At a glance
- Hand-axes: C.A. Hackett found Palaeolithic hand-axes at Jaipur and Indragarh (Bundi) in the 1870s (1870 in the RBSE book).
- Copper hoards: Jhadol (Udaipur), Kurada (then Nagaur district, now Didwana-Kuchaman) and Sabania (Bikaner) are known for stores of copper implements.
- Hendley's 'Buddhist town': in the winter of 1884 T.H. Hendley dug trial trenches in the old mound of Naliasar near Sambhar and took it for a Buddhist town; D.R. Sahni excavated it in 1936-38.
The ages and their sites
- PalaeolithicStone tools by riversMain sitesAlong the Chambal, the Banas and their tributaries; the Luni basin
- MesolithicMicrolith campsMain sitesBagor, TilwaraDatesBagor from about 4500 BC by radiocarbon (RBSE: 4000-5000 BCE)
- Copper ageCopper tools, Kantli valleyMain sitesGaneshwarDatesAbout 2800 BCE by the RBSE book; 2500-2200 BC by radiocarbon (ASI review 1981-82)
- HarappanTown on the GhaggarMain sitesKalibanganFull notes →
- Ahar-Banas cultureCopper age of MewarMain sitesAhar, Gilund, Balathal, OjiyanaDatesAbout 3000-1500 BCEFull notes →
- Iron age and laterIron, grey ware, townsMain sitesNoh, Jodhpura, Sunari, Rairh, Bairat, Naliasar, Nagari, Rang MahalDatesPainted Grey Ware from about 800 BC (Misra) or 600 BCE (RBSE)
- JanapadasTribes and kingdomsMain sitesMatsya, Shivi, Malava, Yaudheya, Arjunayana
Stone Age camps: Bagor and Tilwara
Microliths, tiny stone tools such as blades, crescents, triangles and trapezes, mark the Mesolithic. In Rajasthan they come from the Luni and its tributaries in the west and from Mewar, including the Berach valley near Chittorgarh. V.N. Misra's team found the two living camps, Bagor and Tilwara, in the winter of 1966-67.
| Site | Place and river | Finds |
|---|---|---|
| Bagor | Mandal tehsil, Bhilwara district; left bank of the Kothari, a tributary of the Banas | Dug 1967-70 under V.N. Misra. Thousands of microliths of quartz and chert; floors paved with stones; dead buried inside the camp; bones of cattle, sheep and goat. Copper tools came in a later phase. Farming: the RBSE book sees the oldest evidence of farming and herding here, while Misra found that no food plants were grown in the oldest phase and only hints of farming in the later one |
| Tilwara | On the Luni, about 16 km from Balotra (then Barmer district, now Balotra) | Dug by V.N. Misra and Vijay Kumar. Smaller and later than Bagor: microliths of quartz, chert and rhyolite, stone circles of huts, ash pits with burnt bones; pottery, and glass in the top levels |
Copper age: Ganeshwar
Ganeshwar, in Neem ka Thana tehsil of Sikar district, lies at the source of the Kantli river, close to the copper ores of the Khetri belt. It gave copper arrowheads, spearheads, fish hooks, chisels and bangles, several hundred copper objects by one count and over a thousand with Jodhpura by another, along with microliths. Its copper went to the Harappan cities.
Who dug it: R.C. Agrawal of Rajasthan's archaeology department, in the late 1970s; the ASI's yearly reviews record a trial dig in 1979-80 and a dig by Vijai Kumar of the same department in 1981-82.
Iron age and later sites
| Site | Place | Finds |
|---|---|---|
| Noh | Near Bharatpur | Painted Grey Ware with iron axes, spearheads and arrowheads |
| Jodhpura | Near Kotputli (then Jaipur district, now Kotputli-Behror) | Dug by Rajasthan's archaeology department under R.C. Agrawal; iron tools with Painted Grey Ware |
| Sunari | Jhunjhunu district | Two furnaces for smelting and forging iron, from the early Painted Grey Ware phase |
| Rairh | On the Dhil river, Tonk district | Dug by K.N. Puri for Jaipur State. Heaps of iron slag and iron tools show a metal-working town; the RBSE book calls it the 'Tatanagar' of ancient Rajasthan. Its hoards of punch-marked coins and Malava coins are on the sources page |
| Bairat (Viratnagar) | Then Jaipur district, now Kotputli-Behror | On Bijak ki Pahari, D.R. Sahni dug a round Buddhist temple with a path around it and a monastery; Bhim ki Dungri and Mahadev ki Dungri also gave remains. Ashoka's Bhabru edict came from here |
| Naliasar | Near Sambhar, Jaipur district | D.R. Sahni's dig found houses on six levels |
| Nagari (Madhyamika) | Near Chittorgarh | Coins of the Shivi people read 'majhamikaya sibi janapadasa' (of the Shivi janapada of Madhyamika) |
| Rang Mahal | Suratgarh tehsil, Sri Ganganagar district (the RBSE book lists it under Hanumangarh) | Dug by a Swedish expedition under Hanna Rydh in 1952-54 |
Janapadas of Rajasthan
Matsya, in the Buddhist list of sixteen Mahajanapadas, lay in Rajasthan. The Malava, Yaudheya and Arjunayana tribes moved into Rajasthan later, after Alexander's invasions by the RBSE book.
| Janapada | Region | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Matsya | Parts of present Jaipur, Alwar, Dholpur, Karauli and Bharatpur; capital Viratnagar (Bairat) | In the Mahabharata the Pandavas spent their year in disguise at King Virata's court, and his daughter Uttara married Abhimanyu. Later part of the Mauryan empire |
| Shivi | Around Chittorgarh, with Madhyamika (Nagari) as its town | |
| Malava | Nagar (Karkota Nagar) in Uniara, Tonk district; Rairh | Malava coins (see the sources page) |
| Yaudheya | Coins show the god Karttikeya |
Remember: often mixed up
- Bagor or TilwaraBagor on the Kothari (Bhilwara) · Tilwara on the Luni (near Balotra).
- Ganeshwar or SunariGaneshwar (Sikar) copper tools · Sunari (Jhunjhunu) iron furnaces.
- Nagar or NagariNagar (Karkota Nagar, Tonk) the Malava coin site · Nagari (near Chittorgarh) Madhyamika, the Shivi town.
- Rairh or NaliasarRairh (Tonk) iron and Malava finds · Naliasar (Sambhar) Hendley's 'Buddhist town'.
- Madhyamika or ViratnagarMadhyamika (Nagari) the Shivi town · Viratnagar (Bairat) the Matsya capital.
Test yourself: asked in exams
RAS Prelims 2023 · Q120
In the excavation of which of the following ancient site the huge collection of iron materials is found related to Malava Republic ?
- (1)Nagar (Nainwan)
- (2)Nagari (Madhyamika)
- (3)Sambhar
- (4)Rairh (Tonk)
Show answer
✓ (4) Rairh (Tonk)
See the full paperRAS Prelims 2023 · Q126
What is the similarity between Jharol (Udaipur), Kurada (Nagore) and Sabania (Bikaner) ?
- (1)Centre of Chalcolithic culture
- (2)Centre of Palaeolithic age
- (3)Minor stone implements found
- (4)Storehouse of copper implements
Show answer
✓ (4) Storehouse of copper implements
See the full paperRAS Prelims 2024 · Q120
Which of the following archaeological sites was identified by archaeologist T.H. Handley as a Buddhist town ?
- (1)Bhandarej
- (2)Budha Pushkar
- (3)Bairath
- (4)Naliasar
Show answer
✓ (4) Naliasar
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