Pappu RS. 1981. Recent Geoarcheaological College Postgraduate Investigations around Badami, District Bijapur, Karnataka. Bulletin of the Deccan and Research Institute 39-40 170-179.

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BULLETINOF THE

DECCAN COLLEGERESEARCH INSTITUTE

VoL 39

1980

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POONA

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I<L':< :E\JT GEOARCHAEOLO~;ICALL'\iVESTI(;ATIOi\S ,'\H.Olj NOBADAMI, DISTRICT BIjAPUR, KAHNATAKA

R. S. PAPPU

INTRODUCTION

The region around Badami situated in tbeNblaprabha valley in the Karnataka State iswell known for its magnificent rockclll cavesand temple architectural remains of theChalukyan period. Foote ( (876) was thepioneer worker in the field of prehistoric arch­aeology who discovered a number of palaeoli­thic sites in the Malaprabha valley aroundBadami. Tbe first systematic work involvingQuaternary geology and prehistory of theentire Malaprabba valley was carried out byJoshi ( 1955). It is significant that the majo­rity of the Lower Palaeolithic sites brought tolight by Joshi are concentrated in the vicinityof Badami Banerjee ( 1955) discovered forthe first time the tools of the Middle Palaeoli­thic industry in distinct stratified context atTaminhal near Badami. Malwad and Sankalia( 1956) have reported occurrence of caveknown as Shidalfadi near Badami Tbe occu­pation debris from this cave yielded microlitbsand some pottery. Besides these major findings.occurrence of Lower Palaeolithic tools havebeen reported around Badami at Shivyogmandir( Malwad and Sankalia, 1956), Nandikeshwarand Pattadakal ( Deshpande, 1956, 1958). Theregion around Badami has thus provided ampleevidence for a continuous cultural developmentfrom prehistoric to historic times. Against thisbackground, the author carried out geoarcba­eo logical investigations in the month of Dece­mber 1979 in the region around Badami, withthe aim of understanding man - land relation­ship during palaeolithic times.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS

Badami ( IS° 55 N, 75° 41' E), tbe talulheadquarters in Bijapur district, KamalalState is situated 70 miles south of the Rijapcity. The region around Badami lies in tlower reaches of the Malaprabba river,major tributary of the Krishna and is maildrained by the proper Mala prabha ri ver andtributaries namely Benni halla, Sasive halHire halJa and Sarswati halta (Fig. 1).

The river Malaprabha rises on Ibe east,slopes of the Western Ghats at an altitlof about 2500 ft in the Belgaum districtKamataka The total lengtb of tbe rivernearly 190 miles. The river generally m,tains easterly course to a distance ot 150 rrfrom tbe source tbat is upto Aihole and 1

suddenly takes a northeasterly turn 10 .

Krishna. The average gradient of the 1

from source to its conluence with Krishl4.) ft per mile. Tbe gradient of the J

however, in the valley portion around Badis about 2 ft per mile. The ri ver has thusgradient in this region aod shows characterfeatures of fully mature stream.valley of the river is quite wide and swell developed flood plains. The stfollows more or less a sinuous pathdisplays a well developed meandering pat

Geologically the region around Badacovered by the rocks of the Kaladgi ~

These are made up of quartzites, sandsconglomerates, limeslones, shales etc.Rao, 1961). The first two among thel

o ,7 S 40

Fig. l. Regiull dl<'Ulld I'~. {·I· .lo ,lInl

HillS

CAVE,

FAc ORY

5 IT \:.5

o ,75 45

172 R'). PAP!'I.

of widespread occurrence in the area understudy. The recent work by Viswanathiah( 1968) has shown that t.he quartzites andsandstones around Badami and adjoiningareas differ from the regular Kaladgi format­ions not only in lithology but also in structuraldisposition. Hence they are considered byVif>wanathiah as constituting a sepcrate groupof sediments distinct from th~ Kaladgis anddesignated as " Badami Series". The rocksof this series are perf~ctly horizontal l:xceptthe places where they show very gentle forma­tion dip of ]1) to 7°. The Kaladgis on theother hand are intricately folded on WNW-ESE axis and cross-folded with a numb.:r ofculminations and depressions resulting indouble plunging aoticlines and synclines.Rocks of both series show best developmentaround Badami. Horizontally bedded sand­stones of Badami Series which are younger inage, overlie unconformably the highly foldedKaladgis. The famous rockcut caves in thisreaion are carved out in these 11Orizontally

