Ancient quarry and settlement in Karnataka
Sanganakallu (Kannada: ಸಂಗನಕಲ್ಲು) is an ancient archaeological site from the Neolithic period (circa 3000 BC). It is approximately 8 km from Bellary in eastern Karnataka.[1] It is a group of hills south of a horseshoe shaped valley, with Kupgal to the north.[2] It is one of the earliest settlements in South India, spread over 1,000 acres.[1] There is a layer of red-brown fossilized soil spread over Sanganakallu and Kupgal that can be dated back to 9000 BC.[3] The site is considered to be a neolithic factory site due to the surface excavation revealing large numbers of pottery, stone axes, and other stone tools.[2] The site was first majorly excavated in 1946, by Bendapudi Subbarao, on Sannarasamma hill.[2] Subbarao divided their culture into 3 phases:[2]
- Pre-Mesolithic, the phase when Sanganakallu was first settled, had little pottery, and the people made crude microliths.
- Mesolithic, the phase when pottery was handmade and stone axes were mass produced.
- Neolithic, the phase when pottery and tools became more sophisticated.[2]
Sanganakallu was excavated again in 1964.[4]
Tools
The earliest tools excavated were hundreds of patinated flakes made of basalt, and quartz flakes.[3] In the later Mesolithic phase is when tool making became more abundant.[2] Stone axes, hammer stones, chisels, picks, slick-stones, and sling stones were excavated.[2] The axes were found in many different shapes. There were oval shaped, triangular shaped, or rectangular shaped axes and some were axes were rounded and some were thin.[2] The sheer number of microliths is the reason Sanganakallu is considered a factory site.[2]
Pottery
The first pottery started showing up in Mesolithic phase. The pottery was usually dull brown or black, and hand-made out of coarse clay.[2] Pale-gray pots made of fine clay mixed with lime and mica were also excavated.[2] The pottery from the later Neolithic period were more fine, thin, and polished.[2] They were all burnt and wheel turned.[2] The ornamental pottery was decorated in a finger groove pattern and a few shards were found painted purple.[2] A few pots were perforated and the significance of that is not yet known.[4]
1964 excavation
In this excavation, a one room Neolithic circular house was excavated.[4] The wall was made with bamboo and clay and the floor was covered in potholes.[4] There was a hearth in the center of the house, and there is evidence of it being burned.[4] Other than the house structure, a few terracotta figurines in the shape of birds or bulls were also found as well as more stone tools and pottery.[4] Animal remains were also collected, the majority of which were cow bones.[4]
Earliest agriculturists
The people who settled at Sanganakallu were early agriculturists, who cultivated small millets and pulses.[1] They kept sheep, cattle, and had separate areas for dumping dung (ash mounds).[1] It is hypothesized these ash mounds were for burning cow dung possibly in a ritual manner.
