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Scope of Ceramic Ethnoarchaeological research in India
By: Dr. Alok Shrotriya, Sr. Lecturer, Department of Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology, Dr. Harisingh Gour University, Sagar (M.P.) India
India has an unbroken tradition of ceramic manufacture; therefore, ceramic ethnoarchaeological approach has much potential to enhance the various aspects of pre and protohistoric pottery in this region. Still people are engaged in traditional techniques relevant in some way to ancient pottery manufacturing process. Rich cultural diversity and huge demographic and geographic size of India make this region an ideal locus for ceramic ethnoarchaeological research.
In spite of much industrialization and development, pottery is still an essential utensil in Indian houses. Enormous time depth can be found in India that trace back to Harappan time (Krishnan and Rao 1994). In India earthenware are also associated with some religious and ritualistic practices and considered as a pure and sacred ware. Huyler (1994, pp.323-324) pointed out that in eastern India earthenware is essential to contain basil plant, which is regarded by Hindus embodiment of their goddess Tulasi. This type
of practices reveals the importance of earthenware in society rather than metallic ware and could be helpful for archaeologists to understand past religious customs.
Some ethnoarchaeological researches have been undertaken in some parts of India by archaeologists and anthropologists to describe and explain the construction and development of ceramic production (e.g. Behura 1964,1978; Gupta 1969; Saraswati and Behura 1966; Bose 1982;Ghosh and Bhattacharya 1997; Sinopoly 1988,1991a; Kramer 1992,1994,1997; Bala1997). Renu Bala (1997) has done valuable work with ceramic ethnoarchaeological approach in middle Ganga plains. She has illustrated correlation of ethnography and archaeology to explain earthenwares. Ghosh and Bhattacharya (1997) have made an attempt to explain pottery of tribles in their ceramic research. Carol Kramer’s ceramic ethnoarchaeological studies in India are notable here. In 1980s she has conducted her ethnoarchaeological research on Hindu and Muslim traditional earthenware potters of Jodhpur and Udaipur in the state of Rajasthan .She published her work in some research articles (1991,1992,1994) and a book entitled “Pottery in Rajasthan: Ethnoarchaeology in Two Indian Cities”(1997). Her work is significant to understand the ceramic production, distribution, interaction in pottery manufacturing communities and style characteristics of ceramics in Rajasthan. Sinopoly(1991a,b) has done her ceramic ethnoarchaeological research in a traditional rural extended family house hold workshop in Kamampuram, South India and contemporary Malwa in central India. Some remarkable works have been done with ethnoarchaeological approach in the field of bead making (Kenoyer,Vidale and Bhan 1991;Kanungo 2004) and rock art (Nagar 1983) but still less works have been conducted on pottery with explicit ceramic ethnoarchaeological approach.
Pottery recovered in excavations and explorations from Madhya Pradesh( Kayatha; Maheshvar Navadatoli; Nagada; Runija; Dangwada;Eran, Mahidpur, Awara, Manoti, Besnagar, Bhim Betaka, Mandsaur, Azadnagar, Piplya loraka, Chichali Adalpur, Pitanagar etc.in Shrotriya 2001, pp.373-394), Rajasthan(Ahar, Balathal and Gilund), Bihar and West Bengal(Kakoria, Magha, Koldihwa, Banimilia-Bahera, Takiapar, Raja Nal Ka Tila, Kausambi, Sringverapura Chirand, Prahladpur , Rajghat, Mahisdal, Pandu Rajar Dhibi etc, in Mishra2001, p.514), Maharashtra (Jorwe, Daimabad; Inamgaon; Nevasa; Chandoli; Prakash; Kaothe; Bahal; Tekwada; Apegaon ;Savalda etc. in Misra2001, p.516) provide data about chalcolithic settlements and shed light on many aspects of the protohistoric culture of India. Some ceramic ethnoarchaeological research have been undertaken on the Harappan pottery (Kenoyer 1997) but still there is a great need to describe chalcolithic pottery with this approach in above mentioned area.
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http://www.anistor.gr Anistoriton Journal, ArtHistory, Vol. 10, no 3 (2007) 6
