Palaeolithic sites in the periphery of the Middle Son Valley, Northern Vindhyan Plateau, Central India: Preliminary investigation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2218/jls.9684Abstract
In South Asia, the northern Vindhyan Plateau in central India preserves a rich Palaeolithic record derived from both alluvial plains and the Kaimur hill range. The Middle Son Valley (MSV), one of the key river basins in this region, has been extensively studied by various scholars and institutions, yielding a significant record of Palaeolithic sites along with vertebrate fossils from dated, stratified alluvial sediments. However, relatively little is known about the nature of Palaeolithic remains in the tributaries, neighbouring river valleys, and foothill zones of the Kaimur Range within the peripheral areas of the MSV. This research addresses this gap through systematic archaeological investigations carried out between 2012 and 2025 in the neighbouring regions of the MSV. Fieldwork involved structured surveys, documentation of lithic assemblages, and analysis of their geomorphological contexts. A total of 787 lithic artefacts were documented from surface sites and stratified localities, collected from sedimentary exposures and selected surface contexts. The investigations led to the discovery of several new Palaeolithic sites, prehistoric painted rock shelters, and related archaeological assemblages in the Kaimur hill range and its foothills, as well as in adjacent river valleys, often preserved within well-stratified deposits. The foothill zones yielded Acheulean assemblages dominated by cleavers from secure stratified layers, alongside artefacts attributable to the Late Palaeolithic or Mesolithic, mostly recovered from surface contexts. Additionally, hundreds of painted prehistoric rock shelters were documented in the Kaimur Range, associated with Late Palaeolithic or Mesolithic assemblages and other archaeological remains. In neighbouring river valleys - such as the Rihand, Mayar, Tons, Gopad, Ken, and Choti Mahanadi - numerous Lower, Middle, and Late Palaeolithic or Mesolithic artefacts were recorded, along with vertebrate fossils from stratified layers. These findings demonstrate that the peripheral zones of the MSV form a significant archaeological landscape that reflects recurrent hominin occupation. The results further suggest that the Vindhyan basin provided a favourable ecological setting for sustained Palaeolithic habitation and adaptation, offering new insights into the distribution and behavioural patterns of prehistoric populations across the wider Middle Son Valley region.
References
Ahmed, N. 1966, Stone Age Cultures of the Upper Son Valley, Ramanand Vidya Bhawan, New Delhi, Pune, 246 p.
Akhilesh, K., Pappu, S., Rajapara, H.M., Gunnell, Y., Shukla, A.D. & Singhvi, A.K. 2018, Early Middle Palaeolithic culture in India around 385-172 ka reframes Out of Africa models. Nature, 554(7690): 97-101. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature25444
Allchin, B. 1966b, The Stone-tipped Arrow: Late Stone Age Hunters of the Tropical World. Phoenix House, London, 1966, 224 p.
Andrefsky, W., Jr. 2005, Lithics: Macroscopic Approaches to Analysis. Cambridge University Press, New York, 142 p. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511810244
Blinkhorn, J. 2018, Buddha Pushkar revisited: Technological variability in Late Palaeolithic stone tools at the Thar Desert margin, India. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 20: 168-182. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.04.020
Carlleyle, A.C. (1883), Notes on lately discovered sepulchral mounds, cairns, caves, cave paintings and stone implements. Unpublished manuscript (cited in other publications but not read by the current author).
Chakraborty, C. 2006, Proterozoic intracontinental basin: The Vindhyan example. Journal of Earth System Science, 115(1): 3-22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02703022
Chauhan, P.R. 2016, A Decade of Paleoanthropology in the Indian Subcontinent (2005-2015). In: A Companion to South Asia in the Past, Wiley, Chichester: p. 32-50. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119055280.ch3
Chauhan, P.R. 2020, Human Evolution in the Center of the Old World: An Updated Review of the South Asian Paleolithic. In: Pleistocene Archaeology - Migration, Technology, and Adaptation (R. Ono & A. Pawlik), IntechOpen, London: p. 1-29. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.94265
Clark, J.D. & Sharma, G.R. 1983, A discussion of preliminary results and assessment of future research potential. In: Palaeoenvironments and Prehistory in the Middle Son Valley: Madhya Pradesh, North-Central India (Sharma, G.R. & Clark, J.D., Eds.), Abinash Prakashan, Allahabad: p. 261-280.
Clarkson, C., Harris, C., Li, B., Neudorf, C.M., Roberts, R.G., Lane, C., Norman, K., Pal, J., Jones, S., Shipton, C., Koshy, J., Gupta, M.C., Mishra, D.P., Dubey, A.K., Boivin, N. & Petraglia, M. 2020, Human occupation of northern India spans the Toba super-eruption ~74,000 years ago. Nature Communications, 11(1): 961-961. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14668-4
Cockburn, J. 1879, Notes on stone implements from the Khasi Hills and the Banda and Vellore Districts. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, 48: 133-143. URL: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.280513/page/n136/mode/1up
Cockburn, J. 1888, Palaeolithic implements from the drift gravels of the Singrauli Basin, South Mirzapur. Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, 17: 57-65. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2841670
Cockburn, J. 1899, Art. V. - Cave Drawings in the Kaimūr Range, North-West Provinces. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, 31(1): 89-97. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0035869X00026113
Corvinus, G. 1983, A survey of the Pravara River system in Western Maharashtra, India. In: The Excavation of the Acheulian Site of Chirki-on-Pravara, India Vol. 2 (Corvinus, G., Ed.), Verlag Archaeologica Venatoria, Institut für Urgeschichte der Universität Tübingen, Tübingen: p. 1-91.
