held at Delhi, Government of India, under the auspices of the Department of Archaeology in September 1957. Also see Thapar B. K. "Maski-1954-A chalcolithic site of the Southern Deccan" Ancient India No. 13, Jan. 1957, P. 73.
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² WHEELER, R.E.M. "Brahmagiri and Chandravalli-1947" Ancient India, No. 4. New Delhi. 1947-48, p. 237.
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³ DR. M. SESHADRI of the Mysore University has unearthed a cist yielding this type of pottery with wavy-line decorations.
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A more urgent need for a revision seems to be the correlation of the North Indian and South Indian archaeological chronology. Now, the Vindhyan barrier has been successfully broken by the recent work at Maheshwar. With our knowledge of the age and distribution of the N. B. P. belonging to the early centuries preceding the Christian era, we can clearly see its movements in space and time towards west, east and south from its focus in the Gangetic valley. Similarly, in the early centuries of the Christian era, we have another pottery, the Red Polished ware and its movements towards east, north and south can be followed in space and time, from its focus in western India. With the help of this pottery again, we can link up with Brahmagiri and Chandravalli in the Andhra Period. Hence, a slight downward revision of the Brahmagiri chronology seems to be essential to reconcile the evidence from the north and south. This would enable us to place the Megaliths in the Pre-Mauryan period, without upsetting the Roman datum. Even for the "Andhra pottery", the 1st century A.D. should be a central date instead of a terminal date. These changes would enable us to place the infiltration of metals into the Central Deccan to a period about the beginning of the 1st Millennium B.C. The more obvious and urgent desideratum is to conduct one or two large scale excavations in the Central Deccan to verify and corroborate the sequence of Sanganakallu, Brahmagiri, Maski and Piklihal.
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Before closing this discussion on chronology, let us remind ourselves of the magnitude of the sub-continent and the horizontal spread of the various strata of cultures in time and space. Some of these time-space coordinates are becoming clearer and we should bear in mind the time for their spread. Hence the need is for a more flexible and dynamic approach while interpreting the material relics in different parts of the country, sometimes as we shall see, of two cultures in different zones, but yet belonging to the same complex with common diagnostic traits. Hence it is difficult to draw horizontal lines across the lines of vertical development in different parts of the country, since the horizontal expansion was influenced and even retarded by the geographic barriers within the country.