🎨 Chapter 01 · Topic 06 · Visual Arts
Prehistoric Art — Complete Revision
All key facts, sites, dates, and concepts from Chapter 01 — rock art, Harappan seals, terracotta, megaliths — in one quick-revision page.
⚡ Quick-Fire Key Facts
| Topic | Key Fact |
|---|---|
| Bhimbetka location | Vindhya ranges, 45 km south of Bhopal, MP |
| Bhimbetka discovery | V.S. Wakankar, 1957–58 |
| Bhimbetka UNESCO | 2003 |
| Bhimbetka shelters | 700+ rock shelters; 400+ with paintings |
| Most prolific period | Period II — Mesolithic (~10,000–6,000 BCE) |
| Most common pigment | Red (haematite/iron oxide) |
| Jogimara Cave | Chhattisgarh; earliest pictorial art + Brahmi inscription (3rd–2nd BCE) |
| Edakkal Caves | Kerala (Wayanad); Neolithic petroglyphs |
| Daraki-Chattan | MP; possibly oldest rock art (~700,000 years) |
| Harappan seals material | Steatite (soapstone); fired to harden |
| Most common seal motif | Unicorn |
| Pashupati Seal | Mohenjo-daro; three-faced yogic figure + 4 animals |
| Indus script | 400–600 signs; right to left; undeciphered |
| Bronze dancing girl | Mohenjo-daro; lost-wax casting |
| Most common IVC terracotta | Mother goddess figurines |
| Bankura horse | West Bengal; GI-tagged |
| Bishnupur temples | West Bengal; Malla dynasty; 17th–18th century; terracotta bricks |
| Megalithic period | ~1500 BCE to 500 CE; Iron Age |
| Most common megalith type | Cist burial (South India) |
| Adichanallur | Tamil Nadu; 3,000+ urn burials |
| Megalithic pottery | Black-and-red ware (BRW) |
| Living megalithic tradition | Naga tribes (Nagaland) + Khasi (Meghalaya) |
✅ Master Revision Checklist — Chapter 01
✅ Bhimbetka = MP = UNESCO 2003 = V.S. Wakankar = 700+ shelters
✅ Period II (Mesolithic) = most prolific = hunting + community life
✅ Red haematite = most common pigment at Bhimbetka
✅ Pictographs = paintings; Petroglyphs = engravings
✅ Jogimara = Chhattisgarh = earliest pictorial art + Brahmi inscription
✅ Edakkal = Kerala = Neolithic petroglyphs
✅ Harappan seals = steatite = 2,000+ found = trade use
✅ Unicorn = most common seal motif
✅ Pashupati Seal = Mohenjo-daro = proto-Shiva = 4 animals
✅ Indus script = undeciphered = 400–600 signs = right to left
✅ Bronze dancing girl = Mohenjo-daro = lost-wax casting
✅ Mother goddess = most common IVC terracotta
✅ Sunga period = most prolific terracotta = Yakshi figurines
✅ Bankura horse = West Bengal = GI-tagged
✅ Bishnupur = West Bengal = Malla dynasty = terracotta temples
✅ Megaliths = Iron Age = South India = cist burial most common
✅ BRW = Black-and-red ware = megalithic pottery
✅ Adichanallur = Tamil Nadu = urn burials
✅ Living megaliths = Nagas (Nagaland) + Khasi (Meghalaya)
✅ Period II (Mesolithic) = most prolific = hunting + community life
✅ Red haematite = most common pigment at Bhimbetka
✅ Pictographs = paintings; Petroglyphs = engravings
✅ Jogimara = Chhattisgarh = earliest pictorial art + Brahmi inscription
✅ Edakkal = Kerala = Neolithic petroglyphs
✅ Harappan seals = steatite = 2,000+ found = trade use
✅ Unicorn = most common seal motif
✅ Pashupati Seal = Mohenjo-daro = proto-Shiva = 4 animals
✅ Indus script = undeciphered = 400–600 signs = right to left
✅ Bronze dancing girl = Mohenjo-daro = lost-wax casting
✅ Mother goddess = most common IVC terracotta
✅ Sunga period = most prolific terracotta = Yakshi figurines
✅ Bankura horse = West Bengal = GI-tagged
✅ Bishnupur = West Bengal = Malla dynasty = terracotta temples
✅ Megaliths = Iron Age = South India = cist burial most common
✅ BRW = Black-and-red ware = megalithic pottery
✅ Adichanallur = Tamil Nadu = urn burials
✅ Living megaliths = Nagas (Nagaland) + Khasi (Meghalaya)