Debenath, A. & Dibble, H. 1994, Handbook of Palaeolithic Typology: Lower and Middle Palaeolithic of Europe. Vol. 1. University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology., Philadelphia, 202 p. URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt14btgq9
Geological Survey of India 2026, National Geoscience Data Repository. Geological Survey of India. Retrieved 2026. URL: https://geodataindia.gov.in/
Ghosh, A.K. 1970, The Palaeolithic Cultures of Singhbhum. Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, 60: 1-68. DOI: https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.70249/9798893981599/html
Ghosh, A.K. 2008, Prehistory of the Chotanagpur Region Part 2: Proposed Stages - Palaeolithic and Mesolithic. Internet Journal of Biological Anthropology, 2(1): 1-14. URL: https://ispub.com/IJBA/2/1/9185
Goren-Inbar, N., Grosman, L. & Sharon, G. 2011, The technology and significance of the Acheulian giant cores of Gesher Benot Ya‘aqov, Israel. Journal of Archaeological Science, 38(8): 1901-1917. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2011.03.037
Haslam, M., Harris, C., Clarkson, C., Pal, J.N., Shipton, C., Crowther, A., Koshy, J., Bora, J., Ditchfield, P., Ram, H.P., Price, K., Dubey, A.K. & Petraglia, M. 2012, Dhaba: An initial report on an Acheulean, Middle Palaeolithic and microlithic locality in the Middle Son Valley, north-central India. Quaternary International, 258: 191-199. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.09.007
Haslam, M. & Petraglia, M. 2010, Comment on “Environmental impact of the 73ka Toba super-eruption in South Asia” by M.A.J. Williams, S.H. Ambrose, S. van der Kaars, C. Ruehlemann, U. Chattopadhyaya, J. Pal and P.R. Chauhan [Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 284 (2009) 295-314]. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 296(1-2): 199-203. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2010.03.057
Jones, S.C. 2010, Palaeoenvironmental response to the ∼74 ka Toba ash-fall in the Jurreru and Middle Son valleys in southern and north-central India. Quaternary Research, 73(2): 336-350. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yqres.2009.11.005
Jones, S.C. & Pal, J.N. 2009, The Palaeolithic of the Middle Son valley, north-central India: Changes in hominin lithic technology and behaviour during the Upper Pleistocene. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 28(3): 323-341. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaa.2009.05.003
Kenoyer, J.M. & Pal, J.N. 1983, Report on the excavation and analysis of an Upper Acheulian assemblage from Sihawal II. In: Palaeoenvironments and Prehistory in the Middle Son Valley (Sharma, G.R. & Clark, J.D., Eds.), Abinash Prakashan, Allahabad: p. 23-28.
Khatri, A.P. 1961, Stone Age and Pleistocene chronology of the Narmada Valley. Anthropos, 56: 519-530.
Korisettar, R. 2007, Toward developing a basin model for Paleolithic settlement of the Indian subcontinent. In: The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics (Petraglia, M.D. & Allchin, B., Eds.), Springer Netherlands, Dordrecht: p. 69-96. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-5562-5
Krishnaswami, V.D. & Soundarajan, K.V. 1951, The lithic tool industries of the Singrauli Basin. Ancient India, 9: 40-65.
Kumar, P. 2025. Early hominin lithic strategies in the Vindhyan Basin, South Asia: Raw material procurement and technological trends in the wider Asian Palaeolithic framework (abstract). In: Inter-Congress Conference APT2025: Asian Prehistory Today - Bridging Science, Heritage & Development (H. Widianto & F. Sémah, Eds.), Union Internationale des Sciences Préhistoriques et Protohistoriques (UISPP), Salatiga-Sangiran-Yogyakarta: p. 141. URL: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1icfH23dvkPHn32e59-Ar83aXPkrlGYcy/view
Kumar, P., Dwivedi, D. & Singh, C.P. 2022, Preliminary report on the survey of prehistoric sites in Chitrakoot District, Uttar Pradesh, Northern Vindhyan Region. Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology, 10: 787-795. URL: https://www.heritageuniversityofkerala.com/JournalPDF/Volume10/54.pdf
Kumar, P., Srivastava, M.C. & Nandan, P.K. 2020, Prehistoric explorations in the Central Ken Basin, Panna District, North Central India. Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology, 8(2): 527-537. URL: https://heritageuniversityofkerala.com/JournalPDF/Volume8.2/29.pdf
Kumar, P., Srivastava, M.C., Singh, A. & Lodhi, A.K. 2021, Prehistoric Explorations in the Mayar River, District Singrauli, North Central India. Journal of Archaeological Studies in India, 1(1): 62-74. URL: https://docslib.org/doc/1897019/prehistoric-explorations-in-the-mayar-river-district-singrauli-in-north-central-india
Mehra, S.B. 2018, The Palaeolithic and Microlithic Records of the Lower Son Valley, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh: A Review and New Data. Heritage: Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies in Archaeology, 6: 148-168. URL: https://www.heritageuniversityofkerala.com/JournalPDF/Volume6/7.pdf
Mishra, S. 2007, The Indian Lower Palaeolithic. Bulletin of the Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute, 66: 47-94. URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/42931441
Mishra, S. 2016, The Narmada River in Indian prehistory. Puratattva, 46: 36-47.
