Ancient IndiaHistory

Early History , Stone Age

History can be classified into three categories: Prehistory, Proto-History, and History. Pre-history covers the events before writing was invented.
The three Stone Ages usually represent it. Proto-history, generally, refers to a period between prehistory and history when the knowledge of writing was there, but their scripts are yet to be deciphered. The Harappan script has not yet been deciphered, but the civilization is mentioned in the writings of Mesopotamia. Similarly, the Vedic civilization from 1500–600 BC had an oral literary tradition. History is the study of the past after writing was invented and the study of societies based on written and archaeological source

PREHISTORIC PERIOD

The Indian Stone Age is divided into three main categories.
These are:
1. Old Stone Age, or Palaeolithic Age
2. Late Stone Age, or Mesolithic Age
3. New Stone Age, or Neolithic Age

PALAEOLITHIC AGE

  • ‘Palaeolithic’ means “Old Stone Age” and begins with the first use of stone tools. It extends from the earliest known use of stone tools by Hominids (immediate ancestor of Homo Sapiens) 3.3 million years ago to the end of the Pleistocene, or Ice Age, 11,650 BP (before the present period).
  • Human ancestors are likely to have first evolved in Africa and later migrated to different parts of the world. The earliest human ancestor species to migrate out of Africa was Homo erectus.
  • They were hunters and gatherers who lived in caves and rock shelters. They also learned to use fire later in this phase.
  • They used unpolished stones like hand axes, cleavers, choppers, blades, burin, and scrapers. They are also called Quartzite men in India because they used quartzite for their tools.
  • The Palaeolithic Age is further divided into three phases according to the nature of the stone tools used by the people and the nature of change in the climate.
    • Lower Palaeolithic Age (20,00,000 − 60,000 BP)
    • Middle Palaeolithic Age (3,85,000–40,000 BP)
    • Upper Palaeolithic Age (40,000 − 10,000 BP)

LOWER/EARLY PALAEOLITHIC AGE (20,00,000 − 60,000 BP)

During this phase, the human ancestor species Homo erectus is believed to have lived in India. The Narmada Valley yielded a partial hominid skull cap in a basal conglomerate deposit in 1982. This fossil is the oldest hominin fossil found in India and is known as the Narmada Man, or Sivapithecus Sivalensis. It was found at Hathnora near Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh.
• It is considered to represent the Archaic Homo sapiens.
• It is the only existing fossil find of human ancestors in India.

Lifestyle:

The early humans of this age were primarily hunters and gatherers and lived a nomadic lifestyle.

They hunted animals and gathered roots, nuts, and fruits. They fed on the flesh and bones of animals killed by predators.

Homoerectus lived near the river valleys in caves and rock shelters, as seen from evidence in Bhimbetka in
Madhya Pradesh and Gudiyam near Chennai.

Tools:

The first Paleolithic tools were identified at the site of Pallavaram near Chennai by Robert Bruce Foote in
1863. Tools included hand axes, choppers, and cleavers, similar to tools used in Western Asia, Europe, and
Africa.

MIDDLE PALAEOLITHIC AGE (3,85,000–40,000 BP)

  • In India, this phase was first identified by H.D. Sankalia on the Pravara River at Nevasa (Ahmadnagar, Maharashtra).
  • While the African Middle Stone Age is associated with the Homo sapiens, it is associated with the Neanderthals in
    Europe.
  • No hominin fossil bone evidence has been found in India during this time.
Distribution:

Found in Narmada, Godavari, Krishna, and Yamuna areas and south of the Tungabhadra River and Soan River Valley.

Ways of Life:

the human ancestors were hunter-gatherers and lived in open-air, cave, and rock shelter sites.

Tools:

Prominent tools include hand axes, cleavers, choppers, chopping tools, scrapers, projectile points or shouldered points, and knives on flakes; the flake industry was predominant with tools like scrapers, points, and borers.

The tools became smaller, and there was a decrease in the use of hand axes in relation to other tools.

Chert, jasper, chalcedony, and quartz were used to make tools.

UPPER PALAEOLITHIC AGE (40,000 − 10,000 BP)

Modern humans evolved in Africa around 300,000 years ago, migrated to Asia by 60,000 years ago, and possibly introduced the Upper Palaeolithic culture in India.

1. Stone Age
01 According to the excavated evidence, the domestication of animal began in

[UPPCS (Mains) 2006]

(A) Lower Palaeolithic period

(B) Middle Palaeolithic period

(C) Upper Palaeolithic period

(D) Mesolithic period

02 In Mesolithic context, evidence of animal domestication has been found at [UPPCS (Spl) (Pre) 2008]

(A) Langhnaj

(B) Birbhanpur

(C) Adamgarh

(D) Chopani Mando

03 Robert Bruce Foote, who discovered first Palaeolithic tool in India, was a/an [UP Lower Sub. (Pre) 2015]

(A) Geologist

(B) Archaeologist

(C) Paleobotanist

(D) Both (A) and (B)

04 The three-age system, divided into stone, bronze and iron from the collection of Copenhagen museum

was coined by [UPPCS (Pre) 2010]

