Grain of rice points to pre-Harappan culture
VADODARA: Developed cultures may have existed in India more than 7,000 years ago. This would mean that they existed even before the Harappan civilisation.
And a clue to this prehistoric culture came from something as simple as a grain of rice. Archaeological Survey of India director BR Mani revealed this in Vadodara during an international seminar on Magan and Indus Civilisation, which ended on Thursday.
The ASI and MS University have organised the seminar to study the relations between the two civilisations.
Giving details about an older civilisation, Mani said that the recent excavations at archaeological sites of Virana in Haryana and Lahura-Deva in Uttar Pradesh have revealed that developed cultures dating back to the sixth century BC and seventh century BC existed in the country.
"This would mean that there were pockets were urbanisation would have started before the well-developed urban civilisation of the Harappans," said Mani.
"Till the 1940s, there was no scientific methodology for dating and hence evidence obtained from excavations at some sites was either not properly studied or was ignored.
But now we have studied a variety of rice that was obtained from the Lahura-Deva site, which revealed that there were regular farming and cultivation activities going on in 6th century BC," he said.
Mani also said that revelation of developed cultures should not be misunderstood as a separate civilisation.
"We have also received pieces of pottery and other evidence from sites like Lahura-Deva and they have created a lot of curiosity as they can themselves become a tool to trace the evolution of Harappan civilisation," he added.
And a clue to this prehistoric culture came from something as simple as a grain of rice. Archaeological Survey of India director BR Mani revealed this in Vadodara during an international seminar on Magan and Indus Civilisation, which ended on Thursday.
The ASI and MS University have organised the seminar to study the relations between the two civilisations.
Giving details about an older civilisation, Mani said that the recent excavations at archaeological sites of Virana in Haryana and Lahura-Deva in Uttar Pradesh have revealed that developed cultures dating back to the sixth century BC and seventh century BC existed in the country.
"This would mean that there were pockets were urbanisation would have started before the well-developed urban civilisation of the Harappans," said Mani.
"Till the 1940s, there was no scientific methodology for dating and hence evidence obtained from excavations at some sites was either not properly studied or was ignored.
But now we have studied a variety of rice that was obtained from the Lahura-Deva site, which revealed that there were regular farming and cultivation activities going on in 6th century BC," he said.
Mani also said that revelation of developed cultures should not be misunderstood as a separate civilisation.
"We have also received pieces of pottery and other evidence from sites like Lahura-Deva and they have created a lot of curiosity as they can themselves become a tool to trace the evolution of Harappan civilisation," he added.
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