Prehistoric Rock Art in India

Mesolithic Rock Art
Rock Art represents the oldest evidence of aesthetic taste and expression by man in India. It is a
valuable source of information to gain insight into the lives, beliefs and preoccupations of the
hunter-gatherer community. It was first discovered by A. Carlleyle at a site in Mirzapur. Since
then, more than 150 rock sites have come to light. Furthermore, these sites are not just a local
phenomenon as they have been found all the way from the Himalayas in the north to Kashmir
in the south. However, the highest concentration of the sites is found in Central India; specifically
in U.P and M.P. The Largest site that has evidence of rock paintings discovered till date is
Bhimbetka which is spread over 10 sq.km. A critical point to note is the fact that even though
they have been found all over the country, all these paintings seem to have a general sense of
uniformity to them.
75% of all the sites that have been discovered are in or near the Vindhya mountain region. This
is believed to be because of the fact that sandstone is highly susceptible to the actions of erosion.
As this takes place, a part of it may break loose and come to rest against another piece of rock.
This process leads to the creation of a natural cave-like shelter making it a possible habitat.
There have been multiple efforts made to determine a chronology of the paintings. This has been
made easier by the fact that many sites have paintings that have been superimposed over one
another. Many times, due to the lack of place, some of the art may have been painted over an
older piece leading to various layers that could help determine the chronology. Wanakar has put
forth the idea that the green pigment paintings that are at Bhimbetka are the oldest and can be
dated back to the Upper Paleolithic Age. But Allchin, Mathpal and Chakrabarti do not agree with
this. They believe that the best way to determine a timeline for the rock art is not by the pigment
used but rather by the style present in the art itself. Paintings that only depict hunting scenes
and animals may be associated to the Upper Paleolithic and the Mesolithic as farming did not
develop till the Neolithic and thus would not have been seen in art that predates the Neolithic
Age.
On the basis of the style, Rock art can be divided into 3 phases. The first phase is called the
Prehistoric phases and spans from the upper Paleolithic to the Mesolithic. Majority of the art of
this phase comprises of animals and hunting scenes. The second phase is the Transitional phase
and spans from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic Age. The art of this phases depicts domestic life
and agricultural scenes too. The last phase is the Historical phase and goes all the way up to the
Gupta dynasty. The art of this phase is much more advanced as it shows warriors with weapons
on chariots.
The colors that were used for paintings were locally sourced. Red was mainly obtained from
ochre. Other shades like Vermillion, orange and light red were also obtained from ochre. White
was made using lime. While red and white were the two main colors that were used, green and
yellow can also been seen. The colors were made using rock nodules that were thin and soft in
nature. These nodules were broken off and then diluted in animal fat and plant juice or glue.
Most of the paintings that are found are monochromic in nature meaning that only one single
color was used to make the painting from start to finish. The surface that the early man painted
on such as the surface of the caves were not prepared in anyways. They were not smoothened
or plastered. Instead they were painted upon directly. In some cases brushes were used made
from either twigs or animal hair.
The art from the prehistoric phase shows scenes of various animals being hunted. Animals
included are deer, nilgai, rhino, buffalo, tiger, baor, etc. In Lakhajur near Bhimbetka, fishes are a
very common theme in the rock art. The main distinctive feature that separates Prehistoric Rock
Art from the other phases is the fact that there is no plant representation in the art. This is
consistent with the time period as mass cultivation is believed not to have spread through India
till the Neolithic Age. The representation of animals that is seen is very life like in nature; most
animals are to scale to their life size proportions. Furthermore, the outlines of the body of the
animals is filled with geometric patterns such as waves or zig-zag lines.
In contrast to animals, human representation is not to scale. They are shown with scrawny, stick
like bodies and are disproportionately long. The most common scenes in which humans are
shown in Prehistoric Rock Art are scenes of hunting. Hunting was a group activity which was
highly planned. This is evident by the paintings that show hunting scenes where a number of
men carrying spears, sticks and arrows surround a single animal or drive it off a cliff. But at the
same time they also show that hunting was a dangerous activity. One of the paintings show a
rhino being hunted wherein the rhino throws up a man into the air.
The Rock Art of the Mesolithic age also gives us considerable evidence of the fact that a basic
family system had started to emerge. A painting found at Bhimbetka shows a burial ceremony
of a child with the parents crying next to it. Another painting shows a scene of a family eating
together. A recurrent theme for human art is the depiction of females during pregnancy or
engaged in sexual activities. Scenes showing abduction of females by a group of men have also
been found which may either point to kidnapping or a tribal ritual related to marriage. Another
considerable aspect related to male-female distinction is the fact that the paintings show a clear
division of labor based on sex. Males are shown to be dominating figures while females are
mainly constricted to less hazardous work. Thus many scholars such as Numeyar have claimed
Indian Rock Art to follow sex-based division of labor. All the above mentioned evidences show
that a rudimentary societal culture had started to form by the Mesolithic age.
There have been a number of references in paintings that could point to religious beliefs and
rituals. Scenes showing men wearing masks and dancing around a bonfire in a group are a
common theme. The purpose of this could have been to appease a higher power through such
rituals or they may have been a form of celebration after a successful hunt. Moreover, a painting
of an animal which is a hybrid of a bull and a boar which was found at Bhimbetka was also found
at two more sites. This may point to the existence of the early humans having a belief in
mythological creatures.
The true purpose of the paintings can’t be ascertained due to the lack of sufficient evidence.
Many have speculated that it was a mode of communication for the early humans to pass on
certain vital information like rituals and hunting techniques to future generations. But a majority
of them believe that the rock art had a magico-ritual purpose. The latter is backed by the fact
that in almost all the cases, the shelters that have rock art evidences show no signs of
inhabitation at all. Furthermore, the shelters that show signs of habitation yield no considerable
evidence of any Rock Art whatsoever.

Prehistoric Rock Art in India

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Mesolithic Rock Art

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