South Asian Stone Age

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The South Asian Stone Age spans the prehistoric age from the earliest use of stone tools in the Paleolithic period to the rise of agriculture, domestication, and pottery in the Neolithic period across present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka. As in other parts of the world, in South Asia, the divisions of the stone age into the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic periods do not carry precise chronological boundaries; instead, they describe broad phases of technological and cultural development based on the tools and artifacts found at various archaeological sites. [1]

Contents

The Paleolithic (Old Stone Age) in South Asia began as early as 2.6 million years ago (Ma) based on the earliest known sites with hominin activity, namely the Siwalik Hills of northwestern India. [2] The Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) is defined as a transitional phase following the end of the Last Glacial Period, beginning around 10000 BCE. The Neolithic (New Stone Age), starting around 7000 BCE, is associated with the emergence of agriculture and other hallmarks of settled life or sedentism, as opposed to hunter-gatherer lifestyles. [3] The earliest South Asian neolithic sites include Mehrgarh in present-day Pakistan dated to 6500 BCE [1] and Koldihwa, in present-day Uttar Pradesh, India, where domesticated rice has been radiocarbon dated to around 7000–6000 BCE. [4]

Paleolithic

The Paleolithic in South Asia is also traditionally divided into the Lower, Middle, and Upper Paleolithic periods. The Paleolithic falls within the larger geologic Pleistocene Epoch, spanning from about 2.58 million years ago (Ma) to 11,700 years ago (Ka). [5] As such, the terms Early Pleistocene and Middle Pleistocene are often applied as overlapping geological timeframes in discussions about the Paleolithic.

Lower Paleolithic

The Lower Paleolithic period in South Asia represents the earliest phase of hominid activity in the region and chronologically corresponds with the Early Pleistocene. This archeological record, spanning 2.6 Ma [2] -2.5 Ma [6] to approximately 300 Ka, is marked by evidence of lithic technology, including those characterized as the Acheulean industry, (which are often attributed to early hominids such as Homo erectus), the Soanian industry, [7] named after the Soan River, a tributary of the Indus, as well as distinct Pre-Acheulean lithic assemblages.

Siwalik Hills (Pre-Acheulean)

The Masol site, located in the Siwalik Frontal Range north of Chandigarh, India, was surveyed between 2009 and 2011 by an Indo-French research program patroned by Professor Yves Coppens, the College of France and Academy of Sciences and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. [8]

The site yielded over 1,469 fossils within a stratigraphic layer confirmed by paleomagnetic dating to 2.6 Ma, including 45 fossils with green fractures, 12 with carnivore traces, and 3 with cut marks, found on a tibia shaft from a large herbivore, a bovid shaft, and a rib from a Stegodon (Stegadon insignis). [9] Although critics have attributed similar types of bone markings elsewhere to large predators or trampling, [10] in this case, researchers concluded the "anthropic origin can be in no doubt" based on several lines of evidence. Foremost, the markings closely matched experimental cut marks made by quartzite edges. [2] Furthermore, the taphonomic analysis of the Masol site does not suggest dispersal by a natural disaster nor does it provide evidence for animal predation of such large prey. [9] Finally, statistically, researchers noted a relatively high frequency of sharp cut marks—3 out of 1,469 fossils [9] , compared to sites like Java, Indonesia, where only 5 bones out of 30,000 showed similar marks in a locale with substantial fossil evidence of a Homo erectus. [11]

Evidence of anthropic cut marks on fossilized bone in the Himalayan foothills (2.6 Ma) [2] positions South Asia closer to the center of hominin evolution than ever before, suggesting the region was witness to early scavenging behaviors, similar to those observed at sites like Dikika, Ethiopia (3.4 Ma) [12] and Lomekwi, Kenya (3.2 Ma), [13] both earlier and further from Africa than previously considered. [14]

Pothohar Plateau (Pre-Acheulean)

While the Masol site provides evidence of quartzite cut marks, other sites in the region reveal evidence of stone tools capable of producing such cut marks. Riwat, located in the Pothohar Plateau, is one of the earliest sites containing Pre-Acheulean stone tools dated to around 2.5 Ma. [6] Similarly, the Pabbi Hills in Northern Pakistan have produced stone tools dated to 2.2 to 0.9 Ma. [15] The stone tools found at these sites, including light and heavy-duty tools like simple end-choppers, represent a distinct, older lithic technology separate from the Acheulean and Soanian traditions. [16]

