Cave paintings in India

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Cave paintings in India

Cave painting at Bhimbetka

Art forms of India
Religions Hindu Sikh Jain Buddhist
Periods Indus Valley Mauryan Indo-Greek Indo-Scythian Greco-Buddhist Kushan Gupta Pandyan Pallava Chola Indo-Islamic Mughal
Techniques Cave paintings Rock-cut architecture Ancient architecture Architecture Sculpture Painting
Locations Bhimbetka Mathura Gandhara Sanchi Bharhut Barabar caves Ajanta Khajuraho
See also Indian history Indian culture Asian art Visual arts portal
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The history of cave paintings in India or rock art range from drawings and paintings from prehistoric times, beginning in the caves of Central India, typified by those at the

Archaeologists discovered cave paintings and tools in Mangar Bani hill forest in May 2021; the cave paintings are estimated to be 10,000 years old. These are believed to be the largest in the Indian subcontinent and possibly the world's oldest.^[1][2] It is likely the largest paleolithic site in the Indian subcontinent and this is the first time cave paintings have been found in Aravalli. According to the Haryana Archaeology and Museums Department, "On the basis of this exploration, it can be said that this may be one of the biggest Palaeolithic sites in the Indian sub-continent, where stone age tools were recovered from different open-air sites as well as from rock shelters. Though tools from the Palaeolithic Age have been identified earlier in parts of the Aravallis, it is for the first time that cave paintings and rock art of a large magnitude have been found in Haryana."^{[citation needed]}

Cave painting is a type of

On the basis of tool topology, it can be said that the date of prehistoric habitation at the site may be from about 100,000 to about 15,000 years ago. But we have also found evidence of later habitation, even up to 8th–9th century AD

— Banani Bhattacharyya, Deputy Director of Haryana Archaeology & Museums Department., Prehistoric stone age site in Faridabad’s Mangar Bani could a lakh years old: Archaeologists, The Indian Express.^[7]

Cave paintings are found in

The Bhimbetka rock shelters are an archaeological site in the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India that spans several prehistoric periods.^[8][9] It exhibits the earliest traces of human life on the

Odisha has the richest repository of rock art in Eastern India. The state has recorded more than a hundred rock shelters with rock paintings and engravings. Numerous geometric symbols, dots and lines are found along with animals, and human paintings and engravings dating from late Pleistocene onwards. Many of the geometric shape and patterns found in rock art of Odisha are enigmatic in nature. Painted figures have been found executed in monochrome, red and white or sometimes in combination with shades of yellow color.^[25]

The rock shelter of Gudahandi is located on the summit of the hillock and situated about 20 km from Block headquarters Koksara in Kalahandi district.^[26] The rock art shelter exhibits both monochrome and bi-chrome paintings of early historic period. It is the only reported rock art site of Kalahandi district.^[27] The rock art panel preserves the specimen of paintings which include a styl ized human figure in red, deer and a variety of geometric patterns of squares and rectangles either empty or in filled with straight and diagonal lines or with dots on the borders grid patterns, wheels with spokes, apsidal patterns, oval shapes with dots executed either in monochrome of red or in polychrome of red, blue and black.^[28][29][30]

The

In Tamil Nadu, ancient Paleolithic cave paintings are found in Padiyendhal, Alampadi, Kombaikadu, Kilvalai, Settavarai and Nehanurpatti. The paintings have not been dated, but they could be around 30,000 to 10,000 years old, as they use similar art form of Bhimbetka rock shelters in Bhopal.^{[citation needed]}

In the

There are known more than 10,000 locations around India containing murals from this period, mainly natural caves and rock-cut chambers.[34] The highest achievements of this time are the caves of Ajanta, Bagh, Sittanavasal, Armamalai Cave (Tamil Nadu), Ravan Chhaya rock shelter, Kailasanatha temple in Ellora Caves.

The Ellora Caves are located about 18 miles from the city of Aurangabad in the Chamadari Hills. Pre-historic paintings were engraved in five Ellora Caves. The Ellora paintings can be organized in two series. The first set of paintings depicts images of the goddess Lakshmi and Lord Vishnu and was developed while the caves were engraved. The second set of images focuses on images of Lord Shiva with his followers, Apsaras, etc. and was developed centuries after the formation of the caves.

The Bagh Caves are located in the Dhar District of Madhya Pradesh on the banks of the Baghani River. There were originally nine caves cut in the lofty hills, but four of them have been destroyed. The paintings in these caves were engraved in the time period of 500 to 700 CE.

The decorative cave paintings are located in Sittanavasal village in Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu.

• Peopling of India
• South Asian Stone Age