Latest news with #Palaeolithic
Time of India
a day ago
- Science
- Time of India
Megalithic era pottery unearthed at village farm in Haveri
Haveri: A research team led by MR Shadaksharayya, a former professor from Karnatak University's history and archaeological department in Dharwad, unearthed Megalithic artefacts in Balambeed village, Hirekerur taluk, Haveri district. The discoveries, found on Mallikarjun Jogihalli's land, include 3000 BC pottery fragments and ancient materials merely six inches beneath the surface. Some findings suggest links to the Palaeolithic era. The research group, comprising historians Iranna Pattar, Nagarajappa MS, and MM Akki, located this archaeological site and gathered historical evidence from the agricultural land. Their findings include fossils of black-and-red pottery, characteristic of the Palaeolithic and Megalithic periods. The pottery collection features carinated vessels, pedestal bowls, spouted dishes, and distinctive conical lids with top loops. The Indian Megalithic culture primarily corresponds to the Iron Age (1500 BC–500 BC), with some sites showing Chalcolithic-Megalithic characteristics. The Palaeolithic period dates to 3000 BC. Previous archaeological discoveries in Karnataka include sites at Maski, Hallur, Chandravalli, Hire Benkal, Coorg, Heggadehalli, and Brahmagiri. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch CFD với công nghệ và tốc độ tốt hơn IC Markets Đăng ký Undo The Balambeed village site offers fresh insights into the district's historical development. "The owner of the land came upon pottery while they were digging at least 18 inches. Not only this, many different types of pottery pieces were found in different spots at the farmland, and these are like those we found earlier in Hallur in Hirekerur taluk, Maski, Yallur village in Harapanahalli taluk. Some bone pieces were also found at the same spot," informed Prof Shadaksharayya. He indicated that these shallow-depth discoveries suggest the presence of substantial Stone Age burial grounds. Initial evidence points towards significant historical value requiring additional research. Former Archaeological Survey of India authority Narashimhaiah previously identified Stone Age implements in the region. "Villages were common among the Megalithic people. Megalithic people cultivated rice, wheat, ragi, and domesticated animals like donkeys and buffalo. Different types of pottery, including high-quality red and black pottery, are associated with the Megalithic culture, so these fossils are better leads to further studies," Shadaksharayya stated. "We preserved the fossils that were found in the farmland. We also requested the landowner not to harm such ancient pieces because they are valuable for study, and they also agreed to this," shared MM Akki, another member of this team. Caption: Ancient pottery and other stone materials belonging to the Palaeolithic and Megalithic era were discovered in the Balambeed village of Hirekerur taluk of Haveri district recently
NZ Herald
23-05-2025
- General
- NZ Herald
The Conversation: How snails and oysters became luxury foods
From garden snail to gastronomy Eating what many consider to be a slimy nuisance seems almost counterintuitive, but consuming land snails has an ancient history, dating to the Palaeolithic period, some 30,000 years ago in eastern Spain. Ancient Romans also dined on snails and spread their eating habits across their empire into Europe. Lower and middle class Romans ate snails from their gardens, while elite consumers ate specially farmed snails, fed spices, honey and milk. Pliny the Elder (AD 24–79) described how snails were raised in ponds and given wine to fatten them up. The first French recipe for snails appears in 1390, in Le Ménagier de Paris (The Good Wife's Guide), but not in other cookbooks from the period. In 1530, a French treatise on frogs, snails, turtles and artichokes considered all these foods bizarre, but surprisingly popular. Some of the appeal had to do with avoiding meat on 'lean' days. Snails were classified as fish by the Catholic Church and could even be eaten during Lent. For the next 200 years, snails only appeared in Parisian cookbooks with an apology for including such a disgusting ingredient. This reflected the taste of upper-class urbanites, but snails were still eaten in the eastern provinces. An 1811 cookbook from Metz, in the Alsace region in northeastern France, describes raising snails like the Romans, and a special platter, l'escargotière, for serving them. The trend did not travel to Paris until after 1814. French diplomat Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord (1754–1838) hosted a dinner for Russian Tsar Alexander I, after he marched into Paris following the allied forces' defeat of Napoleon in 1814. The chef catering the meal was the father of French cuisine, Marie-Antoine Careme, a native of Burgundy, spiritual home of the now famous escargots de Bourgogne. Careme served the Tsar what would become a classic recipe, prepared with garlic, parsley and butter. Allegedly, the Tsar raved about the 'new' dish, and snails became wildly popular. A recipe for Burgundy snails first appeared in a French