Q.1 Identify the following places marked on the map supplied to you and write a short note of about 30 words on each of them in your Question-cum-Answer Booklet. Locational hints for each of the places marked on the map are given below seriatim: [50 Marks]

(i) Paleolithic site

(ii) Mesolithic site

(iii) Neolithic site

(iv) Neolithic-Chalcolithic site

(v) Harappan site

(vi) Proto-historic and historic site

(vii) Inscriptional site

(viii) Jain monastic site

(ix) Coin hoard

(x) Paleolithic site

(xi) Terracotta site

(xii) Rock-cut caves

(xiii) Ancient learning centre

(xiv) Political and cultural centre

(xv) Buddhist site

(xvi) Ancient port

(xvii) Early historic site

(xviii) Ivory hoard

(xix) Buddhist monastic centre

(xx) Temple complex

Solution

(i) Paleolithic site

Attirampakkam

• In Chennai district, Tamilnadu.
• It reveals a sequence of lower, middle, and upper Paleolithic cultures.
• One of the oldest prehistoric site in South Asia.
• It is an open-air paleolithic site.
• Artefacts:
  • Mostly handaxes, made of quartzite stones that were not available locally brought from outside.
  • These tools were also used for butchery and chopping wood.
  • The uniformity in the shape and symmetry of these tools showed capacity for organised and collective working.
• Other discoveries:
  • A set of animal foot-prints found.
  • Animal fossil teeth of horse, water buffalo, and nilgai, suggesting an open and wet landscape in early Paleolithic times.

(ii) Mesolithic site

Langhnaj

• In Mehsana district, Gujarat.
• Most extensively studied site in Gujarat.
• The occupational deposit was divided into three periods. Period I was mesolithic and yielded
  • microliths,
  • human burials,
  • bones of wild animals, and
  • some potsherds.
• 14 human skeleton with cut marks on forehead found.
• Symbiotic relationship with Harappan urban culture:- Honey and hunted meat was sent to Harappan urban centres.

(iii) Neolithic site

Daojali Hading

• In the north Cachar hills, at Daojali Hading in Assam.
• Stone and fossil wood axes, adzes, chisels, hoes, grinding slabs, querns, and mullers.
• Absence of microliths, bone tools and artificially constructed habitation.
• Polished stone tools, ceramics and kitchen items.
• Pottery:
  • Handmade, cord marks and plain red pottery.
  • People here were growing and storing grains, and preparing food.

(iv) Neolithic-Chalcolithic site

Mehrgarh

• In Baluchistan, Pakistan.
• A Neolithic and Calcolithic site.
• Neolithic:
  • Small farming and pastoralist village:
  • Planned ancient farm villages.
  • mud brick house (later sun-dried brick)
  • bone tools,
  • a-ceramic.
• Precursor of IVC.
• It was later abandoned with Harappan urbanisation.
• One of the earliest sites with evidence of farming (wheat and barley), herding and metallurgy.
• One of the earliest cultivation of cotton.
• Evidence of fishing.
• Unique discovery:- Dental surgery and related medicinal activities.
• Figurines of terracotta found.

(v) Harappan site

• No Harappan site anywhere nearby. Probably they wanted to ask about Manda but pointed it wrongly in the question. 

(vi) Proto-historic and historic site

Ropar (considering Proto-historic site but not exactly on the given location)

OR

Kangra/ Masroor Rock Cut Temple (considering location given)

Ropar 

• In Rupnagar district, Punjab.
• IVC, PGW and NBPW.
• No early Harappan level.
• Transition from village to town in period c. 600–200 BCE, and yielded NBPW and punch-marked and copper coins.
• A seal with an inscription in Brahmi.
• Houses made of stone, mud-brick and burnt brick.
• Iron workshop and agate beads in NBPW.

Masroor Rock Cut Temple

• Near Kangra, Himachal Pradesh.
• Famous for remarkable group of rock cut temples.
• Only example of Nagara style temple built as the rock-cut construction.
• Masroor temple complex:
  • A group of 15 monolithic rock cut shrines;
  • 14 temples are cut only from the outside, but central temple in this complex is also cut from the inside.
  • Now known as Thakurwada, a term for Vaishnavite temples.
  • Idols of Rama, Lakshmana and Sita are placed inside main sanctum-sanctorum.
  • Sculptural detailing on the doors, lintels, walls, shikharas, and column capitals on the main shrine and other smaller temples consist of figurines of gods and goddesses such as Shiva, Parvati, Laksmi and Saraswati, and floral designs.
• Presence of the figure of Shiva in the centre of the lintel suggest that the Temple was originally dedicated to Lord Shiva but it was converted into a Vaishnava temple in recent history.

(vii) Inscriptional site

Sohagaura

• In Gorakhpur district, U.P.
• Neolithic site.
• Pottery:
  • Ill-fired, handmade pottery with a coarse fabric,
  • cord impressed pottery
  • BRW and NBPW.
• Sohagaura copper plate inscription of 3rd century BC in Brahmi script, Prakrit language.
  • The oldest Indian copper plate inscription known.