'"bedded sandstones. A number of naturalrockshelters and caves have also developed inthe sandstones of Badami series.' PI. I-A).Besides these formations, other geologicalformations in succession are laterite andQuaternary deposits.

Topographically the relief of land is modera Ie

and there are present a few isolated bills andridges of quartzites and sandstones. The geo­grapbic setting of the valley portion aroundBadami consisls of comparatively broad valleyincised into plateau of quartzites and sand­stones. The quartzites being harder formationsare highly resistant to weathering and appearas steep cliffs and escarpments. All the hilllslope elements namely crest, scarp, debris slopeand pediment are well developed in the regionunder study.

The region enjoys a tropical monsoonicclimate with tbe mean annual rainfall rangingbetween 50 -70 cm and bence the region is

semi-arid. The vegetation i' mostiy tbornscrub type.

MORPHOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Morphometric analysis of the region aroBadami was undertaken by using toposhee48M - 9 on the scale I inch= 1 mile. The rfiles across the Malaprabha river were dr;in N - S dir~ction along the longitude: 7st75['35/,75°40', and 75° 4)' (Fig. 2). T ese seprofiles give the general impression of the rof l.:i.1untry. The Cour profiles were plotted (singie frame with common axis to get sUiimposed profile which helps in tracingplanation surrac~s occurring ill the region.projected profile was coostructed after rening the profile portion from tbe superimp<profile whicl1 show the relief hidden belhigher elevation. The projected profiic ga panoramic view with a distance sky!midground and foreground, The comp(profile was constructed by joining higpoints from the projected profile. It reprt:sthe relief as viewed in the horizontal plamthe summit level fr m an infinite distaThe composite profile is thus the profilegreatest heights across the strip ( Fig. 3 ).

A study of these profiles has revealed tl1. The region around Badami lies bet\

tbe contours 1750 to 21 50 [t.

2. The major portion of the land SUI

( about 70% ) is confined betweenaltitudes 1750 - 1900 ft ( Fig. 4)'

3. The highlands in the form or billsridges having au elevation of more·2000 ft occupy a small portion tonorth of the Malaprabha river.

4. Two distinct planation surfaces are r<.:ed i.n the region. one at an el vationwelD 1750 -1900 ft and the other betl2000 - 2150 ft. The lower, made ulalluvial flat, pediment surface and latsurface is most conspicuous planation

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RECEN'r ClEOA RCHAEOT()(/TCA l INVESTI( iA T1())\;S i\ ROll" D BA D/\.\. T 175

face in the region. The highest surfaceis moderately dissected while tbe lowerone is undissected, flat and gently un­dulating.

FIELD STUDIES

( A ) Laterite

Extensive outcrop of laterite was observed inarea of 8 to 10 sq ml arour.d Badami town. Theexposed sections and freshly dug wells re\-ealedthat the depth of laterite varies from 50 to 70ft. However, thr complete Interite profile dis-~ laying characteristics 3 layered structure was

llt noticed during the present investigations.The laterite in this region is confined to valleyportion ( 1800-1900 ft) and not found develo­ped as capping on higher surface (2000-2150ft ).

( B ) Alluvial Formations

The field studies of the alluvial formationsin the Malaprabha river and it!> t,ibutarynalas were made at a number of places in theregion. The composite section showing alluvialformatiolls and associated valley morphologyaround Badami is ~hown in Fig. 5.