culinary dictionary published in 1825. It is ironic that it took the approval of a foreign emperor who had just conquered Napoleon to restore luxury status to escargot, a food that became a symbol of French cuisine. Snails remain popular today in France, with consumption peaking during the Christmas holidays, but May 24 is National Escargot Day in France. Oysters: the original fast food Oysters are another ancient food, as seen in fossils dating to the Triassic Era, 200 million years ago. Advertise with NZME. Evidence of fossilised oysters is found on every major land mass, and there is evidence of indigenous oyster fisheries in North America and Australia that dates to the Holocene period, about 12,000 years ago. There are references in classical Greek texts to what are probably oysters by authors like Aristotle and Homer. Oyster shells found at Troy confirm they were a favoured food. Traditionally served as a first course at banquets in Ancient Greece, they were often cooked, sometimes with exotic spices. Pliny the Elder refers to oysters as a Roman delicacy. He recorded the methods of the pioneer of Roman oyster farming, Sergius Orata, who brought the best specimens from across the Empire to sell to elite customers. Medieval coastal dwellers gathered oysters at low tide, while wealthy inland consumers would have paid a premium for shellfish, a perishable luxury, transported to their castles. French nobles in 1390 preferred cooked oysters, roasted over coals or poached in broths, perhaps as a measure to prevent food poisoning. As late as the 17th century, authors cautioned: 'But if they be eaten raw, they require good wine … to aid digestion." By the 18th century, small oysters were a popular pub snack, and larger ones were added as meat to the stew pot. In that century, it is believed that as many as 100,000 oysters were eaten each day in Edinburgh, and the shells from the tavern in the basement filled in gaps in the brickwork at Gladstone's Land in Edinburgh's Royal Mile. Scottish oyster farms in the Firth of Forth, an inlet of the North Sea, produced 30 million oysters in 1790, but continual over-harvesting took its toll. By 1883, only 6000 oysters were landed, and the population was declared extinct in 1957. As wild oyster stocks dwindled, large oyster farms developed in cities like New York in the 19th century. Initially successful, they were polluted and infected by typhoid from sewage. An outbreak in 1924 killed 150 people, the deadliest food poisoning in United States history. Far from the overabundance of oysters we once had, over-fishing, pollution, and invasive species all threaten oyster populations worldwide today. Due to this scarcity of wild oysters and the resources required to safely farm environmentally sustainable oysters, they are now a premium product. Next on the menu Scarcity made oysters a luxury, and a Tsar's approval elevated snails to gourmet status. Could insects become the next status food? Ancient Romans ate beetles and grasshoppers, and cultures around the world consume insects, but not (yet) as luxury products. Maybe the right influencer can make honey-roasted locust the next species to jump from paddock to plate.
Hindustan Times
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
The case to preserve Mangar Bani as protected heritage
Mangar Bani and the other parts of the Aravallis in the national capital region (NCR) are important not only from an ecological standpoint but also from a historical-cultural perspective. Archaeologists and researchers working at the Mangar section of the range have found a trove of prehistoric tools and rock paintings from the Lower Palaeolithic age, which could broaden the understanding of hunter-gatherer life in the region dating back to some 200,000-500,000 years ago. Experts believe that other parts of the Aravallis could contain similar prehistoric tools and paintings, making the forests important for humanity's quest to understand its own origins and evolution better. The origin of Aravalli as a place of interest for anthropology and history was serendipitous -- prehistoric tools were found among the Badarpur sand mined from the region and sold in the NCR in the early 1990s, leading to exploration and research interest. But this tale of chance discovery is also a warning of the unaccounted loss of historical material. The imperative of conserving the area for its immense ecological and archaeological value can't be stressed enough. To that end, the government (states and the Centre) needs to review ownership/lease of land in the forest and adjoining areas to determine the potential for harm from extractive and mining activities. The Haryana government has long been eyeing an easing of the laws to be able to tap the revenue potential of the forest through mining to real estate. It hasn't yet recognised Mangar as a forest though it meets all criteria for such classification. Given the Forest Act as amended in 2023 makes it easier for commercial interests to exploit such unrecognised forests -- and real estate and other companies own large tracts of the land in Mangar and other parts of the Aravallis -- it is time to double down on Aravalli conservation.
