Hands in Chhattisgarh Rock Art

The long persistence of ancient traditions in India, with the continuance of ritual practices in painted shelters, including handprints, enables us to better understand some of the reasons that may have prompted the authors of handprints in the rock art of the region under study.Among the sixty-four...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAdoranten pp. 88 - 109
Main Authors Dubey-Pathak, Meenakshi, Clottes, Jean
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Tanumshede Scandinavian Society for Prehistoric Art 01.01.2021
Subjects
Archaeology
Fingers & toes
Hands
Petroglyphs
Symbolism
Chhattisgarh India
India
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Summary:The long persistence of ancient traditions in India, with the continuance of ritual practices in painted shelters, including handprints, enables us to better understand some of the reasons that may have prompted the authors of handprints in the rock art of the region under study.Among the sixty-four rock art sites known in the State of Chhattisgarh (India), 750 handprints can be seen on their walls. In seven cases the hands are negative (stencils).Handprints may also be found in villages on the walls of houses. They are thought to establish a direct relationship between this world and the next. They are perceived by local people as a protection, not as a signature or a casual gesture. Footprints on rock art walls, occasionally associated with handprints, are more rare and have different meanings according to the places where they were made.If handprint representations are common the world over, in India, and particularly in the region under study, age-old traditions of handprint making are still alive in many places. In certain parts of the State, auspicious prints made on the walls at the house entrance and sometimes on the wall inside the house represent the hands of Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth.
ISSN:0349-8808
0349-8808