Q.1 Bhimbetka caves shows the continuity of human evolution from the Lower Palaeolithic Period to the Mesolithic period to the chalcolithic period. Why?
1. It contains evidence of the use of tools and implements from all these periods.
2. There are a large number of Shanka Lipi inscriptions in the Bhimbetka cluster of rock shelters.
Which of the above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) None
Solution: (a)
Justification: Statement 1: In the caves, the continuity of human evolution from the Lower Palaeolithic Period is noticed by the smaller size of stone tools in the following Middle Palaeolithic Period besides new tools like scrapers.
During the Upper Palaeolithic Period newer tool types like: blades, borers and burins had also emerged.
However, it is in the Mesolithic Period that there is a clear change in the materials and tool typology.
Earlier, the tools were largely made of quartzite and sandstone, whereas the tools being made in the Mesolithic Period were most often of chalcedony.
The Mesolithic culture at Bhimbetka continued much longer as understood by the presence of Chalcolithic potteries in otherwise Mesolithic contexts.
By the Early Historic times it appears that interaction with the surrounding cultures became more pronounced.
This is evidenced by the presence of rock-cut beds in a rock shelter on the top portion of an inselberg like outcrop not far from the later built temple at this site.
Statement 2: Shankhalipi or "shell-script" is a term used by scholars to describe ornate spiral Brahmi characters that resemble conch shells (or shankhas). They are found in inscriptions across various parts of India except the far south and date to between the 4th and 8th centuries CE.
Q.2 The metal central to this age finds frequent mention in the Vedas and the age itself follows after the Chalcolithic age. It can be
(a) Palaeolithic Age
(b) Iron Age
(c) Copper-stone
(d) Later Stone Age
Solution: (b)
Learning: The Chalcolithic age is followed by Iron Age. Iron is frequently referred to in the Vedas.
The Iron Age of the southern peninsula is often related to Megalithic Burials. Megalith means Large Stone.
The burial pits were covered with these stones. Such graves are extensively found in South India.
The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of these materials coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles.
Q.3 Consider the following major archaeological sites ranging from the Mesolithic age to the iron age in the Indian subcontinent. Match them with their respective regions in present day India:
1. Koldihwa: Madhya Pradesh
2. Mehrgarh: Haryana
3. Paiyampalli: Tamil Nadu
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1 only
Solution: (b)
Justification: Statement 1: Located in present day UP, this site represents three occupational levels: the Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and Iron Age phases.
Statement 2: Mehrgarh is located near the Bolan Pass, to the west of the Indus River valley and between the now Pakistani cities of Quetta, Kalat and Sibi.
Mehrgarh is supposedly the most sophisticated, ingenuous and best planned ancient farm villages of ancient India.
Statement 3: It is known for the excavation remains of neolithic and megalithic periods.
Q.4 Palaeolithic or Old Stone Age sites are widely found in various parts of the Indian subcontinent.These sites are generally located near
(a) Water sources
(b) Deserts
(c) Major urban centres
(d) Mines
Solution: (a)
Learning: Several rock shelters and caves used by the Paleolithic people are scattered across the subcontinent.
Some of the famous sites of Old Stone Age in India are:
The Soan valley and Potwar Plateau on the northwest India.
The Siwalik hills on the north India.
Bhimpetka in Madhya Pradesh.
Adamgarh hill in Narmada valley.
Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh and
Attirampakkam near Chennai.
If you notice, most of these sites are near water sources, for e.g. Soan valley, Siwalik hills (starting from Indus), Adamgarh hill in Narmada valley.
A reason can be that water formed a subsistence base for Palaeolithic civilization, which is why major art works are found near these water sources.
Q.5 The Neolithic period is followed by Chalcolithic period. In the chalcolithic period, the use of which of the following started?
1. Copper and bronze
2. Technology of smelting metal ore
3. Crafting metal artifacts
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Solution: (d)
Justification: Despite the use of copper and bronze, the use of stone tools was not given up. Some of the micro-lithic tools continued to be essential items.
People began to travel for a long distance to obtain metal ores.
This led to a network of Chalcolithic cultures and the Chalcolithic cultures were found in many parts of India.
Q.6 Which of these are the chief difference(s) between Mesolithic and Neolithic cultures?
