Pandu culture
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Alternative names | Chalcolithic period in the lower Ganga valley |
|---|---|
| Geographical range | Ajay Valley: modern-day West Bengal, India. |
| Period | Chalcolithic |
| Dates | 1600–750 BC |
| Type site | Pandu Rajar Dhibi |
| Major sites | Mahisdal, Mangalkot, Dihar, Baneshwardanga and Tamluk |
| Preceded by | Early agricultural communities in Bengal |
| Followed by | Northern Black Polished Ware culture |
| History of South Asia |
|---|
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The Pandu culture is an archaeological culture from the Chalcolithic period of India, spanning around 1600 BC to 750 BC. The type site is Pandu Rajar Dhibi, where black and red ware and tools made from bone and copper were found alongside remains of human body. It extends from the foothills of the Chota Nagpur Plateau to the Bhāgirathi-Hooghly river basin, covering a considerable part of southwestern or Rarh and coastal regions of modern-day West Bengal; from Birbhum in the north to Purba Medinipur in the south.
Most of the Pandu settlements were small-scale, mainly concentrated in the Ajay, Damodar and Rupnarayan, Hooghly river valleys. Major settlements during the peak phase of this Chalcolithic culture (1000 BC) include Pandu Rajar Dhibi, Mahisdal, Mangalkot, Bharatpur, Dihar, Baneshwardanga, Pakhanna and Tamluk. These were contemporary with the later Harappan and Vedic period.[1][2]
The Pandu culture was extensively dependent on agriculture. The presence of rice provides evidence of the beginning of rice cultivation and agriculture in eastern India and Bengal. From the late phase of Chalcolithic, iron began to be used. Clay floors, reed and clay structural remains, and pit-stocks have been documented from various settlements. Structural remains in the form of mud-rammed floor, reed impressed clay chunks, and pit-silos are recorded at several sites indicating wattle-and-daub structure.[3]
These cultural settlements were weakened and destroyed when the Second Urbanization began, and new settlements and trade centers emerged in the delta region.
The Pandu culture flourished in the present-day eastern Indian state of West Bengal, which is the western part of the historical Bengal region.[4]
The culture thus spread in the lower Ganges valley, from the Bhagirathi-Hooghly River, one of the two main tributaries of the Ganges, in the east to the eastern fringes of the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the west.[5] It was centered on the Mayurakshi, Ajay, Kunur, Damodar, Dwarakeswar and Rupnarayan river valleys, as well as extending south to the sea coast.[6] Its historical center or core lay around the confluence of the Ajay and Kunur rivers, the area where most of the archaeological sites have been discovered.[7] The valleys of the rivers originating from the Chotanagpur plateau and the Rajmahal hills where the culture flourished, had fertile farmland and availability of water, which created favorable conditions for agriculture in the region.
A total of 76 cultural sites have been identified, ranging from small villages to the ruins of large settlements.
