The oldest petroglyph’s at India’s Bhimbetka
It may be noted that the oldest prehistoric rock carving (petroglyphs) in the world happen to be the Bhimbetka rock carvings in Auditorium Cave, the largest cave in Bhimbetka complex. The petroglyphs here were created between 2,90,000 and 7,00,000 BCE, during the Acheulian period of the Lower Paleolithic. Discovered in 1957, Bhimbetka was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2003 and is home to more than 500 caves and rock shelters, all of them adorned with paintings.
It was an excavation by Dr. Vishnu Wakankar in 1957-58 during an accidental trip to the sanctuary of Ratapani that he chanced upon the caves.
Invaluable in nature, the Bhimbetka Caves house paintings made in different periods of history some around 30,000 years old providing historians and viewers insight into pre-historic lifestyle, festivals, hunting and agriculture. Of the 500 caves, only a handful of 12 have been kept open for public viewing.
The term Bhimbetka, like Ratnagiri, has mythological likes. It is said that Bhim of the five Pandava brothers would sit (baitha in Hindi) in this place, hence Bhimbetka.
The marvels of Bhimbetka, Pansaimol and Ratnagiri are thrown open to Indians and the world at large and provide archaeological breakthroughs that bridge the gaps between mythology and history. Now, for the first time, India has the tools and is etching her rightful place in prehistoric times.
It was an excavation by Dr. Vishnu Wakankar in 1957-58 during an accidental trip to the sanctuary of Ratapani that he chanced upon the caves.
Invaluable in nature, the Bhimbetka Caves house paintings made in different periods of history some around 30,000 years old providing historians and viewers insight into pre-historic lifestyle, festivals, hunting and agriculture. Of the 500 caves, only a handful of 12 have been kept open for public viewing.
The term Bhimbetka, like Ratnagiri, has mythological likes. It is said that Bhim of the five Pandava brothers would sit (baitha in Hindi) in this place, hence Bhimbetka.
The marvels of Bhimbetka, Pansaimol and Ratnagiri are thrown open to Indians and the world at large and provide archaeological breakthroughs that bridge the gaps between mythology and history. Now, for the first time, India has the tools and is etching her rightful place in prehistoric times.
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