Hindustan Times
05-05-2025
- Science
- Hindustan Times
Archaeologists unearth prehistoric tools in NCR's only primary forest
Archaeologists and environmental researchers carrying out work in the Mangar region of the Aravallis have said that they found a variety of pre-historic tools in Mangar from the Lower Palaeolithic age, which effectively could be holding clues to prehistoric ways of life. Mangar Bani is a Palaeolithic archaeological site and sacred grove hill forest perched next to the Mangar village on the Delhi-Haryana border. According to people aware of the matter, the tools provide clues to the daily lives of the hunter gatherer populations characterised by the occurrence of handaxes and cleavers belonging to the Acheulian (Lower Palaeolithic) cultural phase, which existed around 200,000 to 500,000 years ago. Close to 200 objects and artefacts have been found so far, they said. HT first reported on July 14, 2021 that archaeologists have discovered cave paintings in a rocky and forested corner of Haryana, not far from the national capital, that they believe belong to the Upper Palaeolithic age. HT reported last week that Mangar, comprising the village, and the sacred grove amid a rocky and hilly terrain, spread over 4,262 acres (of which 3,810 acres is the hill area), is among the most biodiversity rich areas of the Aravallis in the National Capital Region (NCR). The researchers have been carrying out surface exploration work in the region for a week. Within Mangar village, Mangar Bani (677.12 acres) is NCR's most sacred grove, and possibly the only patch of primary forest in the region. It is also home to around 240 species of birds and 15 species of mammals including leopards and hyenas. Two archaeologists from the Academy for Archaeological Heritage Research and Training (AAHRT), Sanchi, and environmentalists from Gurugram have been exploring the hilly areas and three caves in Mangar. 'We found a high number of such tools, providing enough evidence that the area is a significant archaeological site from a pre-historic point of view,' said SB Ota, former joint director general of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the head of AAHRT. Ota was among the main archaeologists who discovered the Anangpur site in Faridabad in 1991, also a Palaeolithic site. The scoping survey was conducted by a joint team from AAHRT and Centre for Ecology Development and Research (CEDAR) in and around the Mangar Bani, Mangar, Bandhwari, Shilakhri Aravallis. The team was led by Ota, along with Niharika Shrivastava, and Chetan Agarwal, senior fellows with CEDAR and Sunil Harsana, research associate CEDAR. The team also found several cave paintings, possibly much recent compared to the tools, which depict animal and nature inspired motifs in Mangar's caves and hills. Ota said the clues that sites in Haryana Aravallis were possible prehistoric sites first emerged in the 1990s, when certain pre-historic artefacts were found in Delhi. These were possibly transported with sand from Aravallis. 'It goes back to 1991 when I was working with the government. We were exploring the Aravallis in Anangpur. There were some reports from Delhi that these prehistoric tools were found. Sand goes from Aravallis to Delhi which is called Badarpur sand. People had reported that such artefacts found but they were not from Delhi, they came with the sand. So, we decided to explore areas from where the sand was coming. Until 1991 Aravallis were not explored. That brought us to Anangpur,' recollected Ota. He said those artefacts were dislodged from original context. 'I came to Mangar and Damdama in December 2023 after Chetan Agarwal, a Gurugram based forest analyst, informed me about the Mangar site. We did a survey near Damdama lake and found some artefacts. These belong to the Pleistocene. Presently, we are in Holocene, which is 11,000 years old. Human culture had its beginning with lower Palaeolithic tools. In India, the culture of these tools goes back to nearly 1.7 million years. There are a few methods to date these artefacts but we are planning to use the thermoluminescence method for the tools from Mangar,' said Ota. Thermoluminescence dating is a method in archaeology. It measures the accumulated radiation dose of the time elapsed since the material containing crystalline minerals was heated or exposed to sunlight Ota said that metal had not been discovered during the lower Palaeolithic age. 'People were hunter gatherers. For them the hardest material was rocks. They used bones and wood also, but that may have been completely destroyed since those are organic materials. The reason we cannot find such artefacts easily near the Yamuna is because they would be buried in alluvium. One could find some in the in the Shivaliks, but the Aravallis are isolated in many ways and this area is particularly untouched,' he added. Some archaeologists said that the documentation of such material needs to be methodical. 'We must document these pre-historic remains and the cave paintings very methodically. We as archaeologists read patterns. This area needs to be conserved because of its natural and archaeological heritage,' said Shrivastava, an archaeologist focusing on pre-historic evidence in Bastar. 