Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v1.c16.s2.t5.8

v1.c16.s2.t5.8

Dhavalikar suggests that by the middle of the second millennium BC some influences from Western Asia began to infiltrate through the north-western regions of the sub-continent. It is probably these people who introduced the West Asian elements in the Malwa Culture and it was only by assimilating such influences that the culture was enriched. However, he admits that the pottery cultures of Central and Western India and the Deccan owe a great deal to the Harappans, at least for their painted black-on-red pottery. Chakrabarti however strongly disagrees with the views of Sankalia and Dhavalikar. The suggested West Asiatic analogies ‘are too general to be of any use in a valid and meaningful comparison’. (Chakrabarti, 1977: 25; Agarwal, 1984: 243-44)