A History of Agriculture in India v1.c18.s7: The Late Harappans in the Godavari Valley
A History of Agriculture in India v1.c18.s7
- Language
- English
Contents
- v1.c18.s7.t1 Daimabad — 11 parts
- v1.c18.s7.t2 (iii) Surkotda, District Kutch — 2 parts
The Late Harappans in the Godavari Valley
v1.c18.s7.1
S.A. Sali⁷ has drawn attention to some late Harappans in the Godavari Valley in Maharashtra. From an ancient site at Kalivada on a bank of a small feeder stream of the River Pravara near the village of Ambhore, in the Sangamner Taluka of the Ahmadnagar District, potteries were found which closely resemble the late Harappan red ware. Sali believes that this is the first evidence indicating the southward extension of the Harappans into the Godavari Valley.
v1.c18.s7.2
⁷ Sali, S.A. The Harappan Contacts in the Deccan, *Indian Inst. Advanced Study, Seminar*, Simla, Nov. 1977
Daimabad
v1.c18.s7.t1.1
The Chalcolithic site at Daimabad on the Pravara River in the Ahmadnagar District was excavated by Deshpande in 1958-59. It yielded evidence of four phases, viz. Neolithic, Late Harappa, Buff and Cream Ware, Malwa and Jorwe cultures. Apart from potteries, charred grain of barley, a fragment of a copper celt, and microliths of chert and chalcedony were discovered from the Late Harappan phase.
v1.c18.s7.t1.2
In 1974, a hoard of bronzes was discovered by a Bhil from the roots of shrubs which he was uprooting for fuel. Sali ascribes them to the Late Harappan phase. These comprise a chariot with a pair of humped bullocks yoked to it. This must be the breed present in Maharashtra in 1300 B.C. It was used for ploughing, pulling carts and chariots (Fig. 140). The chariot is driven by a naked man. Attached to his penis is a four-hooded cobra. In front of him is a dog standing on the central pole. Other animals in the hoard are a rhino, a buffalo and an elephant. Obviously, it is a cult image. According to Sali, the man represents the Pasupati, Shiva, the Lord of Beasts.
v1.c18.s7.t1.3
A pot recovered from Inamgaon has a painting showing two zebus yoked to a bullock-cart (Fig. 141).
v1.c18.s7.t1.4
The Harappan Daimabad was a sizeable town covering more than 20 a thali combined with a stool.
v1.c18.s7.t1.5
Utensils of quartz, copper, ivory and bone, terracotta toys, and seals and beads of sundry materials have been discovered. The toys include terracotta animal figurines and carts. The weights of quartz or agate are identical with those of the Indus Valley. Spearheads, arrowheads, axes and fish-hooks of copper or bronze were also recovered.
v1.c18.s7.t1.6
According to S.R. Rao, ‘Lothal as well as the Indus Valley cities received gold from the Kolar and Hatti gold mines in Karnataka. The occurrence of typical Harappan products such as disc-beads of white steatite at Maski, Piklihal, Tekkalakota, Utnur (2300 B.C.), and flat copper celts at Tekkalakota (1700 B.C.) and Hallur, all situated within the gold-producing region of Deccan, assumes great significance in the present context. Recently some neolithic sites have been discovered in the ancient gold-working region around Kolar in Karnataka and Hosur in Tamil Nadu. It is not improbable that the gold from Kolar and Hatti mines was carried over land and sea routes through one of the ancient ports situated on the west coast mentioned by later Greek writers. 14Carbon date or the Indus culture of Lothal is 2300 B.C.
v1.c18.s7.t1.7
(ii) RANGPUR
v1.c18.s7.t1.8
Rangpur is 30 miles [48 kilometres] to the south-west of Lothal. In the second millennium B.C., a part of the population of Lothal apparently set out for the interior of Kathiawar, settling at Rangpur. Rangpur was undoubtedly inhabited earlier, since agate and jasper microliths, not associated with pottery, have been found there. The traces of Indus culture at Rangpur are the same as those at Lothal. They represent a later phase and include utensils of poorer quality. This deterioration is accentuated towards the end of the second millennium, when the pottery became decadent and the weights and knives of quartz disappeared. In the first millennium, two types of pottery were in use: the bright red and the red-and-black.
v1.c18.s7.t1.9
‘Rangpur excavations have thus not only confirmed the Harappan penetration into Gujarat-Saurashtra, but have also shown that there was a pre-Harappan settlement, and a continuation after the destruction of Harappan.
v1.c18.s7.t1.10
‘With these changes we should note the presence of the horse and bajra, besides the absence of so many typical Harappan objects of daily use and the presence of newer ones. Except in the climate and vegetation and to a great extent in the fauna—cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, pig and deer—there was a great change in the lifeways of the inhabitants of Period III at Rangpur’.¹⁰
v1.c18.s7.t1.11
¹⁰ Sankalia, H.D. The Prehistory and Protohistory of India and Pakistan, pp. 380, 381
(iii) Surkotda, District Kutch
v1.c18.s7.t2.1
The site at Surkotda in the Kutch District was discovered in 1965, and has provided us with evidence regarding the diffusion of the Harappan culture from Sind via the land route. The excavation brought to light a sequence of three cultural periods. In the earliest period, the objects found were largely Harappan. They included long chert blades, beads of steatite, carnelian, lapis lazuli, faience and terracotta; copper rings, bangles and a spearhead; terracotta toy cart-frames, bangles and cakes; bone objects; and a large number of clay *lingas*. The pottery showed typical Harappan forms, the Indus goblet, dish-on-stand, perforated jar, handled cup, as also characteristic Harappan painted designs, such as the fish scale, *pipal* leaf, cranes, deer, and plantains.
v1.c18.s7.t2.2
In Period II, the Harappan elements were less pronounced. Among the finds were a copper flat celt and a chisel, indicating some metallurgical sophistication. The upper levels yielded sherds of the white-painted black-and-red ware of the Ahar fabric which indicated that a new group of settlers had arrived.