Soanian
Geographical range | Siwalik Hills[1] |
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The Paleolithic |
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↑ Pliocene (before Homo) |
↓ Mesolithic |
The Soanian culture is a prehistoric technological culture from the
Excluding some localities in the Soan Valley of Pakistan, the site complex of Guler (Beas Valley) and Toka in India, and the Arjun-3 site in Nepal, Soanian and similar assemblages rarely comprise more than a few dozen artifacts. The emergence of Soanian tools has been tied to the local development of boulder conglomerate formation through prehistoric tectonic processes that created convenient transporting system for raw materials.[8]
Recent researches have been focusing on the technological culture's connection with the
Dating and historical significance
The prehistoric dating of Soanian culture is one that has been debated by scholars due to artefacts being often found in undatable surface contexts.
Three-interval period theory
According to this view, Soanian technological culture evolved throughout three broad intervals during the Middle Pleistocene period from circa 774,000 to 129,000 years ago.[11] [8]Scholars of this view believe the technological culture potentially belonged to the ancient hominid group: homo erectus.[10] The three intervals are known as Pre-Soan, Early Soan, and Late-Soan.[13] The exact dating of these periods is unknown due to tools often being found in undateable surface contexts.[7][8] This view is developed out of Helmut de Terra and Thomas Thomson Paterson's early work in the Siwalik region.[7] [8]Paterson, in analysing the terrace sequence along the Soan valley in Pakistan, believed that several Soanian technological phases existed within the glacial and interglacial period.[8] Pre-Soan and Early Soanian tools are considered as mostly heavy-duty tools like choppers and core scrapers derived from Lower paleolithic technological culture of the region.[7] These tools contrast with Late-Soan tools which consist of flake tools that are smaller in sizes and for finer purposes.[7]
Single distinct technological culture
Scholars of this view suggest Soanian technology did not evolve in three intervals, but rather all belong to one distinct period in early homo sapien history during the mid-Holocene epoch.[7] Scholars began to question the three-interval theory when both early Soanian tools and Late-Soanians tools started to be found together along the same undatable sites.[7] To continue, the Soan river 'terraces' observed by de Terra and Paterson were later discovered to be erosional features rather than terrace sequences that would suggest the prehistorical timing of the artefacts.[7] Second, new findings by the father and son duo Anujot Singh Soni and Vidwan Singh Soni have found Soanian tools on datable sites near Northwestern sub-Himalaya.[7] These sites were dated to be from mid to late mid-Holocene.[7] On some of the sites, potsherds and weathered red ware with coarse fabric were also discovered.[7] These artefacts are believed to have belonged to the Harappan civilization that later lived in villages on the sub-Himalayas.[7] These are early human civilizations that emerged from antecedent agricultural communities of hills bouldering the Indus alluvial plain.[7]
Anthropological relation to homo sapiens
Geographical context
The Soanian culture is in the Western part of the Sub-Himalayan terrain, stretching between river Indus and Yamuna.[8] This area is the major producer of Soanian artefacts. The occurrence of this technological culture has been correlated to the prehistoric geographical changes in the region that allowed prehistoric humans easy access to raw materials.
This view is often hypothesized to have been the result of boulder conglomerate formation in the
From 1.6 million years ago onwards, the existing boulder conglomerate formation saw more changes that further contributed to easy access of raw materials for local ancient humans. Further tectonic movements and erosion saw the Siwalik fluvial courses altered –developing more complex river systems, and deposits that carried and collected sediments.[8] This also contributed to new drainage systems formed by new alluvial conditions in the South Siwalik region.[8] These new developments allowed for the easy access of materials and prevents the need for long-distance transport.[8] This geographical context the Soanian culture developed from is known to scholars as the Post-Boulder Conglomerate Formation period.[8]
Scholars of the single interval period argue Soanian tools are developed due to the movement of the
On a broader geographical context, Soanian culture is one of many different lithic cultures in Southeast Asia that are also abundantly available in Sub-Himalayas.[7] Many unifacial flake tools belonging to the Hoabinhians are discovered near Soanian sites.[7] These tools are also found throughout Nepal, South China, Taiwan and Australia.[7] Another prominent lithic culture in the region belongs to the Acheulians, which are distinguished by the preference for bifacial tools.[7][10]
Post-Siwalik fluvial deposits
Most of the post-Siwalik fluvial deposits today are mostly disintegrated, they currently lie above older decomposed sedimentary deposits.[8] Some of them are covered in thick vegetation. These sites stand in contrast with remaining deposits that still stand today, forming basin like structures.[8]
Technologies
Understandings for the technological development of Soanian tools have been limited due to most sites rarely comprising more than a few dozen artefacts.
