South Asian Upper Paleolithic

Vidula Jayaswal

40,000–7000 BP

Follows the East Asian Middle Paleolithic Tradition and precedes the South Asian Microlithic Tradition.

The South Asian Upper Paleolithic Tradition is located on the Indian subcontinent and includes the countries of India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Sites, however, seem to exist in small regional pockets, the important ones being the Vindhyan hills and the Ganga plains of the Central northern India, the Tapti Valley of Maharashtra, and the mid-eastern coastal region in Andhra Pradesh. Some less prominent clusters appear to exist in parts of West Bengal and the Thar Desert of western India.

A quite recently recognized cultural stage, the South Asian Upper Paleolithic Tradition awaits the discovery of good habitational deposits and rich cultural remains. The tradition is marked by a blade-based toolkit, with blades comprising one-third to half of the assemblages. Fine, long blades are rare. Various forms of backed blades and knives are relatively common. Micro-blades and microliths form an integral part of the collections. Burin technology is not very common and, where found, exhibits a few simple forms. There is a paucity of evidence for art and craft activities or use of media other than stone. However, in some regions bone, ostrich eggshell and marine shell objects have been found.

Uttar Pradesh (Middle Ganga Plains) Upper Paleolithic, Maharashtra Upper Paleolithic, Andhra Pradesh Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic.

Ainchwara, Baghor (Son Valley), Bhimbetka rock-shelters, Chopani-Mando, Fa Hien Cave, Jwalapuram Locality 9 Rockshelter, Laharia-Dih, Mehtakheri, Patne, Sanghao Rockshelter, Sarai-Nahar-Rai, Site 55

At the start of the techno-cultural change from the Middle Paleolithic to the Upper Paleolithic, climatic conditions in South Asia in general were tropical humid. But the development of blade-based culture occurred in arid and hot conditions. Paleoclimatic studies carried out in the Thar Desert of western India indicate that short climatic cycles of dry and humid conditions prevailed on the Indian peninsula during the Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene epochs. Around 18,000 BP climatic conditions were marked by lower precipitation. This was the time when blade-based cultures flourished at a large scale and, in comparison to early Upper Paleolithic times, had a wider spread. Another noteworthy feature was that the sites of the earlier phase, the Middle Paleolithic, were more numerous in comparison to the Upper Paleolithic. However, around 18,000 BP, the Upper Paleolithic mode of subsistence gained momentum. The following wet phase around 10,000 BP gave impetus to a Mesolithic way of life, as seen at the Epi-Paleolithic to early Mesolithic sites in the Belan and Tapti river valleys. It may be further assumed that the Upper Paleolithic tradition flourished only in such regions of South Asia where the climatic conditions during the Terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene periods were moderate, and fluctuations consisted of short cycles of humid and dry spells. Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic sites have not been found in cold regions such as the Himalayas of northern India, or in the wet zones of the eastern Indian subcontinent.

Central India, particularly the river valleys and the coastal plains of the Deccan region, was suitable Upper Paleolithic habitat. In this wide zone the occupied regions had paired geographical settings: the hills, along with the alluvial plains of the perennial rivers. The Belan River Valley is an example of an attractive area for settlement; the thick alluvium and grasslands of the Gangetic plains, drained by the Belan and its tributaries, is bounded by the forest covered Vindhya-Kaimur Hills in the south, an area full of suitable lithic materials and forest products. Similar topography is found at the site of Patne in the Dhule district of Maharashtra, and in the Chittoor and the Cuddapah districts of Andhra Pradesh, where the Tapti, Subermukhi and Ganjam river valleys are thick alluvial plains abutting forest-clad hills.

The Upper Paleolithic Tradition in South Asia is concentrated primarily in the Deccan Plateau region of India. Surrounded on three sides by the sea, this triangular landmass is an old rocky formation. Due to a tilt of the basal formation to the east most of the major river systems drain themselves into the Bay of Bengal, with the exceptions of the Narmada and the Tapti which empty themselves into the Arabian Sea. The large rivers cutting through the old rocky formations have eroded the original surfaces, and subsequently filled the depressions with thick alluvial deposits that are fertile and thus have attracted human populations since ancient times. The alluvial plains of the Ganges, Krishna, Tapti, Narmada and a number of smaller independent rivers were the preferred habitational zones of the ancient Indian populations. The plains that border the hills of the Deccan—such as the Belan-Vindhyan region—have the advantage of having both a riverine ecology and a hilly terrain where rockshelters and outcrops of stone for implements are available. Similarly, the Dhule district has the hills of Ajanta and is surrounded by the alluvium of the Tapti River. The central eastern coast of the Indian peninsula also has hills and river plains that have supported hunting-fishing groups of nomads until recently.

