LEKHANIA SHELTERS
24.625000,83.008300
Description
Rock shelters in sandstone, which contain rock art painted in diverse styles, themes, colours and techniques, and which yielded archaeological findings, have been found on the southern scarp of the Kaimur range in »perhaps the finest bit of scenery in the Mirzapur district« (COCKBURN, J 1899), which overlooks the »Tuppeh Chourasi« (Tapah Chowrasi, cowherd's mound) in the Son valley. SITUATION: Somewhere in the vicinity of a place which has been referred to not only Lekhania but also Leckunia, Lekhahia, Lekhaia, Lekhaniya, Lekhunia, Lickunia, Likhunia and Likunia (note 1). SITUATION 1974: At a linear distance of 65 km south-south-east of Mirzapur (note 2) (SANKALIA, H D 1974). SITUATION 1958: In the vicinity of one Shahganj (note 5), near »the Bainsaur settlements« (note 4), and at a distance of 7.5 km south-east of Rajpur (note 3) (Sharma, G R in: Indian Archaeology: A Review [IAR] 1956 - 1957 / 1958: 13-14). At a linear distance of about 7.5 km south-east from Rajpur (24°41'N: 82°58'E) the height (note 6) »1446« (441 m asl) is indicated near 24°37'30”N: 83°00'30”E on AMS sheet NG44-16 Garwa (U502 series, 1962 edition). SITUATION 1970: The »Lekhaniya« shelters are unexpectedly located »on the Chandraprabha river« (PANDEYA 1970: 150) when about everybody else has the Lekhania shelters (or so) overlooking the Son valley. ROCK ART: COCKBURN, J (1883b: 126) reports from »Leckunia« paintings depicting 1) the figure of a man strangling a python, 2) five human figures apparently dancing, 3) a man throwing a »wonguim« or »come-back boomerang«, 4) a bull bison, 5) a savage spearing a sambhar hind (deer, Cervus unicolor) with a nine barbed spear, etc. SMITH, V C (1899 in: COCKBURN, J 1899: 95 note 1 on figure 3, plate opposite page 89) knew »from Likhunia Cave« a »man spearing hind with stone spear …« VERMA (1984: 207) introduces the spelling »Lekhunia« and opines »The subject matter … always centres round animals (deer, sambhar, chital, cincara, rhinocerus, boar, bison, horses, elephants and human beings). They have been shown in their natural attitude or form a part of hunting scenes.« IMAM, Balu (2001) associates what he calls the »Satpahar Shelter 1« on the Hazaribagh Plateau in Jharkhand state) with a picture showing a »bison in the X-ray syle, and deer painted in an almost identical style to the Likhanya [sic!] rock art of the Kaimur range of Mirzapur« (international.icomos.org/risk/2001/indi2001.htm accessed 2007.11.24). ARCHAEOLOGY 1958: »Upper Palaeolithic-like« stone tool industry »displaying a tendency toward microlithization« which is »known in and around the painted rock shelters at Basauli and Lekhania, both in the Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh« (MURTY, M L K & REDDY, K. Thimma 1976: 224 after SHARMA, G R (1958: 11, 14-15, plate VIII). ARCHAEOLOGY 1985: »Charcoals in two samples from burial in rock shelter were studied and identified: charcoals in TF-340 as of Anogeissus pendula and Lagerstoemia flos-reginae, and thos of TF-342 as of Callicarpa lanata« (Indian Archaeology: A Review [IAR] 1982-83 / 1985: 149).ARCHAEOLOGY 1993: »The Lekhania rock shelters contained a number of burials, and they are associated with further sites, nearby in the open, which are apparently contemporary. A bone sample from one of the skeletons gave a C14 date of 1710 B.C. [note 7]. The stone industry shows certain sequential changes and developments in each case, the tools becoming smaller, more delicately made and more varied in the upper layers. Pottery also makes its appearance at a certain point, and becomes more frequent towards the top« (ALLCHIN & ALLCHIN 1993: 82).