Earliest Acheulean Sites

The Attirampakkam site, located near Chennai, was first identified by the British geologist Robert Bruce Foote in the 1860s. [17] It has produced some of the oldest known Acheulean tools in not just South Asia, but the entire world, indicating that hominins inhabiting the Indian subcontinent were already familiar with bifacial tools, handaxes and cleavers approximately 1.5 Ma. This dating, confirmed by both paleomagnetic and 26Al/10Be burial dating, means that India's oldest Acheulean tools were contemporary to those in Africa and Central Asia and thus challenges the traditional view of Acheulean colonization, suggesting either an earlier spread or independent development of these lithic technologies across several continents. [18]

Isampur in Karnataka, India, is one of 200 some Lower Paleolithic Acheulian sites in the Hunasagi and Baichbal valleys, and is dated to about 1.27 Ma. [19] Although older assemblages have been found in Attirampakkam and Bori, Maharashtra (1.4 Ma), [20] Isampur is a unique archeological site in that it is a quarry - a site of lithic manufacturing where over 15,000 artifacts have been uncovered. The site has provided insights into a full spectrum of early hominin tool-making processes, from the process of selecting limestone slabs, removing large flakes, and shaping tools into bifaces such as handaxes and cleavers through secondary flaking. [21]

Acheulean Assemblages and Homo erectus in South Asia

The presence of Homo erectus in South Asia is largely inferred on the basis of lithic assemblages within the appropriate temporal range of the species duration and commonly, via the association between Acheulian tools and Homo erectus, which has been established at other global sites including in other parts of Asia. [22] [11]

Acheulean assemblages have been widespread across South Asia, [23] including the Kortallayar Valley in Tamil Nadu, Hunsgi-Baichbal Valleys in Karnataka (e.g. Isampur), Chirki-Nevasa in Maharashtra, Didwana in Rajasthan, Bhimbetka's rock shelters and its surrounding open-air sites in the Vindhya hills of Madhya Pradesh. These discoveries indicate that Acheulean technology was not confined to a single area but was widespread across the Indian subcontinent, suggesting that associated early hominins like Homo erectus had a broad geographical distribution throughout the region. [24]

Middle Paleolithic

Stone tools discovered at the prehistoric site of Attirampakkam in South India are among the earliest examples of Levallois technique outside of Africa. Attirampakkam stone tools.jpg
Stone tools discovered at the prehistoric site of Attirampakkam in South India are among the earliest examples of Levallois technique outside of Africa.

The transition to the Middle Paleolithic in South Asia has been uniquely informed by Attirampakkam, an open-air site with evidence of lithic industry spanning over a millennium. This quarry site has preserved not only the earliest Acheulean assemblages in South Asia (1.5 Ma), but also the earliest Middle Paleolithic assemblages, dated to 385 Ka. [25]

The discovery of over 7,000 artifacts, bearing evidence of the Levallois technique at Attirampakkam, was published in Nature in 2018 by a research team led by Shanti Pappu, which challenges some long-held assumptions about the Out of Africa migration theory. [26] Levallois tools have been traditionally associated with Neanderthals [27] and early Homo sapiens , [28] however the Attirampakkam findings are dated to 385 Ka, making them not only the earliest examples of this technology outside of Africa, but archaeologically contemporaneous to the earliest known African Levallois point, dated to 400 Ka, in East Africa's Kapthurin Formation. [29] This far predates the previous figure of 130 Ka for when modern humans were thought to have migrated from Africa into Eurasia. [30]

The larger implications of the findings remain open to debate. Shanti Pappu, a lead author on the 2018 Nature article, has been careful not to attribute the tools to any particular hominin species, but speculates that the tools could indicate an earlier arrival of Homo sapiens to India, which would support a more complex non-linear migration pattern out of Africa. [31] Paleoanthropologist John Hawks, also not involved in the study, commented that the Attirampakkam data dismantle previous notions that modern humans spread from Africa due to a significant technological superiority over archaic, less intelligent human species. [32] Independent pre-publication peer reviewer, Michael Petraglia described the discovery as a "marvellous" contribution to understanding human history in South Asia, noting that it fills knowledge gap from 400 Ka to 175 Ka. [32] Petraglia considers these artifacts as evidence of an independent advancement made by early humans in Attirampakkam:

"Rather than equating technologies from Europe to Africa to South Asia, you can also recast it as independent invention by large-brained early humans." [32]

Whether the Attirampakkam Levallois tools were made by early modern humans living in India long before the accepted migration out of Africa or by earlier hominin species such as Homo heidelbergensis remains unresolved in the absence of DNA or fossil evidence. [33]

Early Hominins of Deccan Plateau

Further inland from Attirampakkam, on the Deccan Plateau in present-day Andhra Pradesh, the sites of Jwalapuram and the Kurnool Caves offer insights into the adaptability and cognitive depth of early hominins in South India.