The peninsula of the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent is characterized by deciduous forests. The hills of the Deccan are covered by thick forests, while the alluvial plains are covered mostly with shrubs and grasses. In certain areas, like the east coast, a combination of dry deciduous forest and thorny shrub is the characteristic type of vegetation. There are many fruiting trees, and edible roots and cereals that grow naturally in this ecosystem. The river valleys and small lakes formed by the paleo-channels of perennial rivers are rich in aquatic animals, while the coastal region of the east is rich both in marine and riverine fauna. The forested regions of the Deccan have various species of large and small animals, the most noteworthy being bison, jackal, hyena, deer, nilgai, bear, wild boar, hare, rat, etc. Until recently some of the forests were also known for tiger, leopard, elephant and wild cattle. The archaeological remains suggest that the plains of some rivers, particularly the Ganges, and perhaps the neighboring hills were also inhabited by rhinoceros during the end of the Pleistocene and beginning of the Holocene. In the category of birds, peacock, many species of parrot, fowl, partridge, sparrow, etc., are very common, and are often consumed by tribal peoples.

In the first stage, the early Upper Paleolithic, outcrops of suitable stone, varieties of cryptocrystalline silica, were extensively exploited. The sites discovered at the foot of the Vindhyan and Ajanta hills indicate that the lithic resource areas contain tool making scatters. Repeated utilization of these locales by small groups is apparent. In comparison to Middle Paleolithic workshop sites, the knapping centers of the early Upper Paleolithic were fewer in number. In the absence of evidence for habitational floors where other activities were being performed it may be presumed that the people of the early phase were small, very mobile groups of hunter-gatherers.

Three settlement pattern tendencies were prominent during the Upper Paleolithic period in South Asia. The first is the presence of intensive flaking activities around lithic resource areas and at the foot of hills; sites of this category are found in all three stages. Another is the occasional occupation of natural shelters; this tendency appears to be prevalent starting in the second stage and was intense in the final stage. A third tendency is for seasonal camps along water reserves; these short-duration habitations were motivated by the quest for food.

In the second stage, the mature Upper Paleolithic, there not only appears to be an increase in the number of tool making workshops, but many new regions were also explored in search of suitable raw materials and food. In addition to the already inhabited Belan and Tapti valleys, remote areas away from the main course of large rivers were also utilized, such as the Sidhapur Valley. Similarly, the coastal region of Andhra was a preferred habitat of the nomadic hunting-fishing groups. Low proportions of finished tools at flaking workshops indicate that the finished products were taken away and used in food resource areas. In cases of availability of stone near the food resources, the tendency was to make implements on the spot to utilize them for food processing. This tendency is clearly demonstrated in the Ganjam River Valley in the Kadapa (Cuddapah) district of Andhra Pradesh. There is no definite evidence for the construction of shelters and settlements; the occupation of rockshelters in the Vindhyan region suggests that the natural shelters were often used. Thick habitational debris at large rockshelters with a floor area of at least fifty square meters, as was the case with Laharia-Dih, indicate these were under continuous habitation by a number of moderately-sized groups of hunter-gatherers.

Based on chronological considerations the Upper Paleolithic hunting-gathering communities of South Asia are divisible into three phases: the early Upper Paleolithic (circa thirty-ninth to nineteenth millennium BP), mature Upper Paleolithic (circa nineteenth to tenth millennium BP), and the Epi-Paleolithic/early Mesolithic (circa tenth to eighth millennium BP). The archaeological record suggests a settlement pattern trending from absolute nomadism to semi-sedentism throughout the phases.

In the third stage, the Epi-Paleolithic/Early Mesolithic, camps are found on the banks of the sweet water reserves. In the middle Gangetic plains, open air dwellings were unearthed on the banks of the Belan River, and the horse-shoe lakes in the Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pradesh. Floors with temporary structures and habitational debris are located on the flat surfaces of the old alluvium. As is indicated by sites like Baghor, Chopani-mando, and Sarai-Nahar-Rai, such sites were occupied by small groups of semi-nomadic hunters. The sites in this category are numerous.

