A Spatial and Contents Analysis of Petroglyphs at Maski, Karnataka
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Developing Animal and Human Relationships in Prehistoric South India: A Spatial and Contents Analysis of Petroglyphs at Maski, Karnataka. Volume 1 of 2 Submitted by Jemma Singleton to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Archaeology in August 2019. This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from this thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. Signature:…………………………………………………………………………………. 1 Acknowledgements There was a time when I was certain that I was not going to complete this doctoral thesis. I had even printed out and signed my withdrawal form and had an extensive and emotional conversation with my primary supervisor, Linda Hurcombe about the reasons for my decision. I have most likely experienced the same degrees of euphoria and doubt that accompany any doctoral process compounded by some pretty shaky issues in my personal life. Although it has taken two and a half years longer than I would have liked to complete this thesis, the fact that I stuck at it, and have handed in a completed piece of research fills me with a profound sense of achievement. The additional fact that I have felt engaged with my research and its wider implications towards the end of the writing process is a further personal success. I feel incredibly lucky to have been a part of the UK-India Intangible Histories doctoral partnership. If I could give some words to either myself six years ago, or to a doctoral student about to embark on their own research, it would be this. Sometimes your research will make you feel like you are flying on air; a great deal of it will be a matter of routine and at other times you will feel like you are face down in a ditch, with a troll jumping on your brain. Always have someone that you can talk to, your writing is always better than you think it is, and remember to take some time away from your work. I have a great deal of gratitude for all the people I have had the fortune to meet, both in the UK and India during the course of my research project whom I hope to keep in touch with. Sometimes writing a PhD can feel like a lonely void, and so there are many people I would like to thank, who in their own ways of academic advice, friendship or bendable ears have given me the gusto to cross the doctoral finish line. My acknowledgements of thanks can be divided into academic family/friends groups, with a deal of cross over between the two. In an academic capacity I owe a great deal of thanks to my supervisors Professor Linda Hurcombe of Exeter University and Professor Sharada Srinivasan of NIAS, Bangalore each for their unique take on providing advice and assistance throughout this PhD process. Linda for her constructive comments regarding my academic writing and general supportive attitude. Sharada for her advice regarding helpful contacts and contextual knowledge of my subject area, 2 providing a wider enrichment to my research. I would also like to thank Aruni from the Bangalore division of the Indian Council of Historical Research and Nikal Das from the Archaeological Survey of India for their knowledge of rock art in the Indian subcontinent. I also extend warm thanks to Ravi Korisettar of Dharwar University for his understanding of South Indian prehistory and general enthusiasm for my research directions. I extend my deepest thanks and admiration to Professors Peter Johansen, McGill, Canada and Andrew Bauer, Stanford, USA, two of best academics I know. They are unwavering their commitment to good research, I have learnt so much from them and they are fantastic people to do fieldwork with. I have fathoms of respect for them. A special thanks to Peter for his emails to see how I am doing and updates on the MARP project. I thank Ashok Akbari acting as my research guide during rock art documentation fieldwork, along with Dan Lejar, Utsavi Singh and Edward Fanthome for their assistance and friendship during my time in India. I also extend warm thanks to Rammu and Venkatesh for their knowledge of South Indian prehistoric material culture and optimistic demeanours. Additionally, thanks to Saket Arya for his friendship, theoretical knowledge and hospitality during my time in Delhi. Finally, thanks to all those at NIAS and Exeter universities who I have had the privilege to laugh and learn with. And now for the friends and family whose underlying roles have enabled me to succeed in completing this thesis, especially Mooma, Dad, Rachel, Laura, Ginny and Buttons for their unwavering love and support during some difficult and uncertain times. In a similar vein, I thank all my friends who have patiently listened to my doctoral woes with a sympathetic and playful ear. I would especially like to thank my good friends Will Platt and Will Bowditch who have been my intermittent study companions and general devil’s advocates to my