1. Hunting-gathering pattern of life began not before the Neolithic period.
2. Mesolithic cultures did not practice domestication of animals unlike Neolithic people.
3. The use of bow and arrow cannot be found in Mesolithic culture, unlike Neolithic culture.
4. Evidence of pottery is absent from the Neolithic culture but is markedly found in Mesolithic culture.
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 3 and 4 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) None of the above
Solution: (d)
Justification:
Statement 1 and 3: Hunting-gathering pattern of life was prevalent since Old Stone Age to Mesolithic and Neolithic. However, there seems to have been a shift from big animal hunting to small animal hunting and Fishing. This is how bows and arrows were used in this period. Both 1 and 3 are thus wrong.
Statement 2: Domestication of animals, horticulture and primitive cultivation started during Mesolithic period itself. However, during Neolithic period, domestication of sheep, goats and cattle was widely prevalent. Cattle were used for cultivation and for transport.
Statement 4: During Neolithic age, wheels were used to make pottery. Pottery was used for cooking as well as storage of food grains. So, 4 is wrong.
Learning: During the Neolithic phase, the cultivation of plants and domestication of animals led to the emergence of village communities based on sedentary life. There was a great improvement in technology of making tools and other equipments used by man. Stone tools were now polished. Mud brick houses were built instead of grass huts. Large urns were used as coffins for the burial of the dead. Wheat, barely, rice, millets were cultivated in different areas at different points of time. Rice cultivation was extensive in eastern India. The people of Neolithic Age used clothes made of cotton and wool.
Q Source: Page 13-14: TN 11th Standard History Textbook
Q.7 The beginning of agriculture can be ascribed most suitably to which of these times?
1. 2,500 years ago with the onset of Magadha empire
2. 4,700 years ago with the appearance of the first cities on the Indus
3. Nearly 8,000-10,000 years ago
4. About 25,000 years ago in the first Penistone glacial period
Solution: (c)
Justification & Learning: Option D: People evolved into their current form some 200,000 years ago (see human evolution), yet they did not begin to engage in agriculture until about 15,000–10,000 years before the present.
Wild grains were collected and eaten from at least 20,000 BC. So, D is wrong
Option C: The first agriculture appears to have developed at the closing of the last Pleistocene glacial period, or Ice Age (about 11,700 years ago).
From around 9,500 BC, the Neolithic founder crops such as emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, hulled barley, peas etc were cultivated in the Levant. Rice was domesticated in China between 11,500 and 6,200 BC.
Q.8 Consider the following matches of periods with the beginning of major activities in the history of human civilization:
1. Building of megaliths: 3000 years ago
2. Cotton cultivation: 2000 years ago
3. Domestication of animals: 12000 years ago
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Solution: (b)
Justification: Statement 1: Beginning of cities started about 4700 years ago. Settlement at Inamgaon began between 3600 and 2700 years ago.
Statement 2: This started at Mehrgarh about 7000 years ago.
Statement 3: Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world.
It began about 12,000 years ago. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley.
The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat.
Q.9 Among the earliest chalcolithic cultures in India, the Ahar or Banas culture was discovered in the
(a) Mewar region of Rajasthan
(b) Gwalior region of Madhya Pradesh
(c) Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh
(d) Kangra region of Himachal Pradesh
Solution: (a)
Learning: Nearly one hundred sites of the culture have been located along its principal axis, i.e., the valleys of river Banas and its tributaries and subtributaries in Banswara, Udaipur etc.
The technology at Ahar was based mainly on copper and very few microblades and microliths have been discovered.
Ahars were a separate culture from GJs. Located in northeast Rajasthan, the Ganeshwar-Jodhpura complex which was an early centre of agriculture and copper metallurgy in the subcontinent.
Q.10 With reference to Chalcolithic cultures in Indian subcontinent, consider the following statements.
1. Ochre-coloured pottery sites have been usually found in the Gangetic doab of India.
2. Anthropomorphic figures of worship have been found in the copper hoard culture.
Which of the above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) None
Solution: (c)
Concept: The Harappan culture is generally supposed to have been followed by non-urban Chalcolithic culture characterized by the use of copper and stone. The differences between these cultures were not fundamental but were primarily confined to pottery.
Justification: Copper Hoards describe find-complexes which occur in the northern part of India.
These occur mostly in hoards large and small and are believed to date to the later 2nd millennium BCE, although very few derive from controlled and dateable excavation contexts.
A fragment of an anthropomorph came to light in controlled excavations at Lothal and a second one at Saipai Lichchwai, Etawah district. The doab hoards are associated with the so-called Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP) which appears to be closely associated with the Late Harappan (or Posturban) phase.