South Asian Upper Paleolithic communities likely were bands. Access to various natural resources was probably universal although acquisition could be governed by organized community behavior. For example, tools made at the knapping workshops were products of a select few, shared with the rest of the members of the band. Evidence for communal living is well-documented in the archaeological record of Sarai-Nahar-Rai, where a common cooking place was demarcated in the dwelling zone. Disposal of the dead was also a community activity. Floors and shelters in common places were prepared with considerable effort, perhaps by a significant section of the band.

The shelters constructed in this tradition were few in number and are reported only from the late stage, the Epi-Paleolithic/Early Mesolithic. As revealed at the site of Chopani-mando, the circular huts enclosed an area of roughly 3.8 meters diameter. These huts had wooden or bamboo posts with thatched roofs and walls that were perhaps plastered with mud. The cooking area at Sarai-Nahar-Rai appears to have been a similar structure, but this shelter might have been open on all sides and was meant to protect the community hearths; its floor was made of rammed, burnt clay lumps. Stone platforms have been found at Bhimbetka and Site 55.

The physical remains of the Epi-Paleolithic/Early Mesolithic population indicate that they were tall and well-built persons with a low incidence of diseases from nutritional stress. The inhabitants of the Ganga plains were of an average height of 1.8 meters and had an average age of death between 16 and 30 years. Pathological features observed at Sarai-Nahar-Rai indicate that some members had osteoarthritis at quite an early age, beginning in their thirties. Mesolithic skeletons from India and Sri Lanka also show a high frequency of moderate to severe dental wear on the teeth, but a low incidence of caries or abscesses.

The population density of this tradition was quite small initially. In fact, there appears to be a sharp decline in population at the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic period. But around the tenth millennium BP there appears to be a sudden increase in the population, particularly in the Vindhyan and Ganga regions. In view of the scanty nature of archaeological data it is difficult to count the proportion of this increase, or the number of the people within each of the proposed stages. But the expansion of the population is evident in the form of occupation of new regions and larger number of sites.

Upper Paleolithic subsistence in South Asia was primarily based on hunting-fishing strategies. Communities of small groups were the basis of this mode of subsistence, in which the acquired food was shared. Though there is no direct evidence for the reconstruction of the contemporary practices for hunting and gathering, faunal remains from sites like Sarai-Nahar-Rai (Epi-Paleolithic/Early Mesolithic) indicate that both large animals such as elephant, rhinoceros and deer were hunted, as well as small land and aquatic animals. Riverine fauna appears to be one of the staple edible items, particularly in the plains. Gathered fruits and roots could be other food items and, by and large, the consumption of cereals appears to be very restricted. However, around the tenth millennium BP the use of implements like ringstones and other heavy-duty stone tools indicate consumption of wild cereals, which were plentiful in the savanna vegetation of the alluvial plains. The movement of people from one eco-zone to the other—from the alluvial plains to the hills—in seasonal migrations (which has been demonstrated in Uttar Pradesh) would further suggest that there were changes in the mode of subsistence. In the hills, big game and small animals and/or the young of large animals were the prey, while in the plains the emphasis was on fishing and catching other aquatic or semi-aquatic animals. Similarly, fruit being plenty in the hills, the mainly carnivorous diet of the people might have been supplemented with a good amount of plant food there, while in the plains it would have been restricted to some berries and perhaps cereals.

The animal food occurring in the early stage—wild cattle, sheep/goat, antelope, bison, elephant, bear, boar and rhinoceros—continued to be consumed through the last stages. Riverine and lake animals included tortoise, fish and mussels. Jungle products that might have supported human groups were fruits—mahua, kendu, amwala, etc.—and edible leaves, which are plentiful in the hills, while wild grains, roots and berries of thorny shrubs like ber were the natural edible produce of the Deccan Plateau and alluvial plains.

Blade- and flake-based lithic tools were the basic technological attainment of the South Asian Upper Paleolithic, with increased use of pressure flaking, retouch, and the soft hammer technique for knapping compared to the Middle Paleolithic period. The main elements were produced at places where suitable rocks are concentrated. There is a possibility that each small group had craftsmen or knappers who were able to produce specialized forms like knives made on long blades, geometric forms on micro-blades, etc. Other implements—such as flake scrapers used for hide processing or meat cutting or scraping other products—may have been products of various members of the community who needed these for general domestic work. Other common stone tools include burins, borers, awls, and choppers. Bone tools include scrapers, awls, perforators, projectile points, harpoons, chisels, barbs, and spatulas.

