The Personality of India: Pre- and Proto-historic Foundation of India and Pakistan c14.s1.t3.3

c14.s1.t3.3

The Asutosh Museum authorities at Calcutta have discovered a number of Early Historic sites in the lower delta of Bengal yielding among other things, N.B.P. and Rouletted ware.² Reliable evidence for the reconstruction of the sequence comes from the excavations at Bangarh on the *Punarbhava* (Dinajpur District) by Shri K. Goswami³ and of Tamluk (ancient *Tamralipti* in the Midnapore district) by Shri M. N. Deshpande.⁴ The former site has yielded definite evidence of the Northern Black Polished Ware in the lowest levels confirming the possibility of rapid development during the Mauryan Period. Its earliest beginnings, if any await the action of the spade. The excavation of Tamluk is very important for the fact that it furnishes evidence of a possibility of a Neolithic (?) culture characterized by the use of polished stone axes, being superceded by the higher cultures with definite influences in pottery, terracottas etc., from the Gangetic Valley. Apart from the earlier Indian literary references, Tamluk is mentioned by Ptolemy. The development of this eastern port by the beginning of the Christian era is also corroborated by the occurrence of Rouletted ware (similar to that of Sisupalgarh), also the sprinkler belonging typologically to the Red Polished Ware (Early centuries of the Christian era), and further distribution of the Rouletted ware is very remarkable.