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The Antec edents

The antecedents

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The

Antecedents

Romila Thapar (born 30 November, 1930---) is an outstanding scholar and Historian in contemporary India. She did her Doctorate from the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University in 1958.Till date she has been the recipient of six honorary Doctorate Degrees from six highly esteemed Universities of the World. She refused the Padma Bhusan award twice. At present she is a Professor Emeritus at JNU. She is known as a controversial Historian. She is 86+ now.Amongst her unnumbered writings one cannot help remembering the names of Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas; Ancient Indian Social History, Some Interpretations; Recent Perspectives of Early Indian History (editor); A History of India Volume One, and Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300.

Romila ThaparProfessor Emeritus,JNU,Delhi

THE ANTECEDENTS ‘The Antecedents’ is the title of the 3rd

Chapter in her controversial Book on Indian ancient History .

Cambridge Dictionary defines the term as someone or something existing or happening before, especially as the cause or origin of something existing or happening later.

Romila Thapar wanted to mean ‘Past History’ or Background by the term.

The opposite of Antecedents is Postcedents.

THE ANTECEDENTS-

Writing History or Keeping records of the past’ is a western concept. India did not practice writing down History. Writing History in India began in the late 17th & early 18th century

although it is a land of 5000 years of continuous culture. East India Company officers started writing down Indian History

with the help of elite Brahmins. Indian History is elitist in nature. Indian History does not tell the story of the common people. The first book on Indian History entitled ‘History of British India’ was published

by James Mill in 1817.

THE ANTECEDENTS According to Thapar human beings did not originate

in south Africa alone. Evolution of Homo Sapiens (Human being) began

approximately 50,000 years ago in the Asian sub-continent also.

Contrarily the initial homo sapiens migrated from east Africa to Indian peninsula for easier life.

They settled in the Sind and Gangetic plains. Thapar mapped various stages of Human civilizations

in Indian soil in her book. The stages are Paleolithic; Calcolithic ;Neolithic

THE ANTECEDENTS

The history and identity of human settlements in India goes back to prehistoric times, when there was a gradual spread from the sporadic settlements of the old stone age to the more densely distributed habitations of later stone ages, followed by the even later societies of a more complex kind. The question of the identity of the earliest settlers is linked to the evolution and early history of homo sapiens and their dispersal from Africa. The earlier geological conditions assume that the Indian subcontinent was linked to east Africa in remote times.

THE ANTECEDENTS The tracks can be traced through the recognized patterns of

the settlements and cultures that have been labelled as the palaeolithic, mesolithic, neolithic,chalcolithic and iron ages.

Not all societies evolved from one to the next in a series, nor were they uniform in time throughout the subcontinent.

A brief survey of what has come to be called pre-history and proto-history provides the antecedents to the earliest history.

Archaeological data is in the form of tangible, material remains. This becomes the basis for calculating chronology.

Methods of dating have undergone impressive improvements in the last half-century and are among the many areas of archaeology in which modern scientific techniques have made enormous contributions. For many very early periods there are methods such as spectrometric dating, or measuring potassium or radioactive decay, for arriving at an early date.

THE ANTECEDENTS For periods of the last 10,000 years, the

three most commonly used techniques are radio-carbon dating (Carbon-14), based on measuring the loss of carbon in organic material; dendro-chronology, which refers to the number of tree rings in wood; and thermoluminescence (TL), which can be applied to artefacts of particular materials that have been put through fire, such as pottery.

THE ANTECEDENTS Terms such as culture and civilization, when used in an

archaeological context, have a somewhat different meaning from their general use.

Culture refers to the pattern of life of a society, so there are multiple kinds of cultures.

Such patterns would include the use made of the habitual environment, social relations, language and ritual.

Typologies of cultures were earlier made on the basis of the tools used by human groups.

These were largely of stone, changing from the older and larger tools of the palaeolithic to the smaller ones of the mesolithic, and the polished ones of the neolithic, to the use of both stone and metal in the chalcolithic.

Tool typologies are sometimes added to or substituted by types of pottery (when it comes into use), characteristic of certain kinds of settlements.

The pottery label is used to identify the people who made it

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CULTURE AND CIVILIZATIONThe term ‘culture’ is a Latin origin of the world ‘cultus’, which refers to cultivating or refining something, in such a way that it provides admiration and respect.