At Jwalapuram, artifacts have been found both beneath and above volcanic ash from the Toba supereruption which occurred around 74 Ka in Indonesia and ranks as one of the largest volcanic events in the past two million years. [34] The presence of Middle Paleolithic tools in both layers suggests that hominins survived this major environmental event and continued to inhabit the area, exhibiting cultural continuity. This resilience in the face of extreme climatic stress hints at sophisticated survival strategies.

Detailed examination of these tool assemblages reveals notable similarities to Middle Paleolithic technologies found in Africa, rather than those associated with the Levantine. This resemblance has led researchers to propose that Homo sapiens may have been responsible for creating these artifacts. [35] Additionally, the timing of these assemblages aligns with genetic estimates for early human migrations out of Africa, providing further support for the idea that modern humans may have been present in southern India around this time. [36]

Homo sapiens

Analysis of mitochondrial DNA dates the immigration of Homo sapiens into the subcontinent to 75,000 to 50,000 years ago. [37] [38] Cave sites in Sri Lanka have yielded non-mitochondrial record of Homo sapiens in South Asia, dated to 34,000 years ago.(Kennedy 2000: 180) Microlithic assemblages at the sites of Mahadebbera and Kana, West Bengal, India, have been dated to between 42,000 and 25,000 years ago using Optically Stimulated Luminescence, indicating an earlier presence of homo sapiens, and more specifically, microlithic technology, in South Asia than previously documented. [39] For finds from the Belan in southern Uttar Pradesh, India radiocarbon data have indicated an age of 18,000-17,000 years.

Bhimbetka rock painting, Madhya Pradesh, India Bhimbetka.JPG
Bhimbetka rock painting, Madhya Pradesh, India
Ketavaram rock paintings, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh (6000 BCE) Ketavaram rock paintings.JPG
Ketavaram rock paintings, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh (6000 BCE)
Stone Age writing of Edakkal Caves in Kerala, India (6,000 BCE) EdakkalCaveCarving.jpg
Stone Age writing of Edakkal Caves in Kerala, India (6,000 BCE)

At the rock shelters of Bhimbetka there are cave paintings dating to c. 30,000 BCE, [40] [41] and there are small cup like depressions at the end of the Auditorium Rock Shelter, which is dated to nearly 100,000 years; [42] the Sivaliks and the Potwar (Pakistan) region also exhibit many vertebrate fossil remains and paleolithic tools. Chert, jasper and quartzite were often used by humans during this period. [43]

Neolithic

In northern India the aceramic Neolithic (Mehrgarh I, Baluchistan, Pakistan, also dubbed "Early Food Producing Era") lasts c. 7000 - 5500 BCE. The ceramic Neolithic lasts up to 3300 BCE, blending into the Early Harappan (Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age) period. One of the earliest Neolithic sites is Lahuradewa in the Middle Ganges region and Jhusi near the confluence of Ganges and Yamuna rivers, both dating to around the 7th millennium BCE. [44] [45] Recently another site along the ancient Saraswati riverine system in the present day state of Haryana in India called Bhirrana has been discovered yielding a dating of around 7600 BCE for its Neolithic levels. [46]

