Paleolithic or Old Stone Age

The Old Stone Age sites are widely found in various parts of the Indian subcontinent. These sites are generally located near water sources. Several rock shelters and caves used by the Paleolithic people are scattered across the subcontinent. They also lived rarely in huts made of leaves.



Some of the famous sites of Old Stone Age in India are :

a. The Soan valley and Potwar Plateau on the northwest India.
b. The Siwalik hills on the north India.
c. Bhimpetka in Madhya Pradesh.
d. Adamgarh hill in Narmada valley.
e. Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh and
f. Attirampakkam near Chennai.

In the Old Stone Age, food was obtained by hunting animals and gathering edible plants and tubers. Therefore, these people are called as hunter-gatherers. They used stone tools, hand-sized and flaked-off large pebbles for hunting animals. Stone implements are made of a hard rock known as quartzite.

Large pebbles are often found in river terraces. The hunting of large animals would have required the combined effort of a group of people with large stone axes. We have little knowledge about their language and communication. Their way of life became modified with the passage of time since they made attempts to domesticate animals, make crude pots and grow some plants. A few Old Stone Age paintings have also been found on rocks at Bhimbetka and other places. The period before 10000 B.C. is assigned to the Old Stone Age.

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