Prehistoric Rock Paintings

The prehistoric drawings help us possibly understand early humans, their lifestyle, feeding habits, everyday activities, and, most importantly, their minds and their thinking. The various rock weapons, tools, pottery, and bones from the prehistoric period provide testament to the emergence of human civilization. The rock drawings are the greatest legacy that the prehistoric humans of this era left behind. Rock drawings have been discovered on the walls of caves in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Karnataka, with others in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon Hills in India.

Fine Arts: Prehistoric Rock Paintings

Prehistory or prehistoric time is the period that occurred in the past where there was no written word or paper and no books or any written accounts of events. Hence, information and events about such age are evaluated from excavations that reveal habitat, pottery, and paintings of such an era. Paintings and drawings were the elderly forms of artistic expression. Back in those days, these drawings and paintings decorated their homes or might have helped keep a journal of their life events for people to know in the upcoming era.

The Lower and Middle Palaeolithic periods do not have any evidence of artworks till now. The Upper Palaeolithic Period shows many artistic activities. The earliest paintings in India are from the Upper Palaeolithic Period. The first and the foremost discovery of prehistoric rock paintings in the world was in India by Archibald Carlleyle, an archaeologist, in 1867-1868 in the Sohagi ghat, Uttar Pradesh, 12 years before the discovery of altamira in spain. Prehistoric Rock Paintings have been found in the walls of caves at Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh. Old paintings have been found in Kumaon Hills, located in Uttarakhand.

There are three prehistoric periods.

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Discovery of Rock Paintings

• The first-ever discovery of prehistoric rock paintings was made in India from 1867 to 1868 by Archibold Carlleyle, An Archaeologist
• Ghosh, Mitra, Anderson, and Cockburn were the early archaeologists.

Prehistoric sites in India and their unique features

Lakhudiyar Caves

Prehistoric Rock Paintings have been found in rock shelters situated at the banks of River Suyal in Lakhudiyar, Uttarakhand. Its Features are:

• Mainly three types of paintings have been found in such sites- Geometric patterns, Animal and Man
• These paintings include multiple-legged wizards, foxes, way lines, scenes of hand-like dancing human figures, and rectangle-filled geometric designs
• Three colours are used for superimposing
• The earliest paintings are in black. Over the black, the red colour is used for superimposing.

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Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh

Topography in such regions has granite slabs that act as a canvas for their engravings and paintings. Its features are:

• The famous sites in this region are Tekkalkota, Piklihal, and Kupgallu
• The main subjects of paintings were elephants, goats, bulls, sambhars, stylish humans, and sheep
• Every kind of the theme of the painting is used except the vegetal motifs
• The three types of paintings are found on this site-in red, in red ochre over white.

Madhya Pradesh

Paintings that have been found on this site are the richest in quality.                           

• Major Site: Bhimbetka
• Discovered in 1957 by V S Wakankar
• Themes: Great diversity exists, ranging from horses, animals, and dancing scenes. 

Drawings and Paintings of Bhimbetka

The paintings of Bhimbeteka were classified in the following periods:

Upper Palaeolithic Period

• Paintings in this period are linear representations of huge animal figures, such as bison, tigers, boards, elephants, besides stick-like human figures

• Few paintings are wash paintings and mostly are filled up with geometric patterns
• The paintings in this period are of dark red and green colours
• The paintings have huge animals such as bison, elephants, tigers, and stick-like human figures
• The paintings are filled up with geometric patterns
• Green colour denotes dancers, and red colour denotes hunters in their paintings. 

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Mesolithic period

• The most significant number of paintings are found in this period
• The paintings are of small size
• Themes are multiple:

• • Animals were painted in a naturalistic style
  • Humans were depicted only in a stylistic manner.

• Women are painted both nude and clothed

• Women and children seem to depict family

• Most of the paintings were donated hunting scenes
• The artists of Mesolithic Period Painting love to paint animals
• The paintings depict family life
• Use of headdresses, ornaments, etc
• Most beautiful paintings are very high up on rock shelters or close to the ceilings of rock shelters. This was perhaps for people to notice them from a distance

Chalcolithic Period Paintings

• The paintings in this period reveal the exchange and association of requirements of the cave dwellers who lived in this area along with settled agricultural communities
• The paintings of this period are based mainly in the Malwa region, currently situated in Madhya Pradesh
• Metal tools and pottery were also founded in this period
• The artists at this period learned the various processes and sources by which they extracted colours for their prehistoric cave paintings
• The paintings in such periods were found on ceilings and walls
• Red and White were considered to be their favourite colours.

Paints that are used in Prehistoric Rock Paintings were vivid colours. These paintings have survived thousands of years, and it is a surprise for historians as it is hard to believe. The colours of paintings have not seemed to fade away even after the weather conditions have been adverse. The colours of such paintings have remained intact due to the chemical reaction of the oxide present on the rocks’ surface. The prehistoric rock paintings do not seem to lack any quality, even though several limitations have been. These limitations such as the inadequacy of tools, working conditions, etc.

Conclusion

Prehistoric Rock Paintings had a place for everyone, women and men, young and old, dancers and hunters. The art in the Stone Age revolves around everything and everyone they experienced in their daily lives. The paintings engraved on the ceilings are regarded as of importance for the people who lived in the Stone Age.