Template:Paleolithic The Madrasian culture is a prehistoric archaeological culture of India, dated to the Lower Paleolithic, the earliest subdivision of the Stone Age.[1][2] It belongs to the Acheulian industry, and some scholars consider the distinction between the Madrasian and the broader, regional Acheulian tradition defunct.[3][4]
The Madrasian is characterized by bifacial handaxes and cleavers,[5] but also includes flake tools, microliths and other chopping tools. Most were made from quartzite.[6]
The Madrasian was named for its type site of Attirampakkam, near to the city of Madras (now known as Chennai), discovered by British archaeologist and geologist Robert Bruce Foote in 1863.[2][3] The oldest tools at Attirampakkam have been dated to 1.5 million years ago using cosmic-ray exposure dating.[7]
See also
- South Asian Stone Age
- Archaeological pottery cultures in India
- Archaeological culture
- Archaeological context
- Chronological dating
- Excavation (archaeology)
References
- ↑ Recent advances in Indo-Pacific prehistory: proceedings of the international symposium held at Poona, December 19-21, 1978{{#if:Armand|, Armand}. BRILL(1985). ISBN 978-90-04-07512-2
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 India, the Ancient Past: a history of the Indian sub-continent from c. 7000 BC to AD 1200{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Routledge(5 June 2007). ISBN 978-0-415-35616-9
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Frameworks for Dating Fossil Man{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Transaction Publishers(30 April 2007). ISBN 978-0-202-30960-6
- ↑ A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Pearson Education India(1 September 2008). ISBN 978-81-317-1120-0
- ↑ Indian Hist (Opt){{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Tata McGraw-Hill Education(1 December 2006). ISBN 978-0-07-063577-7
- ↑ Ancient Indian History and Civilization{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. New Age International(1 January 1999). ISBN 978-81-224-1198-0
- ↑ Early Pleistocene Presence of Acheulian Hominins in South India. Science({Template:Date).