Bhimbetka rock shelters

Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Bhimbetka rock painting
LocationRaisen District, Madhya Pradesh, India
CriteriaCultural: (iii), (v)
Reference925
Inscription2003 (27th Session)
Area1,893 ha (7.31 sq mi)
Buffer zone10,280 ha (39.7 sq mi)
Coordinates22°56′18″N 77°36′47″E / 22.938415°N 77.613085°E / 22.938415; 77.613085
Bhimbetka rock shelters is located in India
Bhimbetka rock shelters
Bhimbetka rock shelters, Madhya Pradesh, India
Bhimbetka rock shelters is located in Madhya Pradesh
Bhimbetka rock shelters
Bhimbetka rock shelters (Madhya Pradesh)

The Bhimbetka rock shelters are an archaeological site in central India that spans the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods, as well as the historic period.[1][2] It exhibits the earliest traces of human life in India and evidence of the Stone Age starting at the site in Acheulian times.[3][4][5] It is located in the Raisen District in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, about 45 kilometres (28 mi) south-east of Bhopal. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that consists of seven hills and over 750 rock shelters distributed over 10 km (6.2 mi).[2][6] At least some of the shelters were inhabited more than 100,000 years ago.[2][7]

The rock shelters and caves provide evidence of human settlement and the cultural evolution from hunter-gatherers to agriculture, and expressions of prehistoric spirituality.[8]

Some of the Bhimbetka rock shelters feature prehistoric cave paintings and the earliest are dated to 10,000 BCE, corresponding to the Indian Mesolithic.[9][10][11][12][13][14] These cave paintings show themes such as animals, early evidence of dance and hunting from the Stone Age as well as of warriors on horseback from a later time (perhaps the Bronze Age).[15][16][17] The Bhimbetka site has the oldest-known rock art in India,[18] as well as is one of the largest prehistoric complexes.[8][19]

  1. ^ Peter N. Peregrine; Melvin Ember (2003). Encyclopedia of Prehistory: Volume 8: South and Southwest Asia. Springer Science. pp. 315–317. ISBN 978-0-306-46262-7.
  2. ^ a b c Javid, Ali and Javeed, Tabassum (2008), World Heritage Monuments and Related Edifices in India, Algora Publishing, 2008, pages 15–19
  3. ^ Agrawal, D.P.; Krishnamurthy, R.V.; Kusumgar, Sheela; Pant, R.K. (1978). "Chronology of Indian prehistory from the Mesolithic period to the Iron Age". Journal of Human Evolution. 7: 37–44. doi:10.1016/S0047-2484(78)80034-7. The microlithic occupation there is the last one, as the Stone Age started there with Acheulian times. These rock shelters have been used to light fires even up to recent times by the tribals. This is re-fleeted in the scatter of 14C dates from Bhimbetka
  4. ^ Kerr, Gordon (25 May 2017). A Short History of India: From the Earliest Civilisations to Today's Economic Powerhouse. Oldcastle Books Ltd. p. 17. ISBN 9781843449232.
  5. ^ Neda Hosse in Tehrani; Shahida Ansari; Kamyar Abdi (2016). "Anthropogenic Processes in Caves/Rock Shelters in Izeh Plain (Iran) and Bhimbetka Region (India)". Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute. 76: 237–248. JSTOR 26264790. the rock shelter site of Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh exhibits the earliest traces of human life
  6. ^ Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka: Advisory Body Evaluation, UNESCO, pages 43–44
  7. ^ Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka: Advisory Body Evaluation, UNESCO, pages 14–15
  8. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference britannicabhimbetka was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Mathpal, Yashodhar (1984). Prehistoric Painting Of Bhimbetka. Abhinav Publications. pp. 220–227. ISBN 9788170171935. The paintings of the earlier five phases ( A - E ) belong to the prehistoric or Mesolithic stage. The oldest of them may be dated to 10,000 BC
  10. ^ Alok Kumar Kanungo. Gurudakshina: Facets of Indian Archaeology. British Archaeological Reports. p. 32. The oldest of them may be dated to 10,000 B.C. or even earlier.
  11. ^ Tiwari, Shiv Kumar (2000). Riddles of Indian Rockshelter Paintings. Sarup & Sons. p. 189. ISBN 9788176250863.
  12. ^ Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (PDF). UNESCO. 2003. p. 16.
  13. ^ Mithen, Steven (2011). After the Ice: A Global Human History, 20,000 - 5000 BC. Orion. p. 524. ISBN 9781780222592.
  14. ^ Javid, Ali; Jāvīd, ʻAlī; Javeed, Tabassum (2008). World Heritage Monuments and Related Edifices in India. Algora Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 9780875864846.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference bhim3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference bhim1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Sanyal, Sanjeev. Land of the seven rivers : a brief history of India's geography. ISBN 978-0-14-342093-4. OCLC 855957425.
  18. ^ Deborah M. Pearsall (2008). Encyclopedia of archaeology. Elsevier Academic Press. pp. 1949–1951. ISBN 978-0-12-373643-7.
  19. ^ Jo McDonald; Peter Veth (2012). A Companion to Rock Art. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 291–293. ISBN 978-1-118-25392-2.