Civilization is described as a process of civilizing or say developing the state of human society, to the extent that the culture, industry, technology, government, etc. reaches the maximum level. The term ‘civilization’ is derived from a Latin term ‘civis’ which indicates ‘someone who resides in a town’.The following points are noteworthy, so far as the difference between

culture and civilization is concerned:The term ‘culture’ refers to the embodiment of the manner in which we think, behave and act. On the contrary, the improved stage of human society, where members have the considerable amount of social and political organisation and development, is called Civilization.Our culture describes what we are, but our civilization explains what we have or what we make use of.Culture is an end; it has no measurement standards. As against this, civilization has precise measurement standards, because it is a means.

CIVILIZATION & CULTURE The culture of a particular region can be reflected in religion, art,

dance, literature, customs, morals, music, philosophy, etc. On the other hand, the civilization is exhibited in the law,

administration, infrastructure, architecture, social arrangement, etc. of that area.

Culture denote the greatest level of inner refinement, and so it is internal.

Unlike, civilization which is external, i.e. it is the expression of state of the art technology, product, devices, infrastructure and so forth.

Change in culture is observed with time, as in the old thoughts and traditions lost with the passage of time and new ones are added to it which are then transmitted from one generation to another.

On the flip side, civilization is continuously advancing, i.e. the various elements of civilization like means of transportation, communication, etc. are developing day by day.

Culture can evolve and flourish, even if the civilization does not exist.

In contrast, civilization cannot grow and exist without culture. May Read more: 

http://keydifferences.com/difference-between-culture-and-civilization.html#ixzz4WEaMdk7h

CULTURE(S) Labels such as hunter-gatherers, cattle-

keepers and early farming communities are also used, since they are more descriptive.

Similarities in cultures do not necessarily indicate that they evolved from the same people.

Patterns of life and the artifacts that go with them can take similar forms, even if those who make them are unconnected.

But where there are connections, similarities have to be differentiated from imitations

CIVILIZATION Civilization implies a pattern that is

thought of as more complex and sophisticated, incorporating urban living and all that it connotes, a conscious aesthetic awareness, sophisticated religious beliefs and the use of texts.

City societies are stratified and the wider context is the state, with its unequal social divisions.

Ruling groups need not be based on kin connections.

A civilization can cover a wide area, recognized by the similarity of artifacts, and its extent often arises from the interdependence of peoples who are affected by its systems in various ways.

PALEOLITHIC AGE

PALEOLITHIC SHELTER CAVE PAINTING IN TAPTI VALLEY IN CENTRAL INDIA 

PALEOLITHIC AGE

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PALEOLITHIC OR OLD STONE AGE

From about 2 million B.C to 10000 B.C

PALEOLITHIC OR OLD STONE AGE

PALEOLITHIC AGE

Bhimbetka.Patne ostrich shell. Baghor I, upper paleolithic site. In the middle of a circular platform made of sandstone rubble, a rock with concentric triangles painted in light yellowish red to dark reddish brown have been found.ReligionIn the auditorium cave of Bhimbetka, one rock with 7 cup engravings and another rock with one single large cup mark along with a meandering line has been found. One explanation is that it was used as a gong in some kind of ritual. Time period is lower - middle paleolithic.Baghor I in MP from upper paleolithic. In the middle of a circular platform made of sandstone rubble, a rock with concentric triangles painted in light yellowish red to dark reddish brown have been found. This indicates pagan worship. The pieces of the rock when joined together form a triangle itself.   Community LifeThey lived in more or less permanent homes. This indicates sufficiency of food and other resources. Their houses were made of stone, grass, wood, leaves etc. There were some sites which served as temporary habitation only - people came, lived for a certain part of an year and went away. Some sites were connected to specific activities.Their social organization was "band based" i.e. they were organized in a small group which moved together. There was division of labor based on age and sex. There were no formal institutions, no chiefs etc. No one had a superior claim on the resources. 

Paleolithic Sites in India

MESOLITHIC AGE

MESOLITHIC AGE

NEOLITHIC AGE

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PALEOLITHIC & NEOLITHIC AGE.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PALEOLITHIC & NEOLITHIC AGE

CHALCOLITHIC AGE

CHALCOLITHIC AGE By the end of the Neolithic period, a full-

fledged civilization was developed in the  Indus  and Saraswati valleys in the northern part of India.

A completely different kind of culture known as Chalcolithic Culture was developed in central India and Deccan region.

They, however, never reached the level of urbanization in spite they were using metal.

They were contemporary of the Harappan culture, but some other were of later Harappan age.

CHALCOLITHIC CULTURES

COMMON FEATURES Important Chalcolithic cultures in

India were − Ahar culture c. 2,800-1,500 B.C.

Kayatha culture c. 2,450-700 B.C.

Malwa culture c. 1,900-1,400 B.C.

Savalda culture c. 2,300-2,000 B.C.

Jorwe culture c. 1,500 -900 B.C.

