About 50 km from Bhopal, in Central India, is located one of the earliest archaeological sites of India. The cave shelters are estimated to be nearly 30,000 to 100,000 years old. The well preserved cave paintings depict the life of the early man, showing scenes of hunting, horse riding, various animals and group dancing. All of these done using stone tools.
As with most ancient places, Bhimbetka has also been associated with the great mythologies. It is said that the name भीमबैठका has been derived from the fact that Bheem used to sit and pray here and hence the name.
Below are some pictures from a recent trip to this majestic structures, which are part of UNESCO's
World Heritage Sites. The place is awe-inspiring with natural rock formations marked with little drawings from our "ancestors". The line drawings and use of stone tools give an idea of how much evolution has taken place over these thousands of years.
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| The Majestic Rock Structures. There is a little temple within the rocks. |
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| The entrance to the caves. The monsoons have made the entire place green and clean. |
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| A sight to behold |
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| The work of water over the millenia |
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| Figurines have been added to depict the social life of the early man |
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| Mammoths - Interestingly similar paintings have been found across the world |
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| The "zoo" - Drawings of various animals |
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| Going to War on horseback |
In all, a must see place for all historians, archaeologists and geologists. Nature is the best preserver.
2 comments:
Thanks for drawing attention to this. I was not aware of this place.
India is a huge country. And filled with lots of such not-so-popular tourist destinations :)
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