Aayu Publications

About the Book Palaeolithic archaeology in India has provided grounds for making huge researches in recent years. In this context, Orissa played a pioneering role in the first excavation at Kuliana, Mayurbhanj(1939). Later, Prehistoric explorations conducted in various parts of Odisha from time to time have brought to light remains of Palaeolithic cultures in varied geomorphological conditions. Recent investigations in the upper segment of the middle Mahanadi valley covering Sambalpur and Bargarh Districts have brought to light extensive remains of these cultures on the piedmont areas and tributaries and sub tributaries of the River Mahanadi. The area appears to hold tremendous potential for understanding human adaptation and progressing cognitive abilities during the Pleistocene era. The book discusses the surface findings in a varied landscape in Jira valley, a tributary of Mahanadi in Bargarh district based on our research spanning many years. Around twenty-three sites yielding Acheulian and Middle Palaeolithic assemblages are found in a primary-semi primary context between two hill ranges Lohara Reserve forest and Debrigarh Reserve forest spreading over an area of 24km x 20km sq. This work can be taken as interim research promising more future work to achieve a clearer picture of the life of Hominin in Orissa.