NOTE 1: John COCKBURN (1883b, 1883c, 1899), who was probably much supported by his editors, introduced no less than four different spellings during his while it took a century of work by archaeologists to double this number: Leckunia COCKBURN, J (1883b: 126); Lekhahia SHARMA, G R (Indian Archaeology: A review [IAR] 1963 - 1964 / 1967: 51); Lekhaia GOSH, A K (1989); Lekhania ALLCHIN, B & ALLCHIN, F R (1993: 82); Indian Archaeology: A Review 1982-83 (1985: 149); MURTY, M L K & REDDY, K Thimma (1976: 224) Lekhaniya PANDEYA, R G (1970 published 1972); Lekhunia VERMA, R K (1984: 207); Lickunia COCKBURN, J (1883c: 62, plate viii.D); Likhanya IMAM, Balu (2001) international.icomos.org/risk/2001/indi2001.htm (accessed 2007.11.24);Likhunia COCKBURN, J (1899: 92-93); SMITH, V C (1899, in: COCKBURN, J 1899: 95); Likunia COCKBURN, J (1883c: 62, plate VIII illustration D). NOTE 2: Mirzapur 25°09'N: 82°35'E on AMS sheet NG44-12 Banaras (U502 series, 1961 edition) and India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 40 B5). NOTE 3: »Rajpur« (GOSH 1957: 13-14, 1967: 39) is probably the Rajpur (between the Son Valley in the south and the Belan valley in the north) shown near 24°41'N: 82°58'E on AMS sheet NG44-16 Garwa (U502 series, 1962 edition) but not on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 57 G1) at linear distances of about 10 km in a direct line north by west of Robertsganj (24°42'N: 83°04'E) and 4 km SSE from Shahganj (24°42'30”N: 82°57'E). NOTE 4: These »Bainsaur settlements« (GOSH 1957: 13-14, 1967: 39) are remininscent of »Bainswara / Bainshod« (ALLCHIN, B 1958: 153) and »Beinsor / Bainsaur« (VERMA 1964) on the Madhya Pradesh (Rewa district) - Uttar Pradesh (Allahabad district / Mirzapur district) border, which is indicated as »Bainsaur« near 24°47'N: 82°07'N on the Survey of India sheet 63L (edition 1984) and on AMS sheet NG44-15 Rewa (U502 series, 1959 edition). NOTE 5: »Shahganj« (GOSH 1957: 13-14, 1967: 39) near 24°41'N: 82°57'E (AMS sheet NG44-16 Garwa (U502 series, 1962 edition) but not shown in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 57 G1) at linear distances of about 9 km due west of Robertsganj (24°42'N: 83°04'E) and 4 km NNW from Rajpur (24°41'N: 82°58'E). NOTE 6: The anonymous height »1446« (441 m) near 24°37'30”N: 83°00'30”E, AMS sheet NG44-16 Garwa, U502 series, 1962 edition) is, perhaps, the »Tuppeh Chourasi« (COCKBURN, J 1899) or Tapah Chowrasi (cowherd's mound). NOTE 7: AGRAWAL, D P & KUSUMGAR, S (1974: Prehistoric Chronology) and POSSEHL (1988: 185) give radiocarbon datings.
Documents
Bibliography 08/04/2016- Agrawal, Dharma Pal 1982, 1985; Allchin, Bridget & Allchin, F Raymond 1968, 1990, 1993; Cockburn, John 1883b, 1883c, 1899; Indian Archaeological Review [IAR] 1956-57 / 58,1963-64 / 1967, 1982-83 / 1985; Gosh, A K 1967; Gosh, M R 1932; Lukacs, J R & Misra, Virendra Nath 1997; Mishra, Virendra Nath 1977; Pandeya, R G 1979; Prehistoric Chronology (1974 edited by Agrawal, Dharma Pal & Kusumgar); Sankalia, Hasmukh Dhirajlal 1962, 1974; Sharma, G R 1958; Sharma, G R 1964 (in: Misra, Virendra Nath & Mate, M S 1964 editor: Indian Prehistory); Smith, Vincent Arthur 1899 in Cockburn, John 1899; Verma, Radha Kant 1984.
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | KANDAKOT SHELTERS | ||
| 8.1 | ROUP SHELTER | ||
| 8.8 | GHAT CAVE | ||
| 8.8 | PANCHMUKHI SHELTER | ||
| 8.8 | SYMBOL CAVE | ||
| 10.2 | SORHOW CAVE / SORHOW GHAT CAVE | ||
| 10.2 | LOHRI CAVE | ||
| 16.7 | Murkha-ka-Dari | ||
| 18.8 | SAREWA (Cave at) |