Pre Historic

Sulaiman and Kirthar Hills on Af-Pak border - wheat and barley were grown and sheep, goat, cattle were reared (6000 BC). Rice was first grown north of Vindhyas. Garo hills also had early agriculture.
Manuscripts were written on palm leaves or bark of birch tree (Himalayas).

Paleolithic site: Kurnool caves has evidence of familiarity with fire.
Hungsi - tools made out of local limestone.
Paleolithic - stone age. Longest stretch of time. Covers 99% of human history.
Mesolithic - middle stone. 12,000-10,000 years ago. Change in environment (ice age ends), grasslands develop. Stone tools (called microliths).
Neolithic - from about 10,000 years ago.

Domestication - First animal to be tamed wild ancestor of dog. Teeth and horns of wild animals are larger than those of domesticated ones. Earliest plants were wheat and barley.
Sites where grains and bones have been found - Kashmir (Burzahom had dug houses), UP, Bihar (Chirand), AP (Hallur).
Mehrgarh, near Bolan pass, is one of the earliest villages we know about. They kept sheep and goat. Square and rectangular houses. IVC is a continuation of the neolithic Mehrgarh culture
Daojali Hading (Brahmaputra valley) - had jadeite, which may have been brought from China.

Paleolithic sites - Soan valley, Potwar plateau (NW), Siwalik hills, Bhimpetka (MP), Adamgarh (Narmada), Kurnool (AP), Attirampakkam (Chennai). Hunter-gatherers. Stone implements made of quartzite.

Mesolithic - sites: Langhanj (GJ), Adamgarh (MP). Big animal hunting -> now small animal hunting & fishing. Bow and arrow. Tendency to settle & domestication.

Neolithic - sites: Chirand (Bihar), Belan valley (UP), Maski Brahmagiri Hallur Kodekal (KTK), Paiyampalli (TN), Utnur (AP). Agriculture & domestication, polishing of stone tools and mfg of pottery -> sedentary life. Stone tools now polished, mud brick houses. Clothes of cotton & wool.

Metal Age (Chalcolithic - copper & bronze used, then Iron Age - cos mentioned in Vedas) - by smelting metal ore.

Pre Historic Art:

Excavations of prehistoric sites brought to light old tools, pottery, habitats, bones of ancient human beings and animals and cave drawings.Painting and drawing were the oldest art forms practiced by human beings to express themselves, using the cave walls as their canvas.
Subjects of their drawings were human figures, human activities, geometric designs and symbols. In India the earliest paintings have been reported from the Upper Paleolithic times.
Lakhudiyar caves in Almora- Paintings here can be divided into three categories: man, animal and geometric patterns in white, black and red ochre.
Wavy lines, rectangle-filled geometric designs, and groups of dots can also be seen here (trishul and swastika). Hand linked dancing human figures

South India - famous sites Kupgallu (TG), Piklihal and Tekkalkota (KTK). Three types of paintings have been reported from here—paintings in white, red over white and red ochre. Cover all PMN periods. subjects depicted are bulls, elephants, sambhars, gazelles, sheep, goats, horses, stylized humans, tridents, but rarely, plant motifs
Richest paintings - from the Vindhya ranges of Madhya Pradesh and their Kaimurean extensions into UP. Full of Paleolithic and Mesolithic remains, and they are also full of forests, wild plants, fruits, streams and creeks, thus a perfect place for Stone Age people to live.

Bhimbetka, in an area of 10 sq km, has about 800 rock shelters, 500 of which bear paintings. Discovered in 1957–58 by V.S. Wakankar

Paintings found here are of great variety - ranging from mundane events of daily life in those times to sacred and royal images. These include hunting, dancing, music, horse and elephant riders, animal fighting, honey collection, decoration of bodies, and other household scenes.
Rock art of Bhimbetka has been classified into various groups on the bases of style, technique and superimposition.

Upper Paleolithic - green and dark red, of animal figures, such as bison, elephants, tigers, rhinos and boars. And stick-like human figures.
Mesolithic - Largest number of paintings. Hunting scenes depict people hunting in groups, armed with barbed spears, pointed sticks, arrows and bows. Men adorned with elaborate head-dresses, and with masks also. Loved to paint animals (birds too). Paintings show fear of animals as well as love for them. Many rock-shelters have hand prints, fist prints, and dots made by the fingertips.
Chalcolithic/Copper - reveal contact with settled communities of Malwa plateau. Ceramics and rock paintings have common motifs - cross hatched squares and lattices. Pottery and metal tools too.

Artists of Bhimbetka used many colors, including but white and red were favorite. Got red from haematite (geru), green from stone called chalcedony, white maybe from limestone. First ground into powder then mixed with water and sticky substance (fat, gum, resin). Brushes made of plant fiber. Colors have survived thousands of years in adverse weather conditions. Colors have remained intact because of the chemical reaction of the oxide present on the surface of the rocks.

Shruti