Monday, 17 March 2025

Bhimbetka rock shelters/ Bhimbetka Rock Paintings/भीमबेटका रॉक शेल्तेर्स, Amchha Khurd, Madhya Pradesh.

The visit to this Bhimbetka Rock Shelters with Rock Paintings, one of the UNESCO, World Heritage Sites, was a part of the “Bhopal, Udayagiri Rock Cut Caves, Bhimbetka Rock Shelters, Sanchi, Bhojpur, and Khajuraho – of Madhya Pradesh Heritage Walk” organized by the எண்திசை வரலாற்று மரபுநடைக்குழு, between 25th and 28th December 2024.


Painted Rock Shelter of Bhimbetka.
The rock shelters of Bhimbetka, inscribed as a world heritage by UNESCO, are located about 45 km. north-east of Bhopal, the state capital of Madhya Pradesh. Situated along the Bhopal- Hoshangabad highway, these shelters are near the Bhiyapura village in the Raisen district. The fringes of the ancient Vindhyachal ranges are home to extraordinary rock shelters and paintings, and its awesome rocks fortify the ancient treasure within. Situated amidst the lush greenery of dense forests, rocky terrain, and craggy cliffs, the rock shelters of Bhimbetka present a breathtaking view extending to Obaidullaganj, a small town in the vicinity of Bhimbetka.

Rock shelters and paintings at Bhimbetka were discovered in 957-58 by Dr. Vishnu Shridhar Wakankar. Out of the 750 rock shelters, 500 are adorned with paintings. The site remained a center of human activity right from the lower Paleolithic times up to the Medieval period. The subject of paintings includes linear depictions of human figures, hunting, riding, communal dances, warfare, and other scenes, depicting details of the day-to-day activities of the ancient man. The mineral colors used for painting are green, red, ochre, and white. The cup marks made on the rock surface at Bhimbetka have been dated to 100000 BP. This pushes back the date of the cognitive development of man at Bhimbetka to many thousands of years earlier than that of similar sites in various parts of the world, making it one of the earliest cradles of cognitive human evolution.

Other antiquarian remains include fortification walls, minor stupas, stone-built houses, the inscription of the Sunga-Gupta period, the Shankh inscription, and evidence of temples of the Parmara period. These rock shelters and paintings are under central protection of the Archaeological Survey of India, Bhopal Circle vide, Gazette notification no. S.o. 2140, Published on 11 August 1990.  

There are 15 rock shelters occupied by the early man and life depicted in paintings. The habitation deposit emerges from the cultural sequence from Lower Palaeolithic to Mesolithic, the trenches of Shelter 1 and 3. Rock Shelter 3 has some cupules made on the huge rock on the western end, considered by some scholars as the man's earliest manifestation of creativity, probably associated with one lakh years before. An elaborately painted shelter 4 known as Zoo Rock comprises 252 animals of 16 different species. From here, walking towards the north, one can enjoy the watershed of the Betwa River and the natural ambiance. Many painted rock shelters can be reached at the rock shelter 15. Here, an amazing scene of a giant mythical animal chasing a human, painted with Red ocher, can be seen on the upper surface of the rock shelter. We can experience here natural geological formations, various shaped rocks, and other painted rock shelters with their natural environment including flora and fauna. Watching all these, we have to walk 1400 meters.

Rock Shelter No. 1
This shelter has been given the No. III F-23 by the discoverer of this site, Shri V S Wakankar. The total height of this shelter is 20 meters from the present ground level and is precariously balanced on a narrow base. An excavation conducted for four continuous seasons from 1973 to 1976 brought to light the sequence of human occupation from the late Acheulian (1.5 million years) to the end of the Mesolithic period (10,000 BP). Tools like hand axes, cleavers, etc., have been found from the lower level. Only a few paintings belonging to the historical period have been found in this shelter. On the ceiling, paintings of two elephants are depicted. The smaller elephant is driven by a man holding a goad in one hand and a spear in the other having a sword on.




Rock Shelter No. 2
This shelter is approximately five meters high. The paintings have faded due to the effects of natural elements. It documents 46 figures, including humans, animals, and some symbolic images that have not been identified. The clearest painting in the shelter is of a horse rider, painted in the center of the wall.

