Fresh Light on the Mass Production of Stone Adzes and Chisels in the Southern Bonaigarh, Odisha

Abstract

Fresh investigation carried out in the southern part of Bonaigarh subdivision of Sundargarh district, Odisha, brought to light some very significant dimensions of lithic celt production sites located in the village Sulabhdih and its surrounding region. Not only valley floors and foothills, but slope and top of hills were also utilized for mass production of semi-finished celts, particularly chisels and adzes. Our study suggests that mass production of these craft specialized semi-finished items were probably intended for not only local use at settlement areas where these were further modified into finished products, but these were presumably transported to different regions of highland Odisha and also beyond through trade and/or exchange network. Although no datable material could be recovered during our limited section scrapping, keeping in view available dates from within Odisha, Jharkhand and Karnataka, these sites are tentatively dated to the beginning of second millennium BCE. The present paper intends to bring out some new aspects of celt production in the southern part of Bonaigarh subdivision, hitherto unknown in Odisha and other parts of the sub-continent.