Perspective of the singular interval scholars
Scholars of the singular interval period view the development of Soanian technology as a result of the deurbanization of the
Excavation history and current studies
The Western Sub-Himalaya and the Siwalik Hills first caught the interest of archaeologists and palaeontologists in the early 1800s when fossil apes of the Miocene age were uncovered.[8] This led to interests from Western scholars to explore the region for potential pre-historic cultural artefacts. The first official discovery of lithic artifacts in the Western Sub-Himalaya zone was reported in 1880 by Theobald W, in a report titled: “On the discovery of a celt of Palaeolithic type in the Punjab”.[8] Discoveries in the Siwalik Hills for paleolithic lithic occurrences were first noted by Wadia and K.R.U Todd.[8] Their research influenced the academic duo of Helmut De Terra and Thomas Thomson Paterson to conduct their own research in the region.[8] De Terra and Paterson deemed the artefacts found in Siwalik belonged to a specific technological culture that they named “Soanian”.[8] They did not conduct any excavation but only focused on selectively collected surface materials from surrounding terraces.[8] This work confirmed lithic occurrence specific to the region and prompted further research.[8] Excavations later followed suit outside of India, taking place in Pakistan and Nepal that further confirms the existence of pre-historic culture in the Siwalik zone.[8]
Modern research
Recent research predominantly takes place in India led by Indian scholars with a broader scope.[8] As of 2006, the study area encompassed the Siwalik frontal slopes and some interior zones between the Ghaggar River to the west and Markanda River to the east.[8] The area is approximately 60 km long and covers an area of approximately 100 km square.[8] Research area in Pakistan along the Soan river has faced damages due to sewage disposal and municipal waste onto rivers.[8]
Methods for modern day excavation have also changed from the time of De Terra. During his time, scholars focused more on assessing the scattering patterns of tools in smaller sampled regions.[8] Modern observations due to technological developments are focused on the occurrence of Soanian tools as a complex behavioural system.[8] This method entails the careful surveying and recording of artefacts along vast regions, seeking to understand the spatial relationship each lithic culture has with one another.[8] This form of observation has allowed scholars to observe the relations of the emergence of certain tools to certain geographical contexts.[8]
At Adiala and Khasala Kalan, about 16 km (9.9 mi) from Rawalpindi terrace on the bend of the river, hundreds of edged pebble tools were discovered. At Chauntra in Himachal Pradesh, hand axes and cleavers were found. Tools up to two million years old have been recovered. In the Soan River Gorge, many fossil bearing rocks are exposed on the surface. 14 million year old fossils of gazelle, rhinoceros, crocodile, giraffe and rodents have been found there. Some of these fossils are on display at the Pakistan Museum of Natural History in Islamabad.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-119-05547-1. Quote: “Soanian and Soanian‐like assemblages are known throughout the entire Siwalik or Sub‐ Himalayan region, from Pakistan to northeast India including Nepal...”
- ^ Petraglia & Allchin 2007, pp. 5–6.
- ISBN 978-0-415-11762-3.
- .
- ^ Paracha, Nadeem F. (February 2, 2017). "Pakistan: The lesser-known histories of an ancient land". DAWN.COM.
- ^ Chauhan, Parth R., An Overview of the Siwalik Acheulian & Reconsidering Its Chronological Relationship with the Soanian – A Theoretical Perspective.
- ^ ISSN 1835-1794.
- ^ PMID 18255121.
- ^ Paterson, T.T., Drummond, H.J.H., 1962. Soan the Palaeolithic of Pakistan.Department of Archaeology, Government of Pakistan Karachi.
- ^ JSTOR 42930294.
- ^ a b "Pleistocene Epoch | Plants, Animals, Climate, Ice Age, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-04-07.
- ^ "Holocene epoch | Causes, Effects, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-04-07.
- ISSN 0045-9801.
- PMID 19581595.
- ^ a b "hand tool - The Mousterian flake tools | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
- ISSN 1631-0683.
Further reading
- Dani Ahmad Hasan (1964). "Prehistoric Pakistan" (PDF). Asian Perspectives. 7: 183–188.
- B. B. Lal (1964). "A Decade of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Archaeology in India, 1951–1960". Asian Perspectives. 7 (1–2): 144–159.
- Hellmut De Terra (1969). Early man: as depicted by leading authorities at the International symposium, the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, March 1937. Ayer Publishing, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. pp. 263–. ISBN 978-0-8369-1184-8. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
- J. Armand (1979). "The Middle Pleistocene Pebble Tool Site of Durkadi in Central India". Paléorient. 5: 105–144. .
- J. Armand (1985). "The Emergence of the Handaxe Tradition in Asia, with Special Reference to India". In V. N. Misra, Peter S. Bellwood (ed.). Recent advances in Indo-Pacific prehistory: proceedings of the international symposium held at Poona, December 19–21, 1978. BRILL. pp. 4–. ISBN 978-90-04-07512-2. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
- V. A. Ranov; D. Dorj; Lu Zün-E (1999). Vadim Mikhaĭlovich Masson (ed.). History of civilizations of Central Asia. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 45–. ISBN 978-81-208-1407-3. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
- Kenneth Oakley (30 April 2007). Frameworks for Dating Fossil Man. Transaction Publishers. pp. 223–. ISBN 978-0-202-30960-6. Retrieved 21 August 2011.