Petroglyphs

Why in News?

Recently, ancient petroglyphs were discovered along the Aravalli Mountains.

• Petroglyphs – They are ancient symbolic images, figures, or inscriptions carved into rock surfaces.
• Methodology – Created by pecking, incising, drilling, or scratching with a harder tool (usually stones) to expose the lighter rock underneath.
• Timeline – Many key petroglyphs in India date back to the Mesolithic Period (~10,000 to 8,000 BCE) and continue into historic periods.
• Purpose – Served as early communication, astronomical markers, mapping, and tribal boundary markers.
• Major Petroglyph Sites in India – Ladakh (India’s first Petroglyph Conservation Park), Konkan Region (Maharashtra), Edakkal Caves (Kerala), Usgalimal (Goa).

Petroglyphs are distinct from petrographs (which are simply painted or drawn onto rocks) and serve as vital archaeological records of early human life, migrations, and ecological history.

Aravalli Petroglyphs

• Discovered in – Bhondsi stretch of the Aravalli forests, Gurugram (Haryana).
• Discovered Features – Petroglyphs, cupules (cup-shaped depressions), geometric grids, possible stone game boards, a foot-shaped engraving, and stone tools.
• Significance of the Discovery
• The site demonstrates a rare chronological continuity of human activity, linking early stone-tool traditions with later ritualistic, symbolic, and social practices.
• The discovery is important because evidence from multiple prehistoric phases appears to coexist within the same landscape.
• The Bhondsi cluster – It lies near the Bhuvneshwari Mata Mandir complex in the Aravalli belt extending from Delhi Ridge through Gurugram and Faridabad.
• Other distribution – Similar prehistoric markers have also been documented at Sanjay Van, JNU Ridge, East of Kailash, Surajkund, Mohabatabad, Dhauj, Kot, and Alwar, highlighting the archaeological significance of the Aravalli landscape.

Reference

The Indian Express| Petroglyphs