In South India the Neolithic began after 3000 BCE and lasted until around 1000 BCE. [47] South Indian Neolithic is characterized by Ashmounds since 2500 BCE in the Andhra-Karnataka region that expanded later into Tamil Nadu. Comparative excavations carried out in Adichanallur in the Thirunelveli District and in Northern India have provided evidence of a southward migration of the Megalithic culture. [48] The earliest clear evidence of the presence of the megalithic urn burials are those dating from around 1000 BCE, which have been discovered at various places in Tamil Nadu, notably at Adichanallur, 24 kilometers from Tirunelveli, where archaeologists from the Archaeological Survey of India unearthed 12 urns containing human skulls, skeletons and bones, husks, grains of charred rice and Neolithic celts, confirming the presence of the Neolithic period 2800 years ago. Archaeologists have made plans to return to Adhichanallur as a source of new knowledge in the future. [49] [50]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Coningham, Robin (2015). The Archaeology of South Asia: From the Indus to Asoka, c. 6500 BCE–200 CE. Cambridge University Press. pp. 106–107. ISBN   978-0-521-84697-4.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Dambricourt Malassé, Anne; Moigne, Anne-Marie; Singh, Mukesh; Calligaro, Thomas; Karir, Baldev; Gaillard, Claire; Kaur, Amandeep; Bhardwaj, Vipnesh; Pal, Surinder; Abdessadok, Salah; Chapon Sao, Cécile; Gargani, Julien; Tudryn, Alina; Garcia Sanz, Miguel (2016). "Intentional cut marks on bovid from the Quranwala zone, 2.6 Ma, Siwalik Frontal Range, northwestern India". Comptes Rendus Palevol (in French). 15 (3–4): 317–339. Bibcode:2016CRPal..15..317D. doi: 10.1016/j.crpv.2015.09.019 .
  3. ↑ "Neolithic" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ↑ Singh, Purushottam (2008). Srivastava, Vinod Chandra (ed.). History of Agriculture in India, up to c. 1200 AD. Concept Publishing. p. 6. ISBN   9788180695216.
  5. ↑ "Major divisions | Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy" . Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  6. 1 2 Dennell, R.W. (1998). "Grasslands, tool-making and the Hominid colonization of southern Asia: a reconsideration". In Petraglia, M.D.; Korisettar, R. (eds.). Early Human Behaviour in Global Context. London: Routledge. pp. 280–303.
  7. ↑ Gwen Robbins Schug; Subhash R. Walimbe (13 April 2016). A Companion to South Asia in the Past. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 39–. ISBN   978-1-119-05547-1. Quote: “Soanian and Soanian‐like assemblages are known throughout the entire Siwalik or Sub‐ Himalayan region, from Pakistan to northeast India including Nepal...”
  8. ↑ Dambricourt Malassé, Anne; Moigne, Anne-Marie; Singh, Mukesh; Calligaro, Thomas; Karir, Baldev; Gaillard, Claire; Kaur, Amandeep; Bhardwaj, Vipnesh; Pal, Surinder; Abdessadok, Salah; Chapon Sao, Cécile; Gargani, Julien; Tudryn, Alina; Garcia Sanz, Miguel (February 2016). "Intentional cut marks on bovid from the Quranwala zone, 2.6 Ma, Siwalik Frontal Range, northwestern India". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 15 (3–4): 317–339. Bibcode:2016CRPal..15..317D. doi: 10.1016/j.crpv.2015.09.019 .
  9. 1 2 3 Moigne, Anne-Marie; Dambricourt Malassé, Anne; Singh, Mukesh; Kaur, Amandeep; Gaillard, Claire; Karir, Baldev; Pal, Surinder; Bhardwaj, Vipnesh; Abdessadok, Salah; Chapon Sao, Cécile; Gargani, Julien; Tudryn, Alina (2016). "The faunal assemblage of the paleonto-archeological localities of the Late Pliocene Quranwala Zone, Masol Formation, Siwalik Range, NW India". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 15 (3–4): 359–378. Bibcode:2016CRPal..15..359M. doi: 10.1016/j.crpv.2015.09.016 .
  10. ↑ "Butchery or trampling? Controversy marks ancient animal bones". www.earthmagazine.org. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  11. 1 2 Choi, Kildo (2003). Subsistence and tool use behavior of Homo erectus in Java: An experimental and taphonomic approach (Thesis). ProQuest   305281633.[ page needed ]
  12. ↑ Fornai, Cinzia; Bookstein, Fred L.; Weber, Gerhard W. (August 2015). "Variability of Australopithecus second maxillary molars from Sterkfontein Member 4". Journal of Human Evolution. 85: 181–192. Bibcode:2015JHumE..85..181F. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2015.05.013. PMID   26163295.
  13. ↑ Harmand, Sonia; Lewis, Jason E.; Feibel, Craig S.; Lepre, Christopher J.; Prat, Sandrine; Lenoble, Arnaud; Boës, Xavier; Quinn, Rhonda L.; Brenet, Michel; Arroyo, Adrian; Taylor, Nicholas; Clément, Sophie; Daver, Guillaume; Brugal, Jean-Philip; Leakey, Louise (May 2015). "3.3-million-year-old stone tools from Lomekwi 3, West Turkana, Kenya". Nature. 521 (7552): 310–315. Bibcode:2015Natur.521..310H. doi:10.1038/nature14464. PMID   25993961.
