Chapter 3

From Gathering to Growing Food

Verities of Food The beginnings of farming and herding A new way of life‘Storing Animals’Finding out about the first farmers and

herders Towards a settled lifeWhat about other customs and practices A closer look (a) Living and dying in

MehrgarhA closer look (b)Daojali Hading

In this leson we study the following:

Varieties of Food

Plants that are grown

Animals that are reared

Different Plants Different Conditions

Needs More

Less water

Different Animals prefer different environment

Sheep and goat can survive in dry hill

Cattle need grass lands to survive

Edible plants were

found

Seeds broke off stalks fell

on the ground

New plants

sprouted from them

People protected the plants from birds & animals

Plants were

grown and seeds ripened

The Beginnings of Farming and Herding

How people became farmers

Animals were

tamed

First animal to be tamed was wild ancestor of dog

Other animals

were encouraged to come

near camps

Sheep, goat,

cattle and pigs ate

grass and came near the camps

People protected

these animals

from attacks

The Beginnings of Farming and Herding

How people became herders

People planted

seeds and noticed that it takes some time to grow

They stayed in the same place for a long time

They looked after the plants,

watering, weeding,

driving away animals and

birds till grains

ripened

Grain had to be stored for

food and seed

They began making large clay pots and wove baskets or dug pits

into the ground

A New Way of Life

Storing Grains

Earthen or clay jars and pots

People wove baskets to store

grains

Dug pits in to the ground to store grains

Storing Animals People took care of

animals

Because they provided

Towards a settled lifePit houses in Burzahom, Kashmir

Steps lead the people into them

Provided shelter in cold weather

Cooking hearths inside and outside the huts were found. People cooked both indoor and outdoor

Neolithic Implements of Stone, Flint and Horn

TOOLS

1. They were polished to give a fine cutting edge

Characters of Neolithic Tools and Weapons and implements

Mortars and pestles were used for grinding grain

Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found, sometimes

decorated that were used for storing things

Pots were used for cooking food, like rice , wheat and lentils

They began weaving cloth by using different kinds of materials

Towards a settled life

What about other customs and practices?

Many of these farers and herders lived in groups called Tribes and followed certain practices that

may have existed earlier

Mehrgarh- Located in a fertile plain near the Bolan Pass which is one of the most important routes into Iran.

It is one of the earliest villages that we know about.

One of the places where women and men learnt to grow barley and wheat and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area.

Bones of animals like deer, pig, sheep, goat, cattle were found.

A Closer Look- Living and Dying in Mehrgarh

Houses in Mehrgarh

Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh.

In some cases the dead person was buried with goats and sheep which meant to serve as food in the next world.

Burial Sites in Mehrgarh

It’s a site on the hills near Brahmaputra Valley close to routes leading to China and Myanmar.

A Closer Look- Daojali Hading

Have been found here

Jadeite is a stone that may have been brought from China, has been found here

Our ape like ancestors had to face many challenges from the climate, wild animals and from other human groups; they gradually transferred from nomads to hunters to herders to cultivators and to present Modern Man.

Prehistory is the period of history before the invention of writing.

Palaeolithic age is also called Old Stone Age, in this age people used to live like nomads. They lived in small hunting and gathering groups.

Points to Remember

People developed a spoken language, invented clothing and used rocky overhangs and caves as shelter. They also learned to build fires for warmth, cooking and light.

In Neolithic period people learned farming and settled themselves in permanent villages. They also learned to domesticate animals.

Neolithic agriculture revolution was the change from nomadic to farming life, this led to the development of the civilization. Uses of grains as food lessened the dependence on animals. Grains were used as seeds to grow further crops.

Points to Remember