Prabhas culture c. 2,000-1,400 B.C.

Rangpur culture c. 1,700-1,400 B.C.

Common Features of Calcolithic age- The people of Chalcolithic culture had used

unique painted earthenware usually black-on-red. They used specialized blade and flake industry of

the siliceous material like chalcedony and chert. However, the use of copper and bronze tools also evidenced on a limited scale.

The Economy was largely based on subsistence agriculture, stock-raising, hunting, and fishing.

Painted pottery is the most distinguishing feature of all Chalcolithic cultures.

The Kayatha culture is distinguished by a sturdy red-slipped ware painted with designs in chocolate color, a red painted buff ware, and a combed ware bearing incised patterns.

The Ahar people made a unique black-and-red ware decorated with the white designs.

The Prabhas and Rangpur wares both were derived from Harappan culture and are called Lustrous Red Ware because of their glossy surface.

The Malwa ware is slightly coarse in fabric, but has a thick buff surface over which designs were made either in red or black.

Jorwe ware is painted black-on-red and has a matt surface treated with a wash.

CHALCOLITHIC LIFE-STYLE

MEGALITHIC BURIALS

Kudakkallu Parambu is a prehistoric Megalithic burial site located in the village of Chermanangad, 20km away from Thrissur, Kerala, India. The site have 69 megalithic monuments spread over a small area. 

THE FIRST URBANIZATION - THE CITIESOF THE INDUS CIVILIZATION

The Indus Valley Civilization was an ancient civilization located in what is Pakistan and northwest India today, on the fertile flood plain of the Indus River and its vicinity. Evidence of religious practices in this area date back approximately to 5500 BCE. Farming settlements began around 4000 BCE and around 3000 BCE there appeared the first signs of urbanization. By 2600 BCE, dozens of towns and cities had been established, and between 2500 and 2000 BCE the Indus Valley Civilization was at its peak.

THE FIRST URBANIZATION - THE CITIESOF THE INDUS CIVILIZATION

THE LIFE OF THE INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

Two cities, in particular, have been excavated at the sites of Mohenjo-Daro on the lower Indus, and at Harappa, further upstream.

The evidence suggests they had a highly developed city life; many houses had wells and bathrooms as well as an elaborate underground drainage system.

The social conditions of the citizens were comparable to those in Sumeria and superior to the contemporary Babylonians and Egyptians. These cities display a well-planned urbanization system.

There is evidence of some level of contact between the Indus Valley Civilization and the Near East. Commercial, religious, and artistic connections have been recorded in Sumerian documents, where

the Indus valley people are referred to as Meluhhaites and the Indus valley is called Meluhha. The following account has been dated to about 2000 BCE: "The Meluhhaites, the men of the black

land, bring to Naram-Sin of Agade all kind of exotic wares." (Haywood, p. 76, The Curse of Agade) The Indus Civilization had a writing system which today still remains a mystery: all attempts to

decipher it have failed. This is one of the reasons why the Indus Valley Civilization is one of the least known of the

important early civilizations of antiquity. Examples of this writing system have been found in pottery, amulets, carved stamp seals, and

even in weights and copper tablets. Another point of debate is the nature of the relationship between these cities. Whether they were independent city-states or part of a larger kingdom is not entirely clear. Because the writing of the Indus people remains undeciphered and neither sculptures of rulers nor

depictions of battles and military campaigns have been found, evidence pointing in either direction is not conclusive.

THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THEY HAD A HIGHLY DEVELOPED CITY LIFE; MANY HOUSES HAD WELLS AND BATHROOMS AS WELL AS AN ELABORATE UNDERGROUND DRAINAGE SYSTEM. 

LINK: WWW.ANCIENT HISTORY ENCYCLOPAEDIA.COM

THE LIFE OF THE INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

THE LIFE OF THE INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

Questions may be prepared for 2017

What does the essay “The Antecedents” say about ‘India in Western imagination’?(for 2017)

How would you describe India to a Westerner today?

India has often been called a land of contrasts and extremities. What are your views on this?(for 2017)

What aspects of India should be viewed critically, and what aspects could be viewed with ‘amused benevolence’?

The West has formed different changing perceptions of India over the past. How would you like the Western world to view India?

History can be written from different perspectives. Do you feel that Indian history must be rewritten? Explain (Most Important for (2017)

Reference & Links:-Books:-i. The History of India Vol-1 by Romila Thapar.ii. Ancient Indian History Web Links:- i.www.google images.co.inii. www.timemaps.com/civilization-ancient-indiav. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_India

PRESENTER:-

INDRANIL SARKARASSAM; INDIA