(A) Thomson      (B) Lubbock

(C) Taylor            (D) Childe

05 From which one of the following sites bone implements have been found? [UPPCS (Mains) 2010]

(A) Chopani Mando

(B) Kakoria

(C) Mahadaha

(D) Sarai Nahar Rai

06 Bone ornaments in the Mesolithic context in India have been obtained from [UPRO/ARO (Mains) 2013]

(A) Sarai Nahar Rai

(B) Mahadaha

(C) Lekhahia

(D) Chopani Mando

07 Three human skeletons in a single grave were recovered at [UPPCS (Pre) 2016]

(A) Sarai Nahar Rai

(B) Damdama

(C) Mahadaha

(D) Langhnaj

08 8. The cultivation of cereals first started in         [UPPCS (Mains) 2005]

(A) Neolithic Age

(B) Mesolithic Age

(C) Palaeolithic Age

(D) Proto-Historic Age

09 The earliest evidence of man in India is found in [Uttarakhand PCS (Pre) 2006]

(A) Nilgiri Hills

(B) Shiwalik Hills

(C) Nallamala Hills

(D) Narmada Valley

10 The first cereal used by man was     [UPPCS (Pre) 1997]

(A) Wheat          (B) Rice

(C) Barley           (D) Sorghum

11 The earliest evidence of agriculture in Indian sub-continent comes from [UP Lower Sub. (Pre) 2008]

(A) Koldihwa     (B) Lahuradeva

(C) Mehrgarh    (D) Tokwa

12 Name the site which has revealed the earliest evidence of settled life? [UPPCS (Spl) (Mains) 2008]

(A) Dholavira

(B) Kile Gul Mohammad

(C) Kalibangan

(D) Mehrgarh

13 The earliest evidence of agriculture in the Indian Sub-continent has been obtained from [UPPCS (Mains) 2010]

(A) Brahmagiri

(B) Burzahom

(C) Koldihwa

(D) Mehrgarh

14 The earliest evidence of agriculture in Indian Sub-continent is found at[UPPCS (Mains) 2007]

(A) Lothal          (B) Harappa

(C) Mehrgarh    (D) Mundigak

15 Which one of the following periods is also known as Chalcolithic Age? [44th BPSC (Pre) 2000]

(A) Old Stone Age

(B) New Stone Age

(C) Copper Age

(D) Iron Age

16 The cultural remains from Stone Age to Harappan civilization have been obtained from which one of the following ancient sites? [UPPCS (Pre) 2008]

(A) Amri             (B) Mehrgarh

(C) Kotdiji          (D) Kalibangan

17 Navdatoli was excavated by [UP Lower (Spl) (Pre) 2008]

(A) K.D. Bajpai

(B) V.S. Wakankar

(C) H.D. Sankalia

(D) Mortimer Wheeler

18 Navdatoli was excavated by [UP Lower (Spl) (Pre) 2008]

(A) K.D. Bajpai

(B) V.S. Wakankar

(C) H.D. Sankalia

(D) Mortimer Wheeler

19 Megaliths have been identified as [Tamil Nadu PSC (Mains) 2018]

(A) Caves for hermits

(B) Burial sites

(C) Temple sites

(D) None of the above

20 Ash mound is associated with the Neolithic site at [UPPCS (Mains) 2009]

(A) Budihal

(B) Sangana Kallu

(C) Koldihwa

(D) Brahmagiri

21 ‘Bhimbetka’ is famous for [MPPCS (Spl)(Pre) 2004]

(A) Rock Paintings

(B) Buddhist Statues

(C) Minerals

(D) Origin of Son River

22 In India, from which rock-shelter, pictures has been found the most?  [UPPCS (Pre) 2008]

(A) Ghagharia    (B) Bhimbetka

(C) Lekhahia      (D) Adamgarh

23 Which one of the following places is famous for pre-historic paintings?   [UPPCS (Mains) 2011 ,Uttarakhand UDA/LDA (Mains) 2007]

(A) Ajanta

(B) Bhimbetka

(C) Bagh

(D) Amravati

24 Where are the caves of Bhimbetka situated? [MPPCS (Pre) 2013]

(A) Bhopal

(B) Pachmarhi

(C) Singrauli

(D) Abdullahganj-Raisen

25 The Ochre-coloured Pottery (O.C.P.) was christened at

(A) Hastinapur  (B) Ahichhatra

(C) Noh             (D) Red Fort

26 In the Chalcolithic period people of Maharashtra buried their dead under the floor of their houses in the following orientation [UPPCS (Pre) 1997]

(A) North to South position

(B) East to West position

(C) South to North position

(D) West to East position

27 Which of the following sites has yielded skeleton of the dog along with human skeleton in burial?
[UP Lower Sub. (Pre) 2008](A) Brahmagiri  (B) Burzahom

(C) Chirand       (D) Maski

28 The evidence of burying the dog with human body is found from which of the following places?
[Uttarakhand PCS (Pre) 2010](A) Burzahom    (B) Koldihwa

(C) Chaupani     (D) Mando

29 The evidence of pit dwelling has been obtained from [UPPCS (Mains) 2011]

(A) Burzahom    (B) Koldihwa

(C) Brahmagiri  (D) Sanganakallu

30 From which rock shelter of Vindhyas, a maximum number of human skeletons have been found?

[UPPCS (Pre) 2016]

(A) Morahana Pahar

(B) Ghagharia

(C) Baghahi Khor

(D) Lekhahia

31 Which of these departments/minis- tries deals with Archaeological Survey of India as an accessory office?

[Jharkhand PCS (Pre) 2011]

(A) Culture

(B) Tourism

(C) Science and Technology

(D) Human Resource and Development

32 Where is the National Human Museum situated?

[MPPCS (Pre) 1997]

(A) Guwahati     (B) Bastar

(C) Bhopal         (D) Chennai

 
 

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