![]() ![]() The high level of artistic skills and evolution of techniques of rock etching and scooping, are significant markers of their intellectual endowment of the cultural group. Further, the Geoglyphs show increasing finesse of artistic skill and evolution of techniques of etching and scooping, that are fundamental to mastering rock art. The content, composition, scale, quality of imagery and artistic techniques not only provide an insight on the range of mainly faunal life, but also depict the increasing tendencies of depicting abstract and anthropogenic forms onto stone. More than 600 figures arranged in the clusters are depicted inKasheli, RundhyeTali, DevacheGothane, Barsu, Devi Hasol, Jambharun, Ukshi and Kudopi in southern Maharashtra and Pansaymol in Goa, are the most comprehensive, well-preserved and artistically distinct Geoglyphs evidencing a cultural legacy of 12000 years. This not only fills some knowledge-gap for the Konkan and the Deccan region, but also adds to on-going research on human resilience and adaptation to extreme fluctuations in climates. The imagery and contents of these geoglyph clusters may also be understood as a documentation of how people adapted to ephemeral wetlands in a dry-arid plateau having shallow rock pools, streams and watercourses support a rich diversity of endemic and threatened aquatic fauna such as fish, amphibians, insects etc. Of the Konkan region, the area between (Modern day Thane district in Maharashtra to Goa) has always been the most important cultural zone in the development of the culture in Konkan Concentrated primarily in the southern parts of this region, these Geoglyphs are the only material cultural remains that point to the prehistoric human activities in the Konkan. These clusters of Geoglyphs covering about 900 km from north to south, along the coastline of the Arabian sea, show the expanse of initiation of culture in Konkan and provide visual representation of prehistoric life here. While remains of continued habitation since early historic life is evident in the form of several affluent port towns, trading towns and routes, rock-cut caves, forts, colonies of foreign powers in form of factories, castles and towns, there is little evidence besides these Geoglyphs, to demonstrate prehistoric life of this region, which enabled the indigenous population to leverage from their landscape. This made Konkon region the most sought after political-geography, contested by the Mauryas, Satvahanas, Shilaharas, Rashtrakutas, Kalchuris, Chalukyas, Vijaynagaras, Deccan Sultanates, Mughals, Marathas, also by the colonial powers such as Portuguese, Dutch and later the British alike. It was connected to the Western Ghats through major communication corridors (called ghats) and the landscape were dotted with numerous forts, to protect the series of ports that were the critical linkage between the subcontinental and foreign shores. The region witnessed flourishing trading activities complex maritime and inland trade linkages. Known as Aparanta, the Konkan region was a culturally vibrant land since the early historical period. Further, these are also the key proof of existence of certain types of faunal lifeforms that are no longer present in the region today. ![]() These are a critical typology of material heritage being the only evidence pointing to the presence of human settlement in the Konkan region and, from a stylistic analysis, their features point to their continued existence from Mesolithic era till early historic era and possibly, were contemporary to other Deccan Chalcolithic cultures. carving out or removing part of a rock surface to form a design. ![]() Geoglyphs are rock art produced on the surface earth either by positioning rocks, rock fragments or by reduction technique i.e. However, the large concentration of geoglyphs on the laterite plateaus (Sada) of the Konkan region (south western Maharashtra to Southern Karnataka) is the most remarkable open-air ensemble of prehistoric human expression of rock art in the Konkan region (south western Maharashtra to Southern Karnataka) from Mesolithic (10Kya) to Early Historic (1.7Kya.). ![]() These are generally in the form of rock paintings, rock etchings, cup marks and ring marks found all over India. Rock art in India is one of oldest material evidence of the country's early human creativity. Latitude and Longitude, or UTM coordinates: ![]()
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