Evidences of existence of Ostrich in Prehistoric Rajasthan are found at many places which show the importance of Ostrich in prehistoric man of Rajasthan.
Human beings of Prehistoric Rajasthan were directly dependent of many birds like Ostrich, peacock and small birds found on the earth or in the sea.
Camel bird or Ostrich lives in India since last 25,000 years. It is the largest living bird in present world. It may be about three meters high and weigh more than 150 kg. It cannot fly but may run at a great speed of 50 to 70 km. per hour.[1] It is a bird of desert climate and today its occurrence is limited to the parts south of the Sahara [2]but once it was widely distributed in Asia, Europe and Africa.[3]
Its eggs are the largest being laid today, and depending upon the hen’s age are 160 mm x 129.5 mm to 250 mm x 187 mm in size. With a 1.8 to 2.0 mm thick shell they are white yellow in colour having smooth surface with black pitting on it. They are beautiful to look at and tasteful to eat.
Ostrich egg shells are reliable source of existence of Ostrich in Prehistoric Rajasthan. Egg shells are valuable source material for unfolding the mysteries of Indian prehistory has been established by their discovery along with Upper Paleolithic industry at Patne (Jalgoan) in Maharashtra by S. A. Sali.[4] There were even finished and unfinished beads found in the ostrich egg shell assemblage.[5] C-14 date for these ostrich shells supplied by the Groningen University Laboratories (Netherland) is 25, 000+200 B.P.[6]
It indicates that in the later part of the late Pleistocene Age (Upper Paleolithic period) big empty ostrich egg shells might have been used by man probably as water containers while going for hunting or moving from place to place in the months of draught.
Even today in barren Kalahari basin in South Africa’s interior Bushmen use empty ostrich shells as drinking cups. They also hoard water in these shells burying large catches of them deep in the sand against seasons of draught.[7] Being beautiful to look at ostrich egg shells were also employed for making ornaments.
When Dr. V. S. Wakankar was studying ostrich egg shells from Patne, he noticed that one of the pieces was bearing engraved criss-cross design in between two parallel lines.[8] This discovery was a great land-mark in the Indian prehistory, as it has provided a definite proof for the artistic activities of the Upper Paleolithic man.
We also get rich art heritage of the prehistoric man in the rock- shelters in which he himself has depicted the different aspects of his life and the surroundings around him. If some of these earliest paintings really belong to the Upper Paleolithic man is a question which at once strikes in mind.
Today we don’t have any direct evidence to answer this question satisfactorily except that we did find used green pigments in the Upper Paleolithic levels in the rock shelter excavations at Bhimbetka in BHIM-III A-28, 30 and II B-33.[9] But this problem can easily be solved if we get some engraved figures on ostrich egg shells which would bear close similarity to those painted in the rock shelters. If this co-relation could be established then, by getting date for ostrich egg shells (by c-14 or any other method) we will have scientific dates for rock paintings.
It will help not only in classifying Indian rock paintings in their proper chronological order but also to establish their antiquity back in the Late-Pleistocene Age (Upper Paleolithic period). It will also be greatly helpful in unfolding the various aspects of human life belonging to that period. [10]
With this aim we explored the Chambal, Kalisindh and Banas river valleys in Rajasthan during 1980 and 1981. We could find a num- ber of ostrich egg shell pieces at some sites in Chittorgarh, Ajmer, Kota, Bundi and Jhalawad districts.
They are generally found in associ- ation with flake and blade industry of Upper Palaeolithic period. They were obtained from the kankarous yellow silt deposits which have been covered with fine yellow silt and black cotton soil deposits. But at cer- tain places along the rivers and nalas there deposits have been washed off by floods exposing the underlying kankarous yellow silt deposits in the from of dissected plains.
At Lakheri in district Bundi seven ostrich egg shell pieces were found (on June 15, 1980) from the right bank of the nala running in between railway track and the road. It joins river Mez after covering a distance of about half a kilometer in the south. Fine Upper Paleolithic industry on chalcedony blades was also obtained from here.
On 17th June 1980 they were also picked up from both the banks of river kyasari at Pagaria in Jhalawad dis- trict. Kyasari is a tributary of Ahu which is again a tributary of Kalisindh river. They were found in association with flake and blade imple- ments belonging to the late phase of Upper Paleolithic period.
In this region a few ostrich egg shell pieces were also found at Garoth. Bhain- soda, Ramanagar and Kherkhedi near Bhanpura, Mandasor first by Ramesh Pancholi and afterwards by Giri Raj The industry here includes implements both on blades and flakes on chalcedony and chert.
Ostrich egg shells were also discovered on the left bank of river Kadamali, about half a km. down stream the road bridge and opposite to village Kalyanpura near Nimbaheda, in district Chittorgarh. Here the industry associated with the ostrich egg shells was mostly on chert flakes which technologically belongs to the early middle phase of Upper Palaeolithic period.
When we explored a nala, about 3 km. west of the Govt. College Kekadi in district Ajmer, we found about one hundred pieces of ostrich egg shells from the kankarous yellow silt deposits exposed in the south of the Kekadi-Ajmer road.
