Chalcolithic Cultures
Realm 05: The Copper-Stone Age and Rural Expansion
THE COPPER-STONE ONTOLOGY
MICRO-REALM 01
The Chalcolithic Phase
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- Chalco (Copper) + Lithic (Stone)
- First use of metal by humans in India
- Continued heavy reliance on stone microliths
- Mostly chronologically post-Harappan, but some pre-Harappan
MICRO-REALM 02
Metallurgy & Crafts
- Basic copper smelting technology
- Manufacture of flat axes, bangles, rings, and chisels
- Ignorance of tin/bronze mixing (unlike Harappans)
- Specialized coppersmiths and stone knappers
MICRO-REALM 03
Pottery Traditions
- Hallmark: Black-and-Red Ware (BRW)
- Wheel-made, fired in inverted positions
- Often painted with white linear designs
- Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP) in the Ganga-Yamuna doab
MICRO-REALM 04
Rural Settlement Pattern
- Strictly rural, non-urban settlements
- No use of burnt bricks (unlike Harappans)
- Houses of mud, and wattle & daub
- Circular and rectangular dwelling plans
MICRO-REALM 05
Ahar-Banas Culture
- Located in South-Eastern Rajasthan
- Ahar ancient name: Tambavati (City of Copper)
- Abundant local copper, completely lacking microliths
- Distinctive black-and-red ware with white paintings
MICRO-REALM 06
Malwa Culture
- Narmada valley (Madhya Pradesh)
- Sites: Navdatoli, Eran, Nagda
- Navdatoli yielded highest variety of food grains
- Considered the finest Chalcolithic pottery tradition
MICRO-REALM 07
Jorwe Culture
- Maharashtra (Inamgaon, Daimabad, Nevasa)
- Large nucleated settlements implying chiefdoms
- Daimabad hoard: Massive bronze rhino, elephant, chariot
- Red pottery with black painted designs
MICRO-REALM 08
Burial Practices
- Dead buried beneath the floors of their own houses
- Maharashtra: North-South orientation
- South India: East-West orientation
- Children often buried in twin urns joined mouth-to-mouth
MICRO-REALM 09
Religious Beliefs
- Worship of the Mother Goddess (Terracotta figurines)
- Veneration of the Bull (Malwa and Ahar regions)
- Stylized terracotta bull figurines suggest a cult
- Belief in afterlife evidenced by pots in graves
MICRO-REALM 10
Limitations & Decline
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- Lack of writing and true urbanism
- Could not fully exploit the thick forests of the Doab (no iron)
- High infant mortality rates (evident in burials)
- Decline linked to severe decrease in rainfall/droughts (c. 1200 BCE)