Beads of marine shell, ostrich eggshell, and stone were the only known items of personal ornamentation in South Asia during Upper Paleolithic times. These rough circular beads are archaic in appearance. Engraved ostrich eggshell fragments were perhaps also worn as pendants. Adorning oneself in such ways was not a universal trait of South Asian Upper Paleolithic Culture, as few sites are reported to have remains of ornaments.

The basic economy of the South Asian Upper Paleolithic was the hunting and gathering of the natural resources, in which the contribution of trade appears to be negligible. But the occurrence of marine shells and ostrich eggshell in the Tapti Valley, a region distant from the sea and ostrich habitat, indicates that exchange of luxury items from long distance had begun in some of the regional subtraditions. Similarly, an exchange through a barter system could also have been in existence between the communities living in different resource zones, such as between the Vindhyan hills and the Ganga Plains.

Scholars conjecture that bands or hunter-gatherer groups were composed of small family units. Each unit would have collected and cooked its own food. Along with these individual efforts they would have participated in communal hunting, rituals related to death, and other social rituals such as ones connected with the shrine found at Baghor.

Wars and conflicts between bands of hunter-gatherers at the end of the time period have been posited. Microliths were found embedded in vital parts of the body in three skeletons from Sarai-Nahar-Rai, such as the eleventh rib and pelvic girdle, indicating death in a group clash. The reason for such conflicts could be over band ownership of resource areas. Some of the skeletons also show hyper-muscular development of the forearm from occupational or habitual stress, indicating such activities as javelin, sling ball, or bola throwing, which could be associated with inter-group conflicts.

The society appears to have practiced a fertility cult. The bone icon of a Mother goddess and the Mother goddess shrine in the Son Valley, indicate a fertility cult, although such interpretations are debated. It may be suggested that the small population of the early phase of the Upper Paleolithic prompted ritual performances related to the Mother goddess, a fertility icon. The belief in life after death was also inherent in the society, as seen at Sarai-Nahar-Rai at the end of the time period.

The “mother goddess figurine” obtained from the Belan Valley has been inferred to be an object denoting worship of the female deity. Similarly, the find from the Son Valley, of a triangular stone with concentric ochre-colored triangles at the center of a stone paved floor, has been interpreted as a place for Mother goddess worship based on ethnographic analogy.

Art objects are extremely rare in South Asia. Marine shell and ostrich eggshell were used for personal ornaments, while bone was utilized for making icons and weapons. The engraved designs on ostrich eggshell are simple geometric forms scratched by using some pointed object. The depiction of a female form on part of a bone harpoon reported from the site of Belan is a similarly archaic depiction. A group of rock shelter paintings depicting large animals at Bhimbetka, executed in green and red pigment, has been attributed to Upper Paleolithic man, an assertion that has been questioned.

Ceremonies related to death and, perhaps, birth rites, were performed in this tradition. Complex death ceremonies are indicated by the consistent orientation of the remains, careful preparation of the graves, and, at Sarai-Nahar-Rai, encircling hearths. Graves were prepared by digging shallow pits in which the corpses were placed in extended position in a west-east orientation, with the head towards the west. The west-east orientation of burials is inferred to indicate a reversal of the movement of the sun, or some other celestial body. One hand was kept at the side and the other crossed the abdomen, also indicating some ritualistic significance. At the end of the burial ceremony the grave was filled with burnt earth and food refuse, presumably for use by the dead.

The fact that the dead were buried within the residential area suggests that these people believed in life after death. Moreover, the microliths and shells of a particular type found as grave goods are presumed to have been items required by the dead. Cremated human remains have been found at Jwalapuram.

This tradition summary is based on the article “South Asian Upper Paleolithic,” by Vidula Jayaswal, in the Encyclopedia of Prehistory, Volume 8, South and Southwest Asia, Peter N. Peregrine and Melvin Ember, eds., New York: Plenum Publishing Corporation, 2002. Sarah Berry expanded a number of sections (Important Sites; Housing; Population, Health, and Disease; Industrial Arts; Conflict; Religious Beliefs; Death and Afterlife), made minor revisions to other sections, and added to the Bibliography accordingly in July, 2017. We thank Peter N. Peregrine for bibliographic suggestions.

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