An Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology v1.c6.s8: 1.8 Suidae
An Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology v1.c6.s8
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1.8 Suidae
v1.c6.s8.1
Bones of the domestic pig (*Sus scrofa cristatus*) are first found in the Mesolithic levels at ADAMGARH and BAGOR. In general they occur most numerously after the bones of the cattle, sheep and goat, though at INAMGAON they are replaced by those of the deer. At AHAR², NAVDATOLI, ROPAR and HASTINĀPURA, bones occur profusely and predominantly of pigs of around the age of 1 to 2 years. Obviously pork was a staple dietary item at the c. Indian Chalcolithic sites, specially NAVDATOLI, where the generally humid environment may have favoured its breeding. Interestingly, pig bones are found infrequently at s. Indian Neolithic sites and are absent at UTNUR and PIKLIHAL. In the Megalithic period the pig occurs in greater numbers. Possibly, therefore, it was a later introduction to the s. from the Deccan. At BAGOR only small herds were kept. Several examples of teeth closely resembling those of the wild boar suggest that the latter may have inhabited the area (as it does even today) and was hunted rather than reared in captivity. Bones of the wild boar predominate in the earlier levels at the site, while those of the domestic pig occurs more frequently in the later levels. This may have some significance on the history of the indigenous domestication of this animal. At PRABHAS PATAN and NAVDATOLI bones of the wild boar occur along with those of the domestic pig. At ADAMGARH and LANGHNAJ charred pig bones are common, and the state of wear of the teeth suggests that both young and old animals were eaten. At KAYATHA the pig is absent in the earlier phases, making its first appearance in *c.* 1500–1200 B.C.
v1.c6.s8.2
A characteristic result of domestication is the notable reduction in length of the third upper and lower molars and to a lesser degree of the second ones. Otherwise, on the basis of other skeletal elements it is difficult to distinguish the wild from the domestic pig.
v1.c6.s8.3
The three feral races of the pig found in India today are: *Sus salvanius*, in the foot-hill regions of the Himalayas; *Sus scrofa andamanensis*, confined to the Andaman Islands; and *Sus scrofa cristatus*, common throughout peninsular India. The last is a subspecies of *Sus scrofa*, the Palaearctic wild boar of the Lower Pleistocene, and is closely related to its European counterpart *Sus scrofa scrofa*. Opinions differ as to whether it is really possible to distinguish between the European and Indian subspecies on the basis of skull measurements and the size and complexity of the molars (Clutton-Brock, 1965). Little is known of the actual history of pig domestication in Asia, and the theory that it was domesticated in India remains unsubstantiated. *Sus cristatus*, regarded as the ancestor of the Asian domesticated pig, is traced back to the earliest Neolithic in the Near East (at Jarmo, *c.* 6500 B.C.). The earliest evidence for the domestic pig is associated with the beginnings of agriculture and domestication of the cattle. The pig was bred for meat and fat and rarely used as a sacrificial animal. It increased in importance as food once the cow began to be worshipped but later ceased to be an important dietary item, the sheep and goat further reducing its value.
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Allchin, F.R., 1961, *Utnur Excavations*, Hyderabad, pp. 54–64; 1969, in Ucko, P. J., & Dimbleby, G.W., ed., *Domestication & Exploitation of Plants & Animals*, London, pp. 317–22. Alur, K.R., 1975, in Clason, A.T., ed., *Arch. Studies*, Amsterdam/Oxford, pp. 407-12; 1967 unpublished, *Note on the animal remains from Utnur*; Clason, A.T., 1974, in *Eastern Anthropologist*, 27, I, pp. 5-21; 1977, in *Eastern Anthropologist*, 33, 1, pp. 41–89, Clutton-Brock, J., 1965, *Excavations at Langhnaj*, II, *Fauna*, Poona. Degerbol M., 1961, in *Proc. Prehistoric Soc. Cambridge*, 27, pp. 35–55. Matthey, R., 1954, *Mammalia*, 18, p. 225. Narr, K.J., 1959, in *Berliner Beiträge für Vor-und Frühgeschichte*, 2, 119-25, Pilgrim, G.E., 1939, in *Palaeontologia India*, N.S. 26, 249-330. Prashad, B., 1936, *Animal Remains from Harappa*, Mem. ASI, 51. Prater, S.H., 1972, *The Book of Indian Animals*, Bombay. Reed, C.A., 1959, in *Science*, 130, pp. 1629–39. Sewell, R.B.S., & Guha, B.S., 1931, in J. Marshall, *Mohenjo-daro & the Indus Civilization*, London. Sharma. A.K., in *Purātattva*, 7, pp. 75–6. Wheeler, M., 1968, *Indus Civilization*, Cambridge. Zeuner, F.E., 1963, *History of Domesticated Animals*, London. For sites see respective entries in vol. II.—G.L. BADAM