Historians have recently discovered Stone Age rock paintings, cup marks, and sharp-edged artefacts in a village in Chittorgarh district, Rajasthan, providing new insights into the region’s ancient human history.
Situated about 50 kilometres from the Aalaniya River in Kota, these discoveries enhance the region’s status as a centre for Stone Age carvings, emphasising the prehistoric significance of Hadauti and Chittorgarh. Last week, three locals found unusual markings on a rock in a forested area near Amarpura village, Rawatbhata. Historian Tej Singh from the Maharishi History Institute in Kota visited the site with his team after being informed.
Cup-shaped engravings and a mortar, likely used by early humans for grinding food, were discovered at the site. Singh noted that the cup marks and circular indentations on the rocks are characteristic of early Stone Age humans. The markings may date back between 35,000 and 2,00,000 years.
Singh also suggested that this could be the oldest evidence of human habitation in present-day Rajasthan, comparing the site to a similar discovery made in 2003, just 200 meters away.
The 2.4-kilogram mortar, along with the sharp-edged stones found at the site, suggests that early inhabitants may have used these tools to process wild grains, nuts, and legumes.
The findings have been reported to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in Jodhpur and the Department of Archaeology and Museology (DAM) for further analysis.
Jafarullah Khan, a former superintendent archaeologist with DAM, emphasised that the Hadauti and Malwa regions in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh were significant centres for Stone Age settlements.
“This discovery aligns with previous findings along the Aalaniya and Chambal rivers,” Khan stated, urging the Government to protect the area and initiate major excavation efforts to learn more about early human life. According to UNESCO, the Chambal basin and central India contain one of the largest known concentrations of rock art sites in the world.