(viii) Jain monastic site

Udayagiri-Khandagiri

• Twin hills Udayagiri and Khandagiri near Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
• 33 rock cut caves on both the hills.
• Mostly single storied but some double storied.
• Dwelling retreats of the Jaina monks.
• Caves were excavated by king Kharavela and his successors.
• Ranigumpha caves- double storied and the largest.
• Hathigumpha inscription (17 line) of king Kharavela (2nd century BCE)-
  • In Prakrit incised in a Brahmi script.
  • Talks about:
    • military conquests of Kharvela, 
    • his orientation towards Janism,
    • his construction works,
    • his liberal religious spirit,
    • his favors to art like music and dance etc.
    • his retrieving an image of a jina.
  • This is the earliest epigraphic reference to image worship in Jainism.

(ix) Coin hoard

Bayana

• In Bharatpur district of Rajasthan
• Also known as the ‘city of Vansasur’.
• Hoards of Gupta coins
  • Gupta coinage contains a large number of unique issues in addition to varieties already known.
    • ‘lyrist’ type,
    • ‘elephant rider’ type;
    • ‘lion trampler’ type;
    • ‘rhinoceros slayer’ type;
    • ‘ashwamedha’ type;
    • ‘king and queen’ type; and so on.
  • There are glorious sights here in these coins — in which kings sat playing on musical instruments, went about hunting wild beasts, held imperious staffs in their hands, and rode on elephant backs with a majestic air.
    • But, interestingly, there also appear on them royal or divine women, standing lissom and elegant, showering coins and stroking the plumes of peacocks.
  • The coins have the figure of the Gupta emperor on them. The stamps of this period are made of gold, silver and copper.
  • Samudragupta depicted as playing a ‘veena’, a stringed musical instrument.
• The Bayana Fort built by Yadav King Vijaypala  in the eleventh century A.D.
• A fragmentary inscription dated A.D. 300 referring to a Maharaja Mahasenapati elected by the Yaudheya Republic has been found here.
• Bhimlat, also called Vijay Pillar, was built in 371-72.
  • Malwa Samvat 428 means AD 371-72 is engraved on this pillar.
  • Inscription of A.D. 372 records the erection of the sacrificial post/ stone pillar on the completion of a pundarika sacrifice by Vishnuvardhana who may be a feudatory of the Gupta ruler Samudra Gupta.

(x) Paleolithic site

Hunsgi

• In Yadgir district, Karnataka.
• Palaeolithic tools found.
• It contained stone tools and weapons made from chelimestone, sandstone, quartzite, dolerite, and chert.
• Tools found included blades with sharp edges and many multipurpose instruments.
• Habitation-cum factory sites:
  • Stone working site where tools of local raw material were made and sent to other places.
  • Few traces of habitation structures of early hominids.
  • Evidence of thatched roof-like structures.
  • Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers lived in a ‘band society’.

(xi) Terracotta site

Chandraketugarh

• In North 24 parganas district, West Bengal.
• Archaeological site:
  • NBPW found,
  • Silver and copper punch marked coins,
    • Some of the punch marked coins having ship motif indicate that Chandraketugarh might have been a port-town.
  • Stone and terracotta beads. Semi-precious stone beads and items of ivory and bone found.
  • Terracotta art:
    • Unusual degree of precision and craftsmanship.
    • Terracotta plaques are comparable to those found at other sites such as Kaushambi and Ahichhatra.
    • Terracotta plaques from these sites often carry similar motifs executed in nearly identical fashion.
• A temple structure of Gupta or post-Gupta period found.

(xii) Rock-cut caves

Udaigiri Caves

• Near Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh.
• Rock-cut caves (one is dedicated to Jainism and 23 to Hinduism)
• Iconography of Vaishnavism, Shaktism and Shaivism.
  • Relief sculpture of Vishnu in incarnation of man-boar Varaha.
• Inscriptions of the Gupta dynasty belonging to the reigns of Chandragupta II and Kumaragupta I.
• Jaina and Hindu Cave features inscriptions (One of the oldest Jaina inscription from 425 CE)
• The Heliodoros Garuda Pillar of Vashudeva is near Udaygiri, Besnagar.

(xiii) Ancient learning centre

Vallabhi

• In Bhavnagar district (Saurashtra), Gujarat.
• Capital of the Maitraka Dynasty (480-775 CE).
• Established by the founder of the dynasty, Senapati Bhatarka.
• Centre of learning, Buddhist monasteries.
• Visited by the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang and Yijingin 7th century.
• Second Jaina council under Devardhi held in 6th century CE when Jaina scriptures assumed their present form.

(xiv) Political and cultural centre

Sirpur

• In Mahasamund district, Chattisgarh.
• Hindu, Buddhist (Vaishnavism, Shaivism) and Jain monuments.

• It was considered as the ancient capital of South Koshal and was called at Shreepur.

