Ochre Coloured Pottery culture
Encyclopedia
The Ochre Coloured Pottery culture (OCP), is a 2nd millennium BC
Bronze Age
culture of the Indo-Gangetic Plain
(Ganges-Yamuna
plain). It is a contemporary to, and a successor of the Indus Valley Civilization
. The OCP marks the last stage of the North Indian Bronze Age and is succeeded by the Iron Age
black-and-red ware and painted-gray ware cultures. Early specimens of the characteristic ceramics found near Jodhpura, Rajasthan
date to the 3rd millennium,this site of Jodhpura is in district Jaipur and must not be confused with the city of Jodhpur, and the culture reaches the Gangetic plain in the early 2nd millennium.
Copper Hoards refer to different assemblages of copper-based artefacts in the northern areas of the Indian Subcontinent. These are believed to date largely to the 2nd millennium BC. Few derive from controlled excavations. Different regional groups are identifiable: southern Haryana/northern Rajasthan, the Ganges-Jumuna plain, Chota Nagpur
and in Madhya Pradesh
, each with their characteristic artefact types. Initially the copper hoards were known mostly from the Ganges-Jumuna doab and most characterisations dwell on this material.
Characteristic hoard artefacts southern Haryana
/northern Rajasthan
and include certain, flat axes (celts), harpoons double axes, antenna-hilted swords etc. The doab has a related repertory. That of the Chota Nagpur area is far different and the finds seem to be ingots.
The artefacts seem to be votive in character.
The raw material can have derived from a variety of sources in Rajasthan (Khetri), Bihar/West Bengal/Orissa (especially Singhbhum) as well as Madhya Pradesh (Malanjkhand).
Some scholars regard the OCP culture as late or impoverished Harappan culture, while other scholars see the OCP as an indigenous culture that is unrelated to Harappan culture. V.N. Misra (in S.P. Gupta 1995: 140) regards the OCP as "only a final and impoverished stage of the Late Harappan culture" and designates this phase as "Degenerate Harappan".
Together with the Cemetery H culture
and the Gandhara Grave culture
, the OCP is considered by some scholars a factor in the formation of the Vedic civilization.
H. C. Bharadwaj in his work Aspects of Ancient Indian
Technology, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi 1979 had established that
copper hoards, being found in the same layers as Ochre Coloured
Pottery by B. B. Lal, belonged to 1100-800 BC, but K.N. Dikshit in:
Essays in Indian Protohistory, 1979 suggested a date from 2650 to
1180 BC based on thermoluminescent method.
On the other hand R. C. Gaur excavations at Lal Qila gave also a
thermoluminiscent date for OCP in time bracket of 2030 and 1730 BC
with a mean date of 1880 BC.
There are even a claim of earlier dates by M. D. N.
Sahi: "...settlements of the OCP-Copper Hoards culture, datable
between 3700-3000 B.C., as discussed by the present author elsewhere,
are found existing in the districts of Allahabad (Sringaverapura and
Mirapatti) and Varanasi (Kamauli)." (Sahi's paper "Neolithic Syndrome
of the Ganga Valley" at National Seminar on the Archaeology of the
Ganga Valley, December 2004).
It is worth to mention the work of archaeometallurgists R.
Balasubramaniam, T. Laha and A. Srivastava who analyzed a copper
hoard piece along with an Ahar culture copper one at the Department
of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, Indian Institute of
Technology, Kanpur in 2003, publishing their conclusions in the
paper "Long term corrosion behaviour of copper in soil: A study of
archaeological analogues".
Also Deo Prakash Sharma published a work called Newly Discovered
Copper Hoard, Weapons of South Asia, Delhi, 2002 in which he
establishes a time between 2800 and 1500 BC for copper hoards based
on analysis of copper implemets in the National Museum, New
Delhi: "Till today around 5031 copper hoard implements have been
reported from 197 sites mostly from Gangetic plains among which 193
are in National Museum collection. We have fixed date of copper
hoards from circa 2800 to 1500 B.C. and these could be divided into
two groups as follows (A) North Eastern Indian (B) Ganges-Yamuna doab
and Western India. The technology of western group B is of a
distinctive and advanced type and is influenced by the
Harappans...The anthropomorphic figure of copper hoard is a cult
object and a symbol of good omen. The lugged shouldered axes and weed
chisels are a new type in copper hoard implements. The shouldered
axes show their origin from South East Asia via North-East India and
Middle Ganges plain. The copper hoard implements and OCP ceramic are
present in stratified deposits of Ganeshwar, Jodhpura, Mithathal,
Madarpur, Saipai and Khatoli...Copper hoard implements of western
group show genetic relationship with Harappans" (Deo Prakash Sharma
2002).
2nd millennium BC
The 2nd millennium BC marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age.Its first half is dominated by the Middle Kingdom of Egypt and Babylonia. The alphabet develops. Indo-Iranian migration onto the Iranian plateau and onto the Indian subcontinent propagates the use of the chariot...
Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
culture of the Indo-Gangetic Plain
Indo-Gangetic plain
The northern Plains also known as the Indo - Gangetic Plain and The North Indian River Plain is a large and fertile plain encompassing most of northern and eastern India, the most populous parts of Pakistan, parts of southern Nepal and virtually all of Bangladesh...