  14. ↑ Dambricourt Malassé, Anne (February 2016). "The first Indo-French Prehistorical Mission in Siwaliks and the discovery of anthropic activities at 2.6 million years". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 15 (3–4): 281–294. Bibcode:2016CRPal..15..281D. doi: 10.1016/j.crpv.2015.12.001 .
  15. ↑ Dennell, Robin; Coard, Ros; Turner, Alan (May 2006). "The biostratigraphy and magnetic polarity zonation of the Pabbi Hills, northern Pakistan: An Upper Siwalik (Pinjor Stage) Upper Pliocene–Lower Pleistocene fluvial sequence". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 234 (2–4): 168–185. Bibcode:2006PPP...234..168D. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2005.10.008.
  16. ↑ Zeitoun, Valéry; Barriel, Véronique; Widianto, Harry (April 2016). "Phylogenetic analysis of the calvaria of Homo floresiensis". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 15 (5): 555–568. Bibcode:2016CRPal..15..555Z. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2015.12.002.
  17. ↑ Avari, Burjor (5 June 2007). India, the Ancient Past: a history of the Indian sub-continent from c. 7000 BC to AD 1200. Routledge. pp. 25–. ISBN 978-0-415-35616-9. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
  18. ↑ Pappu, Shanti; Gunnell, Yanni; Akhilesh, Kumar; Braucher, Régis; Taieb, Maurice; Demory, François; Thouveny, Nicolas (2011-03-25). "Early Pleistocene Presence of Acheulian Hominins in South India". Science. 331 (6024): 1596–1599. Bibcode:2011Sci...331.1596P. doi:10.1126/science.1200183. PMID   21436450.
  19. ↑ Paddayya, K.; Blackwell, B. A. B.; Jhaldiyal, R.; Petraglia, M. D.; Fevrier, S.; Chaderton, D. A.; Blickstein, J. I. B.; Skinner, A. R. (2002). "Recent findings on the Acheulian of the Hunsgi and Baichbal valleys, Karnataka, with special reference to the Isampur excavation and its dating". Current Science. 83 (5): 641–647. JSTOR   24107141.
  20. ↑ Korisettar, R.; Sheila, Mishra; Rajaguru, S. N.; Gogte, V. D.; Ganjoo, R. K.; Venkatesan, T. R.; Tandon, S. K.; Somayajulu, B. L. K.; Kale, V. S. (1988). "Age of the Bori Volcanic Ash and Lower Palaeolithic Culture of the Kukdi Valley, Maharashtra". Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute. 47/48: 135–137. JSTOR   42930220.
  21. ↑ Paddayya, K.; Jhaldiyal, Richa; Petraglia, M. D. (December 2000). "Excavation of an Acheulian workshop at Isampur, Karnataka (India)". Antiquity. 74 (286): 751–752. doi:10.1017/S0003598X00060269.
  22. ↑ "Oldowan and Acheulean Stone Tools". Museum of Anthropology, University of Missouri. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  23. ↑ Chauhan, Parth R. (2009). "The South Asian Paleolithic Record and Its Potential for Transitions Studies". Sourcebook of Paleolithic Transitions. pp. 121–139. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-76487-0_7. ISBN   978-0-387-76478-8.
  24. ↑ Misra, V. N. (2002). "Acheulian culture in Peninsular India: An ecological perspective". In Paddayya, K. (ed.). Recent Studies in Indian Archaeology. Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers. pp. 491–531. ISBN   978-81-215-0929-9.
  25. ↑ Akhilesh, Kumar; Pappu, Shanti; Rajapara, Haresh M.; Gunnell, Yanni; Shukla, Anil D.; Singhvi, Ashok K. (February 2018). "Early Middle Palaeolithic culture in India around 385–172 ka reframes Out of Africa models". Nature. 554 (7690): 97–101. Bibcode:2018Natur.554...97A. doi:10.1038/nature25444. PMID   29388951.
  26. ↑ Becker, Rachel (2018-01-31). "Discovery of ancient stone tools rewrites the history of technology in India". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  27. ↑ Moncel, Marie-Hélène; Ashton, Nick; Arzarello, Marta; Fontana, Federica; Lamotte, Agnès; Scott, Beccy; Muttillo, Brunella; Berruti, Gabriele; Nenzioni, Gabriele; Tuffreau, Alain; Peretto, Carlo (February 2020). "Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe". Journal of Human Evolution. 139: 102735. Bibcode:2020JHumE.13902735M. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.102735. hdl: 11392/2415025 . PMID   32078934.
  28. ↑ Richter, Daniel; Grün, Rainer; Joannes-Boyau, Renaud; Steele, Teresa E.; Amani, Fethi; Rué, Mathieu; Fernandes, Paul; Raynal, Jean-Paul; Geraads, Denis; Ben-Ncer, Abdelouahed; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; McPherron, Shannon P. (June 2017). "The age of the hominin fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, and the origins of the Middle Stone Age". Nature. 546 (7657): 293–296. Bibcode:2017Natur.546..293R. doi:10.1038/nature22335. PMID   28593967.