1. It contains evidence of the use of tools and implements from all these periods.
2. There are a large number of Shanka Lipi inscriptions in the Bhimbetka cluster of rock shelters.
Which of the above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) None
Solution: (a)
Justification: Statement 1: In the caves, the continuity of human evolution from the Lower Palaeolithic Period is noticed by the smaller size of stone tools in the following Middle Palaeolithic Period besides new tools like scrapers.
During the Upper Palaeolithic Period newer tool types like: blades, borers and burins had also emerged.
However, it is in the Mesolithic Period that there is a clear change in the materials and tool typology.
Earlier, the tools were largely made of quartzite and sandstone, whereas the tools being made in the Mesolithic Period were most often of chalcedony.
The Mesolithic culture at Bhimbetka continued much longer as understood by the presence of Chalcolithic potteries in otherwise Mesolithic contexts.
By the Early Historic times it appears that interaction with the surrounding cultures became more pronounced.
This is evidenced by the presence of rock-cut beds in a rock shelter on the top portion of an inselberg like outcrop not far from the later built temple at this site.
Statement 2: Shankhalipi or "shell-script" is a term used by scholars to describe ornate spiral Brahmi characters that resemble conch shells (or shankhas). They are found in inscriptions across various parts of India except the far south and date to between the 4th and 8th centuries CE.
Q.2 The metal central to this age finds frequent mention in the Vedas and the age itself follows after the Chalcolithic age. It can be
(a) Palaeolithic Age
(b) Iron Age
(c) Copper-stone
(d) Later Stone Age
Solution: (b)
Learning: The Chalcolithic age is followed by Iron Age. Iron is frequently referred to in the Vedas.
The Iron Age of the southern peninsula is often related to Megalithic Burials. Megalith means Large Stone.
The burial pits were covered with these stones. Such graves are extensively found in South India.
The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of these materials coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles.
Q.3 Consider the following major archaeological sites ranging from the Mesolithic age to the iron age in the Indian subcontinent. Match them with their respective regions in present day India:
1. Koldihwa: Madhya Pradesh
2. Mehrgarh: Haryana
3. Paiyampalli: Tamil Nadu
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1 only
Solution: (b)
Justification: Statement 1: Located in present day UP, this site represents three occupational levels: the Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and Iron Age phases.
Statement 2: Mehrgarh is located near the Bolan Pass, to the west of the Indus River valley and between the now Pakistani cities of Quetta, Kalat and Sibi.
Mehrgarh is supposedly the most sophisticated, ingenuous and best planned ancient farm villages of ancient India.
Statement 3: It is known for the excavation remains of neolithic and megalithic periods.
Q.4 Palaeolithic or Old Stone Age sites are widely found in various parts of the Indian subcontinent.These sites are generally located near
(a) Water sources
(b) Deserts
(c) Major urban centres
(d) Mines
Solution: (a)
Learning: Several rock shelters and caves used by the Paleolithic people are scattered across the subcontinent.
Some of the famous sites of Old Stone Age in India are:
The Soan valley and Potwar Plateau on the northwest India.
The Siwalik hills on the north India.
Bhimpetka in Madhya Pradesh.
Adamgarh hill in Narmada valley.
Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh and
Attirampakkam near Chennai.
If you notice, most of these sites are near water sources, for e.g. Soan valley, Siwalik hills (starting from Indus), Adamgarh hill in Narmada valley.
A reason can be that water formed a subsistence base for Palaeolithic civilization, which is why major art works are found near these water sources.
Q.5 The Neolithic period is followed by Chalcolithic period. In the chalcolithic period, the use of which of the following started?
1. Copper and bronze
2. Technology of smelting metal ore
3. Crafting metal artifacts
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Solution: (d)
Justification: Despite the use of copper and bronze, the use of stone tools was not given up. Some of the micro-lithic tools continued to be essential items.
People began to travel for a long distance to obtain metal ores.
This led to a network of Chalcolithic cultures and the Chalcolithic cultures were found in many parts of India.
Q.6 Which of these are the chief difference(s) between Mesolithic and Neolithic cultures?
