The earliest settlers in India have been divided into two classes, viz., Palaeolithic and Neolithic.
Palaeolithic men
This name is applied to the earliest people, as the only evidence of their existence is furnished by a number of rude stone implements. These are small pieces of rough undressed stones, chipped into various forms, which were originally fitted with handles made of sticks or bones. They served as weapons for hunting wild animals, and could also be used as hammers or for purposes of cutting and boring.
These chipped stones have been found in large numbers in different parts of India. They are usually, though not exclusively, made of a species of hard rock called, ‘quartzige.’
From the rough and rude stone implements which are the only records left behind by the earliest known inhabitants of India, we can form only a very vague idea of their lives and habits. It is obvious that they were ignorant of any metals, and most of them had no fixed homes, though a few might have made huts of some sort with trees and leaves. They lived in constant dress of wild animals like tigers, lions, elephants and the rhinoceros. They had no idea of agriculture, but lived on the flesh of animals and such fruits and vegetables as grew wild in jungles. They could not make pottery, and probably did not even know how to make a fire.
It has been suggested that the Palaeolithic men belonged to the Negrito race, like the modern people of the Andaman Islands, and were characterised by short stature, dark skin, woolly hair and flat noses.
Neolithic men
Consequently, as years rolled by, men acquired greater knowledge and skill in mastering the forces of nature. The rate of progress is, of course, difficult to estimate, and it may have been hundreds or thousands of years before a distinctly higher type of civilisation was evolved in India. The men who belonged to this age are called Neolithic. In this age also men had to depend solely on stone implements, and were ignorant of any metals, except gold. But their implements were very different from those of the preceding age. They can be easily distinguished from the rough and rude implements of the Palaeolithic Age.
Remains of the Neolithic men are found in almost every part of India.
They cultivated land and grew fruits and corn. They also domesticated animals like the ox and the goat. They knew that art of producing fire by the friction of bamboos or pieces of wood, and made pottery, at first by hand, and then with the potter’s wheel. They lived in caves and decorated their walls by painting scenes of hunting and dancing. A few of these can be seen today both in Northern and Southern India. They also painted and decorated their pottery. They constructed boats and went out to sea. They could spin cotton and wool and weave cloth. They used to bury their dead, and neolithic tombs have been discovered in some parts of India.
The age of metals
There was, however, no uniformity in the use of metals in different parts of India. In Northern India, copper replaced stone as the ordinary material for tools and weapons. Axes, swords, spear heads and various other objects made of that metal have come to light in different parts of the country.
Bronze implements of early date have been found in India along with those of copper, but it does not appear that metal was generally used in India to the exclusion of copper. In other words, there was, properly speaking, no Bronze Age in India.
With the Copper and Iron Ages we enter the limits of the historical period. It is earliest period of Indian history for which we possess literary evidence. Be that as it may, we have now a splendid example of the civilisation of the Copper Age. This civilisation flourished in the Indus Valley and spread over the neighbouring regions to a considerable distance.
The indus valley civilisation
In archaeological excavations have been carried on at Mohenjo-Daro in the Larkana district, Sind, and at Harappa, in the Montgomery district of the Punjab these and smaller trial excavations at various other sites in Sind, Baluchistan, Punjab and even further east and south, have proved beyond doubt that some four or five thousand years ago a highly civilised community flourished in these regions.
Unfortunately we have no written records about the Indus valley civilisation. A number of seals have been discovered with a few letters engraved on each, but these till remain undeciphered. We are therefore totally ignorant of the political history of the Indus valley.
Mohenjo-Daro—Mound of the Dead—is the local name of a high mound situated in the plains of Larkana. Here a city was built some five thousand years ago. This city was successively destroyed and rebuilt no less than seven times. Thus, after the foundation of the city, many centuries passed before is was finally abandoned.
The most imposing structure in the city is the Great Bath. It consists of a large open quadrangle in the centre with galleries and rooms on all sides. The Great Bath is 55 metres long and 33 metres wide, and its outer walls are about 2-4 metres thick. The solidity of the construction is amply borne out by the fact that it has successfully withstood the ravages of five thousand years.
The streets of the city are wide and straight and are furnished with an elaborate drainage system together with soak-pits for sediment.
On the whole, the ruins leave no doubt that there was on this site a large, populous and flourishing town whose inhabitants freely enjoyed, to a degree unknown elsewhere in the ancient world.
The people
The ruins of Mohenjo-Daro tell us a great deal about the people who lived in this luxurious city.
Wheat was the principal article of food, but barley and palm-date were also familiar. They also used mutton, pork, fish an eggs.
Cotton fabrics were in common use, but wool was also used, evidently for warm textiles. Ornaments were worn by both men and women of all classes. These ornaments were made of gold, silver, ivory, copper and both precious and semi-precious stones like jade, crystal, agate, carnelian.
Household articles
The earthenware vassals, of rich variety, were made with the potter’s wheel and were either plain or painted. In rare cases they were glazed. Vessels of copper, bronze, silver, and porcelain were known, though very rarely used.
The remains of skeletons prove that the humped bull, the buffalo, sheep, elephant and camel were domesticated. There are some doubts about the horse. The carvings of dogs on children’s toys show that animal was also familiar. In weapons category there were axes, spears, daggers, maces and slings, with comparatively fewer specimens of bows and arrows. The absence of swords is significant.
Seals: More than five hundred seals have also been discovered. These are made of terracotta and small in size. Some contain fine representations of animal figures.
Trade and Commerce: The seals were most probably used in connection with trade. Indeed there is abundant evidence that the people traded not only with other parts os India but also with many countries of Asia.
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