  29. ↑ Shipton, Ceri (12 February 2022). "Predetermined Refinement: the Earliest Levallois of the Kapthurin Formation". Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology. 5 (1): 4. Bibcode:2022JPalA...5....4S. doi: 10.1007/s41982-021-00109-1 .
  30. ↑ Templeton, A.R. (2017). "World Dispersals and Genetic Diversity of Mankind". On Human Nature. pp. 65–83. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-420190-3.00005-3. ISBN   978-0-12-420190-3.
  31. ↑ Kaplan, Sarah (2018-02-01). "Very old, very sophisticated tools found in India. The question is: Who made them?". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  32. 1 2 3 Greshko, Michael (28 January 2018). "Ancient stone tools hint at 'ghost' human species in India". National Geographic. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  33. ↑ "Human migration history: What the stone tools at Attirampakkam tell us". Research Matters. 31 January 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  34. ↑ Petraglia, Michael; Korisettar, Ravi; Boivin, Nicole; Clarkson, Christopher; Ditchfield, Peter; Jones, Sacha; Koshy, Jinu; Lahr, Marta Mirazón; Oppenheimer, Clive; Pyle, David; Roberts, Richard; Schwenninger, Jean-Luc; Arnold, Lee; White, Kevin (6 July 2007). "Middle Paleolithic Assemblages from the Indian Subcontinent Before and After the Toba Super-Eruption". Science. 317 (5834): 114–116. doi:10.1126/science.1141564. PMID   17615356.
  35. ↑ Haslam, Michael; Clarkson, Chris; Petraglia, Michael; Korisettar, Ravi; Jones, Sacha; Shipton, Ceri; Ditchfield, Peter; Ambrose, Stanley H. (December 2010). "The 74 ka Toba super-eruption and southern Indian hominins: archaeology, lithic technology and environments at Jwalapuram Locality 3". Journal of Archaeological Science. 37 (12): 3370–3384. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2010.07.034.
  36. ↑ Oppenheimer, Stephen (19 March 2012). "Out-of-Africa, the peopling of continents and islands: tracing uniparental gene trees across the map". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 367 (1590): 770–784. doi:10.1098/rstb.2011.0306. PMC   3267120 . PMID   22312044.
  37. ↑ Alice Roberts (2010). The Incredible Human Journey. A&C Black. p. 90.
  38. ↑ James & Petraglia 2005, S6.
  39. ↑ Basak, Bishnupriya; Srivastava, Pradeep (2017). "Earliest Dates of Microlithic Industries (42–25 ka) from West Bengal, Eastern India: New Light on Modern Human Occupation in the Indian Subcontinent". Asian Perspectives. 56 (2): 237–259. doi:10.1353/asi.2017.0009. JSTOR   26357717. Gale   A514341432.
  40. ↑ Doniger, Wendy (2010). The Hindus: An Alternative History. OUP Oxford. p. 66. ISBN   978-0-19-959334-7.
  41. ↑ Jarzombek, Mark M. (2014). Architecture of First Societies: A Global Perspective. John Wiley & Sons. p. 28. ISBN   978-1-118-42105-5.
  42. ↑ Archaeological Survey of India, Government of India. "World Heritage Sites - Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka". Archaeological Survey of India, Government of India. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  43. ↑ "Chert: Sedimentary Rock - Pictures, Definition, Formation". geology.com. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  44. ↑ Fuller, Dorian Q (11 December 2006). "Agricultural Origins and Frontiers in South Asia: A Working Synthesis". Journal of World Prehistory. 20 (1): 1–86. doi:10.1007/s10963-006-9006-8.
  45. ↑ Tewari, Rakesh et al. 2006. "Second Preliminary Report of the excavations at Lahuradewa, District Sant Kabir Nagar, UP 2002-2003-2004 & 2005-06" in Pragdhara No. 16 "Electronic Version p.28" Archived 2007-11-28 at the Wayback Machine
  46. ↑ "Haryana's Bhirrana oldest Harappan site, Rakhigarhi Asia's largest: ASI". Times of India. 15 April 2015.
  47. ↑ Murphy, Charlene; Fuller, Dorian Q. (2017). "The Agriculture of Early India". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Environmental Science. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199389414.013.169. ISBN   978-0-19-938941-4.
  48. ↑ Sastri, Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta (1976). A History of South India. Oxford University Press. pp. 49–51. ISBN   978-0-19-560686-7.
  49. ↑ Subramanian, T. S. (2004-05-26). "Skeletons, script found at ancient burial site in Tamil Nadu". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 2004-07-01. Retrieved 2007-07-31.
  50. ↑ Zvelebil, Kamil A. (1992). Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature. Brill Academic Publishers. pp. 21–22. ISBN   978-90-04-09365-2. The most interesting prehistoric remains in Tamil India were discovered at Adichanallur ... There is a series of urn burials ... seem to be related to the megalithic complex.

