An Encyclopaedia of Indian Archaeology v2.c28.506

v2.c28.506

**Attirambakkam**, **Attirampakkam**, **Attrampakkam** (13°14′; 79°0′), Dt Chingleput, situated in the Korttalayar basin, with other sites in the neighbourhood, forms one of the key sites for the s. Indian (Madras) Lower Palaeolithic industry [4.2.6]. Despite its having been denuded earlier by workers in prehistory, its tool output is prolific. The work in this area was initiated by Foote and King in 1863 and subsequently in 1935, by Krishnaswami, 1938, 1947, who noticed that the Palar plain around Madras was characterized by a spread of detrital laterite underlain at certain places by a Quaternary B overlying pre-Tertiary formations. The situation seemed to provide scope on archaeological grounds for a correlation with the mid-Pleistocene basal Narmada zone [4.2.2] and with the mid-Pleistocene of boulder-conglomerate zone of the Potwar [4.2.1]. Paterson, 1941, was the first to point out a quadruple Pleistocene terrace sequence around Madras, similar to what de Terra, 1939, had discovered in the n.-w. [4.2.1]. The laterite peneplain here is cut by the river Korttalayar (old Palar) and near the Red Hills at Erumaivethipalayam terrace features could be recognized. Not far from this place to the n., Manjaṇakaranai provided a relict piece of the terrace geology of the area, relatable to the aggradational terrace well-developed at Attirambakkam. At Attirambakkam itself Krishnaswami saw the stratigraphic evolution of the Acheulian [4.2] cultures from the lateritic basal gravels of the aggradational terrace to the loam on the top one. Handaxes are generally reminiscent of the very late or advanced Acheul types, as of the Micoquian forms. Flakes noticed from the loam were Levallois as with faceted platforms [16.17.1] and much primary flaking on the upper surface. Another noteworthy contribution of the site is that here, unique so far among Indian Stone Age sites, was recovered by Foote at least one vestigal fragment of a human tibia (as identified by Busk and Boyd Dawkins of Oxford) from the wash-out of the implement-bearing conglomerate.