research. I thank Kate Aldridge and Lindsay Coleman, Ellena Whitehead and all the Bristol Babes for their ernest encouragement in all my thesis making decisions, especially during the final weeks, and just being great pals and humans. Additionally I thank Sarah Harrison and Charlotte Wenlock who have listened to my academic frustrations and offered real world perspectives and to those who proofread my various chapters and diplomatically improved my use of commas. Thanks to Lola Wingrove who has just been amazing in her empathy during the final stages of 3 writing up whilst I was juggling full time work coupled with thesis writing. Finally, I thank Luke Begley for helping me to chill. I have no definite future research plans as of yet, but I hope to work on a few more publications. I also have a few seeds brewing in my mind which may form into fully budding research designs regarding how and why social groups produce meaningful images in landscapes. 4 Abstract Developing Animal and Human Relationships in Prehistoric South India: A Spatial and Contents Analysis of Petroglyphs at Maski, Karnataka. This thesis is the result of an in-depth investigation into the rock art of a local region in South India. It has explored the significance of tangible landscape placement in rock art production, a form of visual culture which remains intangible in many aspects of meaning. This thesis elaborates on current forms of archaeological knowledge in South India, generated through social understandings of landscape, contrasted against current knowledge of rock art in South India. It provides a means to intersect rock art documentation with archaeological research projects within an Indian context in a cost effective and widely applicable manner. A spatial analysis regarding the wider contexts of rock art sites, comparing their spatial proximity to variable natural and anthropogenic landscape features demonstrate the ubiquity of rock art production in this region of South India, associated with developed and ephemeral prehistoric habitation patterns. Additionally, a close scale analysis of technical details at panel level reveal different methods of continual interaction with motifs subsequent to their initial production phase, along with enhanced visualisations of motif forms. Overall, this thesis makes suggestions about the role of rock art in visualising developing relationships with animals and humans throughout the prehistoric period in South India, with a particular focus on cattle motifs. This thesis argues that the nature of that relationship is a continually transformative one, extending beyond the prehistoric period. Results presented in this thesis supports the integration of rock art documentation and analysis into other archaeological research projects within the Indian subcontinent, providing an added dimension to the complexity of archaeological human-landscape interactions. 5 Contents List of illustrations 9-14 List of tables 14 List of Maps 14 Definitions 15-16 Volume 1 1-133 Chapter One. Introduction 17-32 1.1 Moving beyond a sense of wonder 17-18 1.1.2 The intangible and tangible aspects of rock art 18-22 1.2 Definitions 22-28 1.2.1 Rock art or Rock-art? 22-25 1.2.2 But is it art? 25-28 1.3 Thesis structure 28-32 Chapter Two. Incorporating rock art into the landscape 33-67 2.1 Intersecting rock art research into archaeological 33-39 understandings of landscape 2.2 Landscapes in the archaeology of India 39-51 2.2.1 Archaeological features of South Indian 44-51 prehistory and early historic transition. Ashmounds 44-46 Megaliths 46-48 Settlements 48-51 2.3 Landscape methods in rock art research 51-54 2.4 Landscape frameworks for finding ‘meaning’ in 54-67 rock art research 2.4.1 Structuring the landscape 55-58 2.4.2 Subjectivity in the landscape 59-61 2.4.3 Socialising the landscape 61-67 2.4 Conclusion 67 Chapter Three. Current understandings of rock art in the 68-104 Indian subcontinent 3.1 Rock art studies in India 68-74 3.2 Categorising rock art in South India 75-90 3.3 Style 90-103 3.3.1 Understanding style 90-92 3.3.2 Using style in rock art research 92-97 3.3.3 Stylistic sequencing in the rock art of Karnataka 97-103 3.4 Conclusion 104 Chapter Four. Incorporating rock art documentation into 105-133 existing archaeological research projects 4.1 Introduction 105 4.2 Contextualising historical research at Maski 105-109 4.3 The Maski Archaeological Research Project 109-116 (MARP) 4.3.1 Introduction 109-112 6 4.3.2 Methods and preliminary observations of the 112-116 MARP project, 2010-2012 4.4 Previous descriptions of rock art at Maski 116-122 4.4.1 Visualisation considerations for rock art 120-122 documentation Traditional methods 120-121 Digital methods 121-122 4.5 A methodology for documenting rock art at Maski 122-133 Rock art Recording forms 1250126 Motif identification 126-131 GPS plotting 132 Photography 132-133 Field conditions 133 4.6 Conclusion 133 Volume 2 134-388 Chapter Five.