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The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended between 4000 BC and 2000 BC, with the advent of metalworking. It therefore represents nearly 99.3% of human history. Though some simple metalworking of malleable metals, particularly the use of gold and copper for purposes of ornamentation, was known in the Stone Age, it is the melting and smelting of copper that marks the end of the Stone Age. In Western Asia, this occurred by about 3000 BC, when bronze became widespread. The term Bronze Age is used to describe the period that followed the Stone Age, as well as to describe cultures that had developed techniques and technologies for working copper alloys into tools, supplanting stone in many uses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acheulean</span> Archaeological culture associated with Homo erectus

Acheulean, from the French acheuléen after the type site of Saint-Acheul, is an archaeological industry of stone tool manufacture characterized by the distinctive oval and pear-shaped "hand axes" associated with Homo erectus and derived species such as Homo heidelbergensis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oldowan</span> Archaeological culture

The Oldowan was a widespread stone tool archaeological industry (style) in prehistory. These early tools were simple, usually made by chipping one, or a few, flakes off a stone using another stone. Oldowan tools were used during the Lower Paleolithic period, 2.9 million years ago up until at least 1.7 million years ago (Ma), by ancient Hominins across much of Africa. This technological industry was followed by the more sophisticated Acheulean industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Industry (archaeology)</span> Typological classification of stone tools

In the archaeology of the Stone Age, an industry or technocomplex is a typological classification of stone tools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Paleolithic</span> Earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic

The Lower Paleolithic is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3.3 million years ago when the first evidence for stone tool production and use by hominins appears in the current archaeological record, until around 300,000 years ago, spanning the Oldowan and Acheulean lithics industries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Levallois technique</span> Distinctive type of stone knapping technique used by ancient humans

The Levallois technique is a name given by archaeologists to a distinctive type of stone knapping developed around 250,000 to 400,000 years ago during the Middle Palaeolithic period. It is part of the Mousterian stone tool industry, and was used by the Neanderthals in Europe and by modern humans in other regions such as the Levant.