Rock Shelter No. 3
Shri Wakankar designated this shelter Auditorium Rock due to its large size and grand appearance. The cave is about 39 m long, 4 m wide, and 17 m high at the western end. The shelter drawings of the prehistoric period record 17 places in red sienna, light red, burnt umber, and sepia.






Rock Shelter No. 4
The semicircular shelter has a large projection measuring 14 m X 6,2 m with a 3.4 m high ceiling and a smooth and sloping floor of 3.3 m above ground. It has been named Zoo Rock by Shri VS Wakankar because of the depiction of the large number and variety of naturalistic and elegant animal paintings. There are 453 figures in the shelter comprising 252 animals of 16 species, 90 humans engaged in several activities, two rodents (squirrels), one bird (cock), six decorative designs, two enclosures identified as snares, one inscription in Sankha script and 99 fragmented figures. The shelter is richly decorated with as many as ten layers of superimposed figures. Most paintings belong to the prehistoric period, and few belong to the historical period (6th Cent. BCE onwards).






Rock Shelter No. 5
This shelter has two chambers, one above the other. Paintings are present in both chambers, nicely executed in both white and red ochre color pigments. The upper chamber has painted images of goats, deer, and other animals. There is a beautiful depiction of 'Langoor' leaping around a tree.









Rock Shelter No. 6
This is a small, narrow shelter facing east that contains beautifully depicted, natural-looking animal drawings in white. Three different layers of superimposition have been identified in the paintings. The earlier levels of paintings are now faded, which can be identified in the coloured animal shown on the right side of this shelter






Rock Shelter No. 7
All figures in this shelter belong to the historical period. On the ceiling, one can see a swordsman riding a caparisoned horse. Below, there is a depiction of six horse riders, with the third being larger than the others.





Rock Shelter No. 8
This shelter has a main chamber and a small cell on the west face of the rock. The big chamber is closed from two sides and has very low height. The ceiling is richly painted, related to the historical period, and is faded due to the passage of time. These paintings include stylized bands of armor-clad soldiers and cavaliers. On the ceiling of the shelter, there are some well-preserved paintings in white and red ochre pigment. The white color paintings appear to be earlier as some parts of the ochre color painted are found overlapping them.






Rock Shelter No. 9
This east-facing shelter has very little depth, with one small narrow chamber on the left. The paintings are very appealing as these differ from other paintings of the Bhimbetka shelters. The paintings are executed in red & ochre colors, as well as in green and yellow. Paintings of the flower pot, a horse, and an elephant with a rider have been executed on a deep white band/base.





Rock Shelter No. 10
Most of the pictures in this shelter are not easy to identify. There are depictions of a bird on a tree, most probably a peacock or peafowl, painted on the left side of the wall. Besides, paintings of the swordsman, a deer, and eight figures of drummers and dancers, all painted in white, are also visible.




Rock Shelter No.11
This shelter has depictions related to the historical period. The figures are mostly painted white; however, in some paintings, a borderline in red ochre has been given. A group of horse riders and foot soldiers can be seen at various places.





Rock Shelter No. 12
This shelter has paintings of different types of animals. On one side, a buffalo with large horns is painted, and to in right, is the depiction of galloping 'nilgais'. These very interesting paintings of four fleeing chitai doe in a vertical row are depicted as if they are diving down from an elevated cliff. Here, the painter has used the particular morphology of rock as background to the paintings to convey the meaning of the art in a more effective style.




Rock Shelter No. 15 (BOAR ROCK)
This mushroom-shaped giant rock is famous for a large silhouetted figure of a boar-like animal, which is painted at a height of 9.85 meters from the ground. The animal depicted with two crescent horns, a massive snout with mustaches and bristles on the back, unusually large with composite features, is clearly mythical. Near its snout is the figure of a fleeing man and in front of him that of a crab. The hooves of the hind legs are overlapped by the figure of a buffalo facing in the opposite direction. Besides, there are depictions of human and animal figures. The animal figures mainly include buffalo, cow, rhinoceros, langur, etc







Ref
Archaeological Survey of India Display board.

LOCATION OF THE TEMPLE: CLICK HERE

Tortoise

--- OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---

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