Misra, V.D. 1977, Some Aspects of Indian Archaeology. Prabhat Prakashan, Allahabad, 128 p.
Nandan, P.K., Kumar, P. & Baviskar, Y. 2020, Prehistoric Rock Paintings of Usrar, Singhpur, district Satna, North Central India: A Preliminary Investigation and Analysis. ICON Journal of Archaeology and Culture, 7: 15-23.
Ota, S.B. & Deo, S.G. 2014, Investigation of Acheulian Localities TKD-I and TKD-II at Tikoda, District Raisen, Madhya Pradesh (2010-12). In: Quaternary Environments and Geoarchaeology of India (Paddayya, K. & Deo, S.G., Eds.), Geological Society of India, Bengaluru: p. 57-66.
Pal, J.N. 2019, A Review of the Researches on the Acheulian Culture in the Vindhyas, North-Central India. Indian Journal of Archaeology, 4(2): 1-10. URL: https://ijarch.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IJA-VOL-4.-NO.-2.pdf
Pandey, J.N. & Pal, J.N. 1988, Acheulian occupation at Maihar. Man and Environment, 12: 201-202.
Pappu, S., Gunnell, Y., Akhilesh, K., Braucher, R., Taieb, M., Demory, F. & Thouveny, N. 2011, Early Pleistocene Presence of Acheulian Hominins in South India. Science, 331(6024): 1596-1599. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1200183
Sharma, G.R. 1973, Mesolithic Lake Cultures in the Ganga Valley, India. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 39: 129-146. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0079497X00011646
Sharma, G.R. & Clark, J.D. 1982, Palaeo-environments and prehistory in the Middle Son valley, northern Madhya Pradesh. Man and Environment, 6: 56-62.
Sharon, G. 2007, Acheulian Large Flake Industries: Technology, Chronology, Distribution and Significance, BAR International Series (Archaeopress), Oxford, 236 p.
Shipton, C., Clarkson, C., Pal, J.N., Jones, S.C., Roberts, R.G., Harris, C., Gupta, M.C., Ditchfield, P.W. & Petraglia, M.D. 2013, Generativity, hierarchical action and recursion in the technology of the Acheulean to Middle Palaeolithic transition: A perspective from Patpara, the Son Valley, India. Journal of Human Evolution, 65(2): 93-108. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2013.03.007
Sinha, P. 1984, Stone age cultures of Satna District (Madhya Pradesh) Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, 334 p.
Sitch, B. 2017, Prehistoric India at Manchester Museum I: Archibald Campbell Carlyle. Ancient Worlds: Ancient Worlds at Manchester Museum. Manchester Museum, University of Manchester, Manchester. Retrieved 01 August 2026. URL: https://ancientworldsmanchester.wordpress.com/2017/06/23/prehistoric-india-at-manchester-museum-i-archibald-campbell-carlyle/
Usik, V.I., Rose, J.I., Hilbert, Y.H., Van Peer, P. & Marks, A.E. 2013, Nubian Complex reduction strategies in Dhofar, southern Oman. Quaternary International, 300: 244-266. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.08.2111
Van Peer, P. 1992, The Levallois Reduction Strategy. Monographs in World Archaeology. Vol. 13. Prehistory Press, Madison, Wisconsin, 137 p.
Varma, R.K. 1964, The Stone Age Cultures of Mirzapur. Unpublished D.Phil. Dissertation, University of Allahabad, 569 p.
Varma, R.K. 2007, Bhartiya Pragaitihasik. Pram Jyoti Prakashan, Allahabad, 353 p.
Varma, R.K. 2012, Rock Art of Central India, North Vindhyan Region. Aryan Books International, New Delhi, 146 p.
Vyas, V. 2020, Localization of global technology: regional variability in Acheulean techno-complex at the South-eastern margin of the Thar Desert. Unpublished Master’s thesis, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Baroda, 79 p.
Wakankar, V.S. & Brooks, R.R. 1976, Stone Age Paintings in India. D.B Taraporevala Sons&Co., Bombay, 176 p.
Williams, M. & Clarke, M.F. 1995, Quaternary geology and prehistoric environments in the Son and Belan valleys, north-central India. In: Quaternary Environments and Geoarchaeology of India (Wadia, S., Korisettar, R., & Kale, V.S. Eds.), Geological Society of India, Bangalore: p. 282-308.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of Lithic Studies
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