Gudrun Corvinus (1932–2006) was a German geologist, paleontologist and archaeologist. Her contributions through her field work, academic monologues and archeological excavation discoveries are vast and have contributed to continued scientific discoveries. Corvinus’ work gained professional recognition prior to her murder that took place in her home in Pune, India, on 7 January 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cleaver (Stone Age tool)</span> Biface stone tool

In archaeology, a cleaver is a type of biface stone tool of the Lower Palaeolithic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middle Stone Age</span> Period in African prehistory

The Middle Stone Age was a period of African prehistory between the Early Stone Age and the Late Stone Age. It is generally considered to have begun around 280,000 years ago and ended around 50–25,000 years ago. The beginnings of particular MSA stone tools have their origins as far back as 550–500,000 years ago and as such some researchers consider this to be the beginnings of the MSA. The MSA is often mistakenly understood to be synonymous with the Middle Paleolithic of Europe, especially due to their roughly contemporaneous time span; however, the Middle Paleolithic of Europe represents an entirely different hominin population, Homo neanderthalensis, than the MSA of Africa, which did not have Neanderthal populations. Additionally, current archaeological research in Africa has yielded much evidence to suggest that modern human behavior and cognition was beginning to develop much earlier in Africa during the MSA than it was in Europe during the Middle Paleolithic. The MSA is associated with both anatomically modern humans as well as archaic Homo sapiens, sometimes referred to as Homo helmei. Early physical evidence comes from the Gademotta Formation in Ethiopia, the Kapthurin Formation in Kenya and Kathu Pan in South Africa.

The prehistory of the Levant includes the various cultural changes that occurred, as revealed by archaeological evidence, prior to recorded traditions in the area of the Levant. Archaeological evidence suggests that Homo sapiens and other hominid species originated in Africa and that one of the routes taken to colonize Eurasia was through the Sinai Peninsula desert and the Levant, which means that this is one of the most occupied locations in the history of the Earth. Not only have many cultures lived here, but also many species of the genus Homo. In addition, this region is one of the centers for the development of agriculture.

Paleolithic Europe, or Old Stone Age Europe, encompasses the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age in Europe from the arrival of the first archaic humans, about 1.4 million years ago until the beginning of the Mesolithic around 10,000 years ago. This period thus covers over 99% of the total human presence on the European continent. The early arrival and disappearance of Homo erectus and Homo heidelbergensis, the appearance, complete evolution and eventual demise of Homo neanderthalensis and the immigration and successful settlement of Homo sapiens all have taken place during the European Paleolithic.

The Soanian culture is a prehistoric technological culture from the Siwalik Hills, Pakistan. It is named after the Soan Valley in Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jebel Faya</span> Hill and archaeological site in the UAE

Jebel Faya is an archaeological site and limestone hill or escarpment near Al Madam in the Emirate of Sharjah, the UAE, located about 50 km east of the city of Sharjah, and between the shoreline of the Gulf and Al Hajar Mountains. It contains tool assemblages from the Paleolithic, Neolithic, Iron Age, and Bronze Age. Because its deepest assemblage has been dated to 125,000 years ago, it was thought to be the world's most ancient settlement yet discovered of anatomically modern humans outside of Africa at the time of its discovery in 2011. Finds of a yet earlier date have since been found at Misliya cave in the Levant.

Prehistoric technology is technology that predates recorded history. History is the study of the past using written records. Anything prior to the first written accounts of history is prehistoric, including earlier technologies. About 2.5 million years before writing was developed, technology began with the earliest hominids who used stone tools, which they first used to hunt food, and later to cook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of prehistoric technology</span> Overview of and topical guide to prehistoric technology

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to prehistoric technology.

Attirampakkam, or Athirampakkam is a village near river Kortallaiyar located 60 kilometers away from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. The oldest stone tools in India were discovered near the village, which became the type site for the Madrasian culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naama Goren-Inbar</span> Israeli archaeologist and paleoanthropologist

Naama Goren-Inbar is an Israeli archaeologist and paleoanthropologist and professor emeritus at the Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Goren-Inbar excavated many important prehistoric sites in Israel including the Acheulian site of Gesher Benot Ya’aqov. In 2014, she received the EMET Prize in Humanities and Judaism, and in 2016 was elected to the Israel Academy of Sciences.

Gona is a paleoanthropological research area in Ethiopia's Afar Region. Gona is primarily known for its archaeological sites and discoveries of hominin fossils from the Late Miocene, Early Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. Fossils of Ardipithecus and Homo erectus were discovered there. Two of the most significant finds are an Ardipithecus ramidus postcranial skeleton and an essentially complete Homo erectus pelvis. Historically, Gona had the oldest documented Oldowan artifact assemblages. Archaeologists have since found older examples of the Oldowan at other sites. Still, Gona's Oldowan assemblages have been essential to the archaeological understanding of the Oldowan. Gona's Acheulean archaeological sites have helped us understand the beginnings of the Acheulean Industry.

References

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