Archaeology & Prehistory
Baghor I: a possible Upper Palaeolithic shrine
c. 9000-8000 BCEUpper Palaeolithic communityBaghor I, Son valley (Madhya Pradesh)Madhya Pradesh
9,000 BCE
A naturally banded triangular stone set on a rubble platform, resembling stones still worshipped locally as the goddess.
- Dated
- 9,000–8,000 BCE
- As scholars put it
- c. 9000-8000 BCE
- Originator
- Upper Palaeolithic community
- Source text
- Baghor I, Son valley (Madhya Pradesh)
- Region
- Madhya Pradesh
- Discipline
- Archaeology & Prehistory
- Evidence
- Plausible precursor
- Confidence
- Low
- Verification
- Reference-cited
Meanwhile in the West
Would rank among the oldest proposed ritual structures anywhere.
Fair to say
The 'shrine' reading is interpretive; continuity with modern worship cannot be proven.
Path to modern innovation
A tantalising link between prehistoric and living ritual.
Transmission
Possible continuity with living folk worship.
References
- 1Kenoyer, Clark, Pal & Sharma, Antiquity (1983)
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-209 on GitHub.