1. Hunting-gathering pattern of life began not before the Neolithic period.
2. Mesolithic cultures did not practice domestication of animals unlike Neolithic people.
3. The use of bow and arrow cannot be found in Mesolithic culture, unlike Neolithic culture.
4. Evidence of pottery is absent from the Neolithic culture but is markedly found in Mesolithic culture.
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 3 and 4 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) None of the above
Solution: (d)
Justification:
Statement 1 and 3: Hunting-gathering pattern of life was prevalent since Old Stone Age to Mesolithic and Neolithic. However, there seems to have been a shift from big animal hunting to small animal hunting and Fishing. This is how bows and arrows were used in this period. Both 1 and 3 are thus wrong.
Statement 2: Domestication of animals, horticulture and primitive cultivation started during Mesolithic period itself. However, during Neolithic period, domestication of sheep, goats and cattle was widely prevalent. Cattle were used for cultivation and for transport.
Statement 4: During Neolithic age, wheels were used to make pottery. Pottery was used for cooking as well as storage of food grains. So, 4 is wrong.
Learning: During the Neolithic phase, the cultivation of plants and domestication of animals led to the emergence of village communities based on sedentary life. There was a great improvement in technology of making tools and other equipments used by man. Stone tools were now polished. Mud brick houses were built instead of grass huts. Large urns were used as coffins for the burial of the dead. Wheat, barely, rice, millets were cultivated in different areas at different points of time. Rice cultivation was extensive in eastern India. The people of Neolithic Age used clothes made of cotton and wool.
Q Source: Page 13-14: TN 11th Standard History Textbook
Q.7 The beginning of agriculture can be ascribed most suitably to which of these times?
1. 2,500 years ago with the onset of Magadha empire
2. 4,700 years ago with the appearance of the first cities on the Indus
3. Nearly 8,000-10,000 years ago
4. About 25,000 years ago in the first Penistone glacial period
Solution: (c)
Justification & Learning: Option D: People evolved into their current form some 200,000 years ago (see human evolution), yet they did not begin to engage in agriculture until about 15,000–10,000 years before the present.
Wild grains were collected and eaten from at least 20,000 BC. So, D is wrong
Option C: The first agriculture appears to have developed at the closing of the last Pleistocene glacial period, or Ice Age (about 11,700 years ago).
From around 9,500 BC, the Neolithic founder crops such as emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, hulled barley, peas etc were cultivated in the Levant. Rice was domesticated in China between 11,500 and 6,200 BC.
Q.8 Consider the following matches of periods with the beginning of major activities in the history of human civilization:
1. Building of megaliths: 3000 years ago
2. Cotton cultivation: 2000 years ago
3. Domestication of animals: 12000 years ago
Select the correct answer using the codes below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Solution: (b)
Justification: Statement 1: Beginning of cities started about 4700 years ago. Settlement at Inamgaon began between 3600 and 2700 years ago.
Statement 2: This started at Mehrgarh about 7000 years ago.
Statement 3: Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world.
It began about 12,000 years ago. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley.
The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat.
Q.9 Among the earliest chalcolithic cultures in India, the Ahar or Banas culture was discovered in the
(a) Mewar region of Rajasthan
(b) Gwalior region of Madhya Pradesh
(c) Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh
(d) Kangra region of Himachal Pradesh
Solution: (a)
Learning: Nearly one hundred sites of the culture have been located along its principal axis, i.e., the valleys of river Banas and its tributaries and subtributaries in Banswara, Udaipur etc.
The technology at Ahar was based mainly on copper and very few microblades and microliths have been discovered.
Ahars were a separate culture from GJs. Located in northeast Rajasthan, the Ganeshwar-Jodhpura complex which was an early centre of agriculture and copper metallurgy in the subcontinent.
Q.10 With reference to Chalcolithic cultures in Indian subcontinent, consider the following statements.
1. Ochre-coloured pottery sites have been usually found in the Gangetic doab of India.
2. Anthropomorphic figures of worship have been found in the copper hoard culture.
Which of the above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) None
Solution: (c)
Concept: The Harappan culture is generally supposed to have been followed by non-urban Chalcolithic culture characterized by the use of copper and stone. The differences between these cultures were not fundamental but were primarily confined to pottery.
Justification: Copper Hoards describe find-complexes which occur in the northern part of India.
These occur mostly in hoards large and small and are believed to date to the later 2nd millennium BCE, although very few derive from controlled and dateable excavation contexts.
A fragment of an anthropomorph came to light in controlled excavations at Lothal and a second one at Saipai Lichchwai, Etawah district. The doab hoards are associated with the so-called Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP) which appears to be closely associated with the Late Harappan (or Posturban) phase.
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