Mauryas
India From 200 B.C. To A.D. 300
Introduction
The Mauryan period is remembered for the greatness of the empire. The post-Mauryan period from 200 B.C. to A.D. 300, saw the rise of many states all over the Indian sub-continent. Some were small whereas others were large such as the kingdom of the Kushanas which extended into central Asia. But more than the states, what brought the sub continent together in this period was the spread of commerce and trades. It was a time when there was noticeable material prosperity in many areas.
The Deccan
Introduction
India, south of the vindhya mountain and the Narmada river, was known in ancient times as Dakshinapatha; now it is called the Deccan. South of the Deccan is the land of the Dravidian speaking people.
In the first millennium B.C. the life of the people living in the peninsula gradually changed from that of simple agriculturists. They began to lead a more complex and a richer life. This is reflected in the megalithic burials found all over the Deccan in South India. Megalith literally means a huge stone, and large stones were specially placed to mark the site of burials. These burials have given us much information about the life of the people. They were herdsmen and cultivators, who used iron implements, travelled on horses and had ornaments made of beads and gold. There are a variety of burials from simple stone slab enclosures in the ground to rock-cut caves.
It is clear from the excavations of megalithic sites that the people were familiar with iron technology and were quite advanced. They used iron hoes and sickles and probably cultivated rice and millets. There is an abundance of black and red Ware pottery which may have been made in the same way as those used further north. The burials suggest that they had complex ideas about life after death and probably practised elaborate burial rituals. Perhaps the graves especially marked with huge stones were the graves of the chiefs and their families.
The
Introduction
The Mauryan period is remembered for the greatness of the empire. The post-Mauryan period from 200 B.C. to A.D. 300, saw the rise of many states all over the Indian sub-continent. Some were small whereas others were large such as the kingdom of the Kushanas which extended into central Asia. But more than the states, what brought the sub continent together in this period was the spread of commerce and trades. It was a time when there was noticeable material prosperity in many areas.
The Deccan
Introduction
India, south of the vindhya mountain and the Narmada river, was known in ancient times as Dakshinapatha; now it is called the Deccan. South of the Deccan is the land of the Dravidian speaking people.
In the first millennium B.C. the life of the people living in the peninsula gradually changed from that of simple agriculturists. They began to lead a more complex and a richer life. This is reflected in the megalithic burials found all over the Deccan in South India. Megalith literally means a huge stone, and large stones were specially placed to mark the site of burials. These burials have given us much information about the life of the people. They were herdsmen and cultivators, who used iron implements, travelled on horses and had ornaments made of beads and gold. There are a variety of burials from simple stone slab enclosures in the ground to rock-cut caves.
It is clear from the excavations of megalithic sites that the people were familiar with iron technology and were quite advanced. They used iron hoes and sickles and probably cultivated rice and millets. There is an abundance of black and red Ware pottery which may have been made in the same way as those used further north. The burials suggest that they had complex ideas about life after death and probably practised elaborate burial rituals. Perhaps the graves especially marked with huge stones were the graves of the chiefs and their families.
The