The pieces were quite big in size (upto 4 cm. long) and were of varied thickness. Probably, it was a breeding centre for ostrich bird. The industry obtained from here consists tools prepared on thick long blades and flakes. Being prepared on locally available quartz crystals it is crude in workmanship, and probably belongs to the early phase of the Upper Palaeolithic period.
Along the Kota-Bina railway line a few ostrich egg shell pieces were obtained from the left bank of a nala near Khajurna, about half a kilometer west of Bijora railway station (about 8 km. west of Baran). These were also discovered from the exposed right bank of the river Kalisindh about 2 km. east of the railway bridge (near Palayatha).
But the most important discovery was made at Chandresal which is the first (flag) station on the Kota-Bina railway line abont 8 km. east of Kota. By its side in the west is flowing a small river Chandaloi which emerges from the Mukundara hills, and after running for abouc 50 km. meets Chambal near Manasgaon, about 6 km. north east of Chandresal.
Here kankarous yellow silt deposits have been exposed for about more than 4 km. upstream on its right bank (area-I), near about 2 km. down stream on its left bank (area-II) and in a limited area near Badikhedali villege on its right bank about 1 km. down stream the railway bridge (area-III); More than a thousand pieces of ostrich egg shells have been found from two sites (separated by a distance of about 1 km.) on the right bank from area-I.
Two more ostrich eggshell sites were also located in the same area. Besides these a few sites bearing ostrich egg shells were noted on the left bank from area-II. Probably the Chandresal region was the most suited region for breeding of ostrich bird.
Kankarous yellow silt deposits have also been exposed in a region about 4 km. east of Chandresal, in between the railway track and the village Pipalda covering an area of about 4 sq. km. (area-IV). From here 20 ostrich egg shell pieces were collected from the bank side of a few houses standing in the west along the road going to Manasgaon.
The industry from all these four areas in Chandresal region is not good. It has been prepared mostly on flakes and some-times on blades also. The coarse grained cherty veins in the exposed line beds near Badikhedali village probably from the local source for raw material for this industry.
Important achievement from here is the discovery of three engraved ostrich egg shell pieces, two from area IV-A and one from II-A. One piece from IV-A is almost triangular in shape, 2 cm. long at the base and 1.5 cm. in height. It bears a deeply engraved geometric design of the combination of geometrical lines, triangles and loops. Another piece from the same area is roughly trapezoidal in shape being 1.8 cm. and 0.7 cm. in length and 1.2 cm. in breadth.
It bears two concentric arehes (curved lines) made by punched points. The piece from area II-A is triangular in shape, and is 2 cm. long at the base and 2.6 cm. in height. As lines are not deeply engraved on it the figure is not clear, but it appears like a line drawing of an antelope or a deer. It may also be a simple design only.
From all these discoveries in Rajasthan (together with those made in M.P.) it becomes clear that ostrich was prominently inhabiting the wide open plains in Chambal, Kalisindh and Banas valleys during the Upper Paleolithic period, when there were seasonal short heavy rains followed by long extremely hot dry summers. Kekadi in Ajmerdist. and Chandresal in Kota dist. were its two important breeding centre in Rajasthan. Its eggs were much useful to Upper Paleolithic for making ornaments and probably for bowls and water containers also.
The evidence of the engraved ostrich egg shell pieces from Chandresal (Kota Dist. Rajasthan) is one more firm step in the direction of establishing the fact that the Upper Paleolithic man was an artist who could express his aesthetic sense and feelings by making engravings on his possessions and paintings on the walls of his dwelling shelters.
Thus we can say that there are sufficient evidences of existence of Ostrich in Prehistoric Rajasthan. We can also conclude that Ostrich in Prehistoric Rajasthan had direct impact on human beings of that era.
REFERENCES
1. Giriraj Kumar, ‘Ostrich in the Upper Palaeolithic period in India’. (Submitted in the Annual congress of Indian Society for Pre- historic and Quaternary Studies, held at Allahabad, 1980-81.)
2. Grazimek H. C. Bernard., Animal life Encyelopedia Vol. VII Birds-I (Van Nostrand Reinhold company, New York, Cincinnati, Toronoto, Londan, Melbourne, 1972).
3. Hanzak J., The Pictorial Encyclopedia of Birds. (Hamiyn publishing group Ltd. London, Reprinted in 1972.)
4. Leopold A. Starksr and The Editors of life, The Desert (Time life international, Nethearland, N. V. 1963).
5. Sali S.A, The Upper Paleolithic culture at Patne, dist Jalagaon.Maharashtra. (submitted in the symposium on recent advances in Indo-Pacific Prehistory, held at Poona, 1978).
6. Wakankar V. S., ‘Presidential Address (Prehistory section) annual congress of ISPQUS 1976.
[1] Grazimek, 1972. p. 91.
[2] Hanzak H., 1965. p. 91.
[3] Grazimek, 1972. p. 91.
[4] Sali, 1978. p. 23.
[5] Sali, 1978. p. 24.
[6] Sali, 1978. p. 26.
[7] Leopold, 1963. p. 153.
[8] S. A. Sali, 1978. p. 24.
[9] Wakankar, 1976. p. 6.
[10] Giriraj, 1980 p. 6.
