Samipya 1991 Vol 08 Ank 01 02

Author(s): Pravinchandra C Parikh, Bhartiben Shelat
Publisher: Bholabhai Jeshingbhai Adhyayan Sanshodhan Vidyabhavan

Page 4

tion of animals was undertaken, and agriculture also was practiced during the period of the over-lap.
The first villages came into existence. Their study indicates the presence of a few huts scattered in some groups as well as existing near each other. The area: occupied by these huts does not exceed 100 x 100 meters and if the calculations of the population be made, it could be noted that it might not be more than a few hundred souls. The larger habitations also indicate a range of about 500 meters, Much larger settlements are still to be traced. With this size and some reliance on non-agricultural activities their population size might be around some thousand souls. Though, this number does not seem very high as compared to the present, it was much, compared to the earlier period. Agricultural base and industrial development seem to be the reason of the growth of population. But archaeology indicates that the sites occupied by this population were abandoned, indicating the search for reasons of the break in development..
The reasons of this shist are not properly known. The hiatus in the stratigraphic record is a challenge to the archaeology, but the ceramic traditions of a few varieties like the black-and-red were, crude gritty ware continued in some parts. At different sites they indicate continuity and change, one does not know the reasons of this hiatus and some continuity. As the sites do not give evidence of human causes for destruction natural causes are assumed. Further work is essential to solve this riddle,
As indicated above, the population with the ceramic traditions of the early period and change in the tool-technology, that is, the knowledge of iron smelting seem to have led to the growth of other settlements, Some of them begin on the old sito. some near them and some are new settlements. It is to be noted that the evidence of these early-Iron-age-sites have suffered. They are not explored to the extent that they deserve, so a skew-view about the abundance of the former and paucity of the latter generates. Giving due emphasis to this accident of research one gets an impression of existance of more cities during this period as compared to the earlier one. Their area also is a little more as could be seen at Nagara, Somnath, Kamrej and other sites. From this period, development of settlements present different pictures. At places like Bharuch, the development is well marked, that at Timbarva it collapsed after development. Nagara indicates simiar features, but here the collapse is partial, and, therefore, these early settlements suggest that the development of population is not linear, but irregular. The technological growth is to be inferred from the use of more iron and its smelting sites of a little later period indicates growth of these industrial complexes, that existed for some time and disappeared later on from the site under study. The trend is that of development of villages and towns or the Janapadas, that began in the earlier period, has expanded. Now the towns of larger dimensions but not much larger than a square kilometer are seen. The famous cities in this region in the period prior to about 1000 A.D. are smaller as compared to the present but larger in comparision to the preceeding one are noted. Smaller settle.
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[ Sāmipya : April, '91-March, 1992