• Hindu monuments:
  • Shiva, Vaishnava
  • Lakshmana temple:
    • Brick temple.
    • Most well preserved.
    • Built by Vasata in 7th century AD.
    • Dedicated to Lord Vishnu,
    • The plan of the temple consists of a garbagriha, antarala and a mandapa.
  • Other Hindu monuments include Rama temple, Gandheshwar temple etc.
• Buddhist monuments:
  • Viharas,
  • Buddha, Pdmapani, Avlokiteshwara statues etc.
  • Some syncretic finds of Hindi and Buddhist.
• Jain monuments:
  • Ruins of Jain basadi and monastery found.
  • Bronze image of Adinatha (first Tirthankara).

(xv) Buddhist site

Sankissa

• In Farrukhabad district, Uttar Pradesh.
• Ancient city which came into prominence at the time of Gautama Buddha.
• Ashoka installed a Pillar, from which the elephant capital survives.
• Ruins of old monasteries and Buddhist monuments.
• Chinese pilgrims, Xuanzang and Faxian visited.

(xvi) Ancient port

Bharuch/ Bhrigukachha

• In Bharuch district, Gujarat.
• Port at the mouth of Narmada.
• Ancient centre of trade.
• A ship building center.
• The trade route to west made use of monsoon winds.
• Many goods from the Far East used this port as a terminus for land-sea trade routes.
• Known to the Greeks, Roman and other western civilizations.
• Arab traders entered Gujarat via Bharuch.
• The British and the Dutch had established their business centers.

(xvii) Early historic site

Madurai

• In Madurai district, TN.
• Capital of the Pandya.
• Third Sangam was held here.
• Maduraikkanchi, part of the Pattuppattu describes Madura city, its palace, temples, houses, and markets.
• Centre of crafts:
  • making of gold ornaments,
  • ivory work,
  • inlay work,
  • bangle making,
  • The Arthashastra mentions Madurai as a centre of fine cotton textiles.
• References to its traders selling pearls and precious stones.
• Historical monuments:
  • Meenakshi Amman Temple
    • Dedicated to Parvati (Meenakshi) and her consort Shiva (Sundareswara) was rebuilt by Madurai Nayakas,
    • Dravida Style
    • surrounded by gopurams
    • Each gopuram is a multi-storeyed structure, covered with thousands of stone figures of animals, gods and demons.
    • 17^th and 18^th century paintings of Nayaka period.
  • Tirumalai Nayak Palace.

(xviii) Ivory hoard

Begram

• In Bagram District in Parwan Province of Afghanistan.
• Begram is the site of an ancient city of Kushana Empire.
• The location of this town made it a key passage from Ancient India along the Silk Road, leading westwards through the mountains towards Bamiyan, and north over the Kushan Pass to the Baghlan Valley.
• The Begram ivories are a group of over a thousand decorative plaques, small figures and inlays, carved from ivory and bone, and formerly attached to wooden furniture.
  • After carving the surfaces were smoothed and lightly polished. Traces of colour survive, showing the use of alternating red and blue pigments, and the highlighting of plain backgrounds with red or black.
  • Two walled-up strongrooms were excavated in which a large number of bronze, alabaster, glass (remains of 180 pieces), coins, and ivory objects, along with remains of furniture and Chinese lacquer bowls, were unearthed.
    • A high percentage of the few survivals of Greco-Roman enamelled glass come from this discovery.
  • They are Kushan art of the 1st or 2nd centuries CE, attesting to the cosmopolitan tastes and patronage of local dynasts, the sophistication of contemporary craftsmanship, and to the ancient trade in luxury goods.
  • They demonstrates Afghanistan’s trade connections to the far east and the Roman world.

(xix) Buddhist monastic centre

Somapura

• In Naogaon District, Bangladesh.
• A Buddhist Mahavihara.
• Built by Pala king Dharmapala (known from excavation at Paharpur and the seals bearing the inscription).
• Paharpur pillar inscription mentions Pala kings.
• Evidence of the rise of Mahayana Buddhism (mainly Vajrayana trend) in Bengal from the 7th century onwards, .
• UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• According to Tibetan sources, five great Mahaviharas:
  • Vikramashila;
  • Nalanda;
  • Somapura Mahavihara;
  • Odantapuri;
  • Jaggadala.

(xx) Temple complex

Kedarnath

• A Hindu temple (shrine) dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva.
• The temple is located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river, in Uttarakhand.
• According to Hindu legends, the temple was initially built by Pandavas. It is said to be reconstructed by Adi Shankara in 8th AD.
• It is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest Hindu shrines of Shiva.
• The temple is one of the four major sites in India’s Chota Char Dham pilgrimage.
• Architecture:
  • A small hall in front of the temple beams with images of Parvati and the five Pandavas.
  • The hall at the entrance of Kedarnath Temple is decorated with statues of Lord Krishna, the Pandavas, Draupadi, Nandi, Vidarbha (one of the guards of Shiva), and other deities of the Hindu mythology.
  • There is a conical rock structure inside the temple that is worshipped as the Sadashiva form of Shiva.
  • A “Garbha Griha” for worship and a Mandap for pilgrims is placed inside the temple.

Note: Any suggestion regarding site name is welcome