Neolithic Age

The Neolithic age is also termed the ‘Neolithic revolution’ since it introduced a lot of essential changes in man’s social and economic life. The Neolithic Age saw a man turning into a food producer from a food gatherer. The term Neolithic Revolution is given by V. Gorden Childe.

The people in the Neolithic age lived more settled lives and paved the way for the dawn of civilization. The Neolithic people did not dwell far from the mountainous regions. Since they were entirely reliant on stone arms and tools, they mostly lived in hilly river valleys, rock shelters, and the slopes of the hills.

The use of pottery and the wheel and the subsequent invention of crafts such as spinning, weaving, and bead-making were typical in the Neolithic age. Pottery first appeared in this age on a large scale and included grey and black burnished ware. With a settled life and expansion of agriculture, people needed pottery to store their food grains.

The people used microlithic blades in addition to tools made of polished stones. A detailed understanding of metallurgy was not established during the Neolithic age time period. It is thus also dubbed as a “metal-less society.” Some of the characteristics of neolithic age are- 

• Cultivation of wheat, barley, fruits, corn-like ragi and horse gram, and lentils has been reported from the beginning and between 6000 BC and 5000 BC

• We can see the “division of labor” based on gender in the Neolithic period. We find women engaged in agricultural activities during the Neolithic period. As a result of the increased agricultural demand, women began to work in the pottery industry. Men hunted and fished, as they had done in the past
• Important Neolithic Sites include Mehrgarh (Pakistan), Chirand (Bihar), Burzahom (Kashmir), Hallur (Karnataka), etc

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Salient Features of Neolithic Culture in India

During the Neolithic age time period, the best-known Neolithic site in the Northern Himalayas is Burzahom in Kashmir, where pit dwellings with conical roofs characterized the earliest occupation. Gufkral, meaning “the cave of the potter,” is another important Neolithic site in Kashmir. It was inhabited by potters who utilized the caves cut into the Karewa. 

The advent of sedentary rural societies led to mud-brick houses rather than grass huts. These houses were somewhat more permanent than the grass huts.

“Community-festivals” also began during this time period. The butchering-place at Budihal denotes the importance of communal animal butchering. The people of Cachar Hills of Assam lived in mud-walled houses, and their handmade pots were decorated with basket impressions. Koldihwa and Mahagara lying south of Allahabad have evidence of many strata of circular huts along with crude handmade pottery. The most intriguing finding is evidence of rice dating from between 5440 and 4530 BC, which is the earliest evidence of rice in India and elsewhere on the globe.

Neolithic Age People were aware of making boats and could weave cotton and wool to make cloth. At this age, the man started growing cotton and learned about clothes. Instances of earlier cave dwellings have also been discovered, with walls decorated with hunting and dancing scenes.

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