The Malaprabha river in tbis stretch haspreserved sedimentary deposits of fluvial origin.However, these deposits are poorly preserved,both in lateral extent and thickness, as compa­red to similar deposits found in the other

-fiver valleys of the peninSUla namely pravara,Jodavari, Ghod, Mula etc. Even in the sameriver valley, the upper reaches show bettejpreservation of the alluvium. The poor preservation of the alluvium in this particulaportion of the valley is mainly due to low relieof land. There are no suitable topographicdepressions for the accumulation of thealluvium.

The exposed alluvium is divisible into OlderAlluviuUI and Sub-Reeent or Younger Allu­vium. The former occurs as discontinuouspatches and is made up of pebbly or sandygravel ( Pl. 1- B) and associated kankary silts

in shades of brown colour. The YoungerAlluvium made up of non-kankary dilrk bro"... nsilt is found to be resting against th G olderdeposits and has a widespread di tribution inthe region. The river cliffs having a thickn sof 20 to 25 ft are made up of younger Allu­vium. 1n this region und.er study. thustwo alluvial fills are preserved, one made tipof Older Alluvium occurring in patches andother of consisting oJ Younger Alluvium havingwidespread distribution The top of the first fillforms distinct terrace at an elevation of :10 to35 It Irom the present bed of the river and hasweathered into black soil. The younger in­set type terrace is found to he abutting again ttit..: older one and occurs at a height of 20 to25 ft.

( C) Palaeolithic Sites

Palaeolithic sites around Baoami :lre foundin two geomorphic situations, VIZ Alluvialsites and Surface sites.

1. Alluvial Sites

These are confined to present chilnnels andoccur at an elevation. ranging between 1750­1800 ft. They are located 5 to 10 ft a bove themodern bed. A number of sites belonging tothis category namely at Katarki, Khyad, Cho­lchgud, Taminhal etc. ( Fig. l ) have providedgood evidence of Lower Palaeolithic Acheulianindustry. These sites can be designated aschannel occuption sites in semi-primary con­text as artifacts recovered from them are almostin mint condition. The cobblyjrebbly gravelat some of the sites have yi Ided tool-kitspredominated by finished tools like handaxes,cleavers, scrapers, discoids etc.

2. Surface Sites

A large number of surface sites hlcking stra­tified geological context were located in theregion, These are confined to pediment surfaceoccurring at an elevation between J800-11150 ftand are situated about 2 to 3 miles away fromthe present stream channels ( PI. II-A). The

176 R S. PAPPU

ALTIMETRIC FREG>UENCY DIAGRAM

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nI

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1750 1800 '850 1900 1950 2000 2050 2100 2150~-- H E I G H T 5 ABO V ESE ALE VEL I N FEE T~

RErFNT (irO!\l:C:ft\rnr ()(;[rI\I lNVI'ST1(;i\TlO <; AROU·m n·\I),\ 'vI!

\. I'.ro:,i'>n Surface on Kaladgis -- 1050·2100 ft.

2. Scarp.

.'. Laterik Surface-1850-1900 ft.

·1 Pediment Surface-1800-1850 ft.

:'. Older .\lluvium-1750-1800 ft.

G. Younger Alluvium.

7. Prc<;cnl Bed of Malaprabha.

l'ig. S. Composite Section showing Quaternary Formations and Associated Landforms.

(

17'i

pediment surface occurring at the foot ofKaladgi quartzite hills is v\..lecred wIth angulardetritus. The artifacts {Jf Lower Palaeollt licAcheuiian industry are found occurring in largenumber on this pediment surface, espeCially inthe foot hili regico between Katarki and KhyadviIJages. Artif<icts were, however, not found

bedded in the slope depo~its (PI. II-B).derJying the pediment surface. The tools

are also present in significant number in themodern beds of the recent nalas which Iwvc cutthrough the detritus overlying the pedimel1tsurface. These rich Acheulian sites, therefore,are essentially in sit;! OCCUI ring in relativelyundisturbed context and represent open airoccupation-cum-factory sites located on thepediment surface near the outcrop of preferredraw material. The sites are Jittered v,.iih fini­shed ( PJ I! r) and unfinished tools and alsoseveral cores, flakes and innumerable chipsindicating !;lctory debris l Pl. IV).