'These are very important sites. Mangar and the surrounding areas are precious because they show us how very early human populations lived. They may have settled there because the atmospheric condition was conducive for people to live and we can see they had decorated their rock shelters also with paintings. Near to Mangar, Anangpur is also extremely important, the site was excavated and important artefacts such as cleavers, hand axes were found. The entire Aravallis and the Delhi ridge also have huge potential that needs to be studied. There should be no destructive activities in these areas, and mining, if any, should stop immediately,' said Nandini Bhattacharya Sahu, joint director general, ASI. The Aravalli range is one of the oldest fold mountain systems in the world and predates the formation of the Himalayan ranges. Its current form is reduced to residual hill ranges. The range and its surrounding area are characterised by the occurrence of various archaeological evidence, including the Acheulean culture, Mesolithic, Rock Paintings, and Chalcolithic settlements. Besides, the historical remains of varied nature include petroglyphs and early historic and medieval settlements both on the foothill area as well as on hilltops, forts, water bodies. Though Mangar meets all criteria for a forest, it has still not been classified as one by the Haryana government. A Supreme Court verdict in the TN Godavarman Thirumulpad vs. Union of India & Others case on December 12, 1996, directed that 'forests' would not only include those understood in the dictionary sense, but also any area recorded as forest in government records irrespective of the ownership. However, the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act, 2023, exempts 'unrecorded deemed forests' from being recognised under the modified law on forest conservation, effectively leaving areas such as Mangar Bani vulnerable. HT reported on October 3, 2023 that the 2023 forest act will benefit real estate companies that own land in what was to be declared 'deemed forest' in Haryana's Aravallis. The revenue record for Mangar village from 1963-64 shows that the area is gair mumkin pahar (uncultivable land) and recorded as panchayat deh (owned by panchayat or common land). HT's analysis of jamabandi papers (land records) in 2023 revealed that large parts of land in Mangar and Mangar Bani are owned by real estate and other companies. Around 1973-74, around 3,809.63 acres of land in Mangar was mutated from panchayat deh to shamlat deh (common land vested with propietors) and further subdivided for private sale. The mutation was sanctioned on the basis of an order of a sub-judge in Ballabhgarh dated March 14, 1973, according to Agrawal. 'We knew that the Aravalli forests of Mangar and surrounding villages are a key groundwater recharge zone and wildlife habitat and corridor Now this survey has revealed its rich Palaeolithic past. We hope that the area is notified for archaeological protection, and also protected as a forest,' said Agarwal.
New Indian Express
04-05-2025
- Science
- New Indian Express
When every rock tells an artistic story
MADURAI: Ancient art is not simply limited to engravings found on Egypt's walls with tales of Pharaohs, or primitive pictographs of Palaeolithic humans hunting animals found in the Peruvian caves. Civilisations across the globe have used art to leave a legacy that breathes on for centuries. While it might look backwards or primitive to the layman, art historians like KT Gandhirajan find these pictographs intricate and nuanced. 'It is amazing to see rock art paintings in caves where tribes lived almost 2,000 years ago. They have documented their culture, heritage, fauna, social interactions, etc. These paintings are a treasure trove of knowledge, and documenting them gives me joy and motivates me to pursue my journey. Rock art varies from place to place and is paired with meticulous changes such as types of colours and materials used. Every subtlety has a story to tell,' he said. Gandhirajan has discovered and documented over 1,000 images of rock art in 80 sites, including tribal and non-tribal areas across the state. The art historian and researcher from Usilampatti in Madurai, with over two decades of experience, takes up rocky paths in his stride, fueled by his passion for rock art works. The researcher, currently with the Tamil Virtual Academy, says, 'After Class 12, my father tried to enrol me in an engineering college, but I was not able to make it through. I later got admitted to PMT college in Usilampatti for BSc Chemistry. I later pursued an MA in Art History at Madurai Kamaraj University.' Gandhirajan's love for rock paintings piqued when he moved to the University of Madras in 1995 for his PhD titled 'Painting Traditions in the Nayak Period'. As part of his five-year research, he got a chance to visit 40 temples, including the Srirangam Aranganathaswamy Temple and others in Kumbakonam. Fascinated by temple paintings, he used to click photographs, and write about them for his thesis. Unfortunately, he was unable to complete his PhD, owing to various challenges. 'This is when I accidentally met Government Fine Arts College Principal Alphonso Arul Doss, and he invited me to take part-time classes for college students. With his support, I started my journey to discover the world of cave rock art. Though I couldn't finish my PhD, my experiences allowed me to forge an interest in the study of rock art,' he said.