(Ganges-Yamuna
Yamuna
The Yamuna is the largest tributary river of the Ganges in northern India...
plain). It is a contemporary to, and a successor of the Indus Valley Civilization
Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that was located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of what is now mainly modern-day Pakistan and northwest India...
. The OCP marks the last stage of the North Indian Bronze Age and is succeeded by the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
black-and-red ware and painted-gray ware cultures. Early specimens of the characteristic ceramics found near Jodhpura, Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
date to the 3rd millennium,this site of Jodhpura is in district Jaipur and must not be confused with the city of Jodhpur, and the culture reaches the Gangetic plain in the early 2nd millennium.
Copper Hoards refer to different assemblages of copper-based artefacts in the northern areas of the Indian Subcontinent. These are believed to date largely to the 2nd millennium BC. Few derive from controlled excavations. Different regional groups are identifiable: southern Haryana/northern Rajasthan, the Ganges-Jumuna plain, Chota Nagpur
Chota Nagpur
Chota Nagpur may refer to*Chota Nagpur Plateau*Chhotanagpur*Chota Nagpur Division, a division of British India *Chota Nagpur States, a collection of princely states of British India...
and in Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, each with their characteristic artefact types. Initially the copper hoards were known mostly from the Ganges-Jumuna doab and most characterisations dwell on this material.
Characteristic hoard artefacts southern Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
/northern Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
and include certain, flat axes (celts), harpoons double axes, antenna-hilted swords etc. The doab has a related repertory. That of the Chota Nagpur area is far different and the finds seem to be ingots.
The artefacts seem to be votive in character.
The raw material can have derived from a variety of sources in Rajasthan (Khetri), Bihar/West Bengal/Orissa (especially Singhbhum) as well as Madhya Pradesh (Malanjkhand).
Some scholars regard the OCP culture as late or impoverished Harappan culture, while other scholars see the OCP as an indigenous culture that is unrelated to Harappan culture. V.N. Misra (in S.P. Gupta 1995: 140) regards the OCP as "only a final and impoverished stage of the Late Harappan culture" and designates this phase as "Degenerate Harappan".
Together with the Cemetery H culture
Cemetery H culture
The Cemetery H culture developed out of the northern part of the Indus Valley Civilization around 1900 BCE, in and around western Punjab region located in present-day India and Pakistan...
and the Gandhara Grave culture
Gandhara grave culture
The Gandhara grave culture emerged ca. 1600 BC, and flourished in Gandhara, Pakistan ca. 1500 BC to 500 BC ....
, the OCP is considered by some scholars a factor in the formation of the Vedic civilization.
Technology, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi 1979 had established that
copper hoards, being found in the same layers as Ochre Coloured
Pottery by B. B. Lal, belonged to 1100-800 BC, but K.N. Dikshit in:
Essays in Indian Protohistory, 1979 suggested a date from 2650 to
1180 BC based on thermoluminescent method.
On the other hand R. C. Gaur excavations at Lal Qila gave also a
thermoluminiscent date for OCP in time bracket of 2030 and 1730 BC
with a mean date of 1880 BC.
There are even a claim of earlier dates by M. D. N.
Sahi: "...settlements of the OCP-Copper Hoards culture, datable
between 3700-3000 B.C., as discussed by the present author elsewhere,
are found existing in the districts of Allahabad (Sringaverapura and
Mirapatti) and Varanasi (Kamauli)." (Sahi's paper "Neolithic Syndrome
of the Ganga Valley" at National Seminar on the Archaeology of the
Ganga Valley, December 2004).
It is worth to mention the work of archaeometallurgists R.
Balasubramaniam, T. Laha and A. Srivastava who analyzed a copper
hoard piece along with an Ahar culture copper one at the Department
of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, Indian Institute of
Technology, Kanpur in 2003, publishing their conclusions in the
paper "Long term corrosion behaviour of copper in soil: A study of
archaeological analogues".
Also Deo Prakash Sharma published a work called Newly Discovered
Copper Hoard, Weapons of South Asia, Delhi, 2002 in which he
establishes a time between 2800 and 1500 BC for copper hoards based
on analysis of copper implemets in the National Museum, New
Delhi: "Till today around 5031 copper hoard implements have been
reported from 197 sites mostly from Gangetic plains among which 193
are in National Museum collection. We have fixed date of copper
hoards from circa 2800 to 1500 B.C. and these could be divided into
two groups as follows (A) North Eastern Indian (B) Ganges-Yamuna doab
and Western India. The technology of western group B is of a
distinctive and advanced type and is influenced by the
Harappans...The anthropomorphic figure of copper hoard is a cult
object and a symbol of good omen. The lugged shouldered axes and weed
chisels are a new type in copper hoard implements. The shouldered
axes show their origin from South East Asia via North-East India and
Middle Ganges plain. The copper hoard implements and OCP ceramic are
present in stratified deposits of Ganeshwar, Jodhpura, Mithathal,
Madarpur, Saipai and Khatoli...Copper hoard implements of western
group show genetic relationship with Harappans" (Deo Prakash Sharma
2002).