A large number of tools of the MidctlePalaeolithc industry were collected as surfacefinds from modern point bar channd gravels atChoIchgud, Nandike. h..var, Shivy()gmandir agdNagarhal. Mesolithic sites were located bothon the higher planation surface and also onlower laterite surface. Rock shelters anJ ::avesnear Badami also yielded tools of Mes'Jlithicindustry which were round in the occ:Jpationdeposits inside the caves and "also as surfacefinds at the entrance cf tl!l~ Cn' es

DISCUSSION

QlIuntirative analysis of landform ins helpedto tra::e two distinct phnation ~urfaces in theregion, the higher :It an elevation between 2000­2150 ft AMSL and the lovler <it au elevationbetwf'enli50-1900 It AMSL. Tll~ higher sur­face cutsacro~s tile pre-Cambrian K<.tladgirocks ill this region and the Cretaceous­Eocene Deccan Traps in the adjoining region

178 R. S. PAPPU

at the same elevation and is, therefore, of latcrTertiary age. This surf::ce seems to have deve­loped due to tectonic movement of epeirogenic

type and l:limatic changes of Tertiary period(Dihhit, 1910 ).

The laterites around Badami form a part andparcel of sII1,ilLtr lareritt:s obSl:rved in the semi­arid parts of tile Deccan Peninsula at Anag­wadi- Bagalkot in the Ghataprabha valley ll1

orth Karnatab ( Pappu and Rajguru, 1979).in the Manjra valley in central Mah~ira~htra

(Joslli et aI, 1979) at Vite, J~lth and Mirilj insoutll Mal1ar:.lslltra ( Rajaguru, personal com­munication). Tile laterites oCL:urring in tile

acljuining regi'n arollnd Anagv'adi in tbe GIl<l­taprabha valley were studied by the autlJoranphave been shown to be of primary nature. There..are no foreign rock constituents within theselataitt:s suggestive of their detrial and secon­dary nature, The pri mary nature of Ja terite isfurther confirmed at Anagwadi by the cl1emicalanalysis of the samples collected upto a depthof 30 ft from the surface. Si03 / AI,O; ratio isJess than 1 and is suggestive of strong leachingof silica and subsequent concentration ofsesqioxidcs. These observations suggest thatthe Lteritc is of groundwater type which seemsto have d veloped within the zone of fluctua­ting water t"bIe associated with gently slopingland surfaL:e ( Maignien, 1966 ).

In the absence of any datable materialsassociated with laterites, it is difficult to assignprecise age of the process of lateritisation inthe present semi-arid parts. The lateritesurface in this region occurs at an elevation of1850-1900 ft and is confined in between twosurfaces namely the higher surface at anelevation of 2000-2150 f[ and the lower surfa­ce at an elevation 1750-1850 ft rcpresentlllgthe alluvial fil! terrace dated to late Pleistoceneage on the basis or a few radiocarbon datesand geomorhic evidence in the other parts ofPeninsula ( Rajaguru, 1970 ). Field relationshipbetween morphological units namely laterite

surface and alluvial fill surfaL:e indicate tthese landform units are not separated by ~

nificant time g~lp There is a conformarelationshIp between deposits of alluvial surfand weathered products of laterite surface. "laterite outcrop in the region is. therefore, 01than the late Pleistocene alluvial surface;younger than the late Tertiary surface ofKaladgis. Thlls the early Quat mary a"ebe assigned to this laterite formation.

Occurrence of primary laterite in the !wnt semi-arid region i~ quite ignifi antunderstand ing pa lal:ocllma tic conditions.appears that laterites observed 'uggest llain 'sOlI dllnatc • - most probably in rcspcto son\cwhat more humid climate than thatpresent. The region was experiencing 3times more rainfall than the present.present studies have confirmed the hypoththat there are laterites of different age inDeccan Peninsula.

However, the problems such as genesisof laterites occurring in the rrl'sent semi-~

region, their exaet palaeoclimatic 'ignificaand precise dating are not sti 1/ satisfactcsolved. The author intends to tackle tlproblems by undertaking detailed heldlaboratory investigations of the laterite proin the present semi-arid tract in the I

future.

Two major cut and fill episodes were obselin the history of the river during late Quanary. The older fill i~ of late Pleistonceneand younger fill bclongs to Holocene perH appears that the river ha changed ils glat least two times in response to varialiordischarge sediment load rel:llionship, rproha bly caused by milder c1ima tic cha!and neo - tectonic activity during latc Qu:mary.

Acheulian man arrivcd in this region '"the laterite was under the process of degr3tion. The climate gradually became semi - a

1~i:("":"T (;EI1t\IH.H/\ OLOGI(/\L INYESTIC;/\T\O S AROU''!I) 1l/\I)\Mf 17

As mentioned earlier, Acheulian sites arefound in two geomorphic situations namelythe channel occupation siies and as surfaceoccupation - cum - fastory sites lying awayfrom the main riyfH channel on pedimentsurface. The occurrence of suitable raw mate­rial like quartzite prompted the Acheulianman to settle near the outcrop or such geolo-.gical formation. The Early man occuPied[both tbe channel and adjecent piedmont slopesof the valley pediment. The occurrence offresh tools in relatively undisturbed position

~:ndicate that the landscape in the reigon re-

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of /he Decciln. Ph.D. Unpubli,hcd Thcsis. POO'l.,

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I).:shpande. M. N. 1956. Ini/it", ,Irchacolo.':)', 1955­

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Dik~hit. K. R. 1970. Polycyclic Landscape and Ih<o

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Joshi. R. Y. 1955. PI";;/(lcc'II{' SllIdies ill Malapu l,!,,,Basill, Poona-Dharwar.

oshi. R. V. Rajagmu, S. N., Pappu, R. S. andI:ladam. G. L. J970. Quaternary Climate Changc~

in the Manjra Valle\'. Northern D<.:..:, a II. Papt'r

mained fairly static since the late Pleistocen,times.

The present investigations thus have showlthat the region around Badami was mosfavoured landform and major culture arelduring Palaeolithic times. Plateau countryopen forests, congenial semi-arid monsooni,climate, presence of rich outcrop of preferre<raw matc:rial, perennial water supply an<perhaps abundant game v.ere the main enviro­nmental factors responsible for the develop­ment of Palaeolithic cultures around Badami

prC'iCIHCd at Se("oll<l Na/iollal S,'/IIi,',rt' ,n (j,1I(l{,·,·

lIory EllvironlllclI/s held at M. S. lin;'·.'. "I' l~ar'HI.,

in Feb. 1979.

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U ES J), Paris.

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Archaeology. 1<)55-5(,. A Rev."" .,. .'-6.

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(Yl'(l/ugical SociCly of TII<Iia. 5 9-1-t)7.

o c

PJ;\lC I

Scc pagcs 170-179

. ·,r.. ~"."

'\'. -I, ..

'\. Ca\'cs around Badami.

S"" rd;!'" 170-179

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'-'PICf I'''!;lcnlilhic I)dliiagc. enr",. I alld 4. Fb~c I(). Wd,tc FI;L~CS: 7. ~ :Lm! 'I,

(hips. ~ dlld .I. W<lr~cJ f\nduks -' ;;l1d (,.

I'I:11l' III -, L"llcr P,dacolithic Tl'oh. Hand:,xc I :1I1d ' CIe"'CIY ,1 'In<1 4.

DjscoiJs ..' lind (), ('hoppers: 7 and R