Petroglyphs, Pictographs & Prehistoric Expressions | Palaeolithic to Historical Period
Rock art is a form of landscape art that includes designs that have been placed on boulder and cliff faces, cave walls and ceilings, and on the ground surface. Petroglyphs are rock carvings (rock paintings are called pictographs) made by pecking directly on the rock surface using a stone chisel and a hammerstone. Telangana, with its rugged terrain of granite and sandstone outcrops, preserves an extraordinarily rich corpus of prehistoric rock art spanning from the Upper Palaeolithic to the medieval period.
Dating of Rock Art: Methodological Framework
The thematic content in the rock art of Telangana mainly consists of animal figures such as deer species, humped bull (Bos indicus), hare, rabbit, mangoose, porcupine, dog, tiger, and birds such as peacock, human and anthropomorphic figures, hand prints and geometric figures. The thematic content is useful for understanding chronological position.
If two paintings are superimposed, the one in the lowest position is earlier than the painting superimposing it. The state of preservation of the superimposed painting can indicate relative age – faded paintings are older than fresh ones. If thematic content also varies, relative antiquity can be safely identified.
When paintings in a rock shelter are exposed to nature uniformly, their preservation must also be uniform. If some figures are fresh and some faded, this indicates relative age.
Hunting‑gathering economy: only red colour. Food‑producing economy: red (majority), occasionally white. Metal‑using culture: white, red and black in that order of preference.
Circumstantial archaeological evidence from the surface, in and around rock shelters, is useful as corroborative evidence to classification based on themes, colour, preservation, and superimpositions.
Chronological Phases of Rock Art in Telangana
Deer and associated human figures. All animal figures are of wild life and none domesticated. Human figures are shown in isolation, never as hunter. Deer figures are drawn naturalistically. All paintings are in red colour. No petroglyphs are found in this phase. Paintings of deer figures occur in the earliest phase; besides deer, other wild animals such as hare, rabbit, mangoose, porcupine, birds, human and anthropomorphic figures occupy the next place. Animals are painted realistically and often at higher reaches of the rock shelter wall.
Humped bull figures and associated schematic deer figures. In the humped bull paintings phase there are no wild animals; where they occur they are schematic or stylised but never realistic as in the first phase. Domestication of animals such as bull and dog. Petroglyphs make their appearance in which humped bull figures predominate. Anthropomorphic figures are less in number compared to the previous phase, along with geometric symbols. Human figures with bows and arrows appear in this phase.
The horse and horse riding and fighting human figures with swords and shields, bow and arrow indicate the emergence of iron tool technology associated with huge burial monuments of the megalithic. This iron age art is almost exclusively petroglyphic in content. Horses, iron tools of offensive nature such as swords, lances, shields, bows and arrows, human figures brandishing these weapons, in praying posture before geometric symbol. Both petroglyphs and pictographs display these themes. Colours used: white, red and black in that order of preference. Narrative scenes are the characteristic feature of this phase.
Horses, elephants, warriors, humans riding animals, painted inscriptions, religious symbols. Animal figures as well as human and anthropomorphic figures are very schematic. In the advanced phase of historical paintings scenes of Mahabharata, Brahmi and Kannada inscriptions occur.
Previously Known Rock Art Sites (17 Sites)
Bollavaram, Dupadugattu, Dongala gattu tanda, Jupalle Mudumula, Sanganonipalli
Edthanur, Sivaru, Ramachandrapuram, Wargal
Budigapalli, Regonda, Rekonda, Ramagundam
Ramachandrapuram
Kokapet
Pandavula gutta
Palaeolithic Stone Age Rock Art (c. 50,000 BCE – 12,500 BCE)
Palaeolithic rock art paintings have been found at these sites.
A huge boulder in the shape of a heart was found on the north bank of Bayati Cheruvu (Anapota Samudram) inside the West gate of Rachakona Fort. A tool, chiselled in black basalt stone, seems to have been used as a hand axe and chopper by nomadic people. The age of such tool users in Telugu states is 50,000 BCE to 12,500 BCE.
In a rare discovery, historians uncovered rock art believed to have originated in the Palaeolithic age at the feet of Ontigundu in limestone hills near a place of worship of the Naikpods (an Adivasi community). The site also has certain rock art with white‑coloured edges. According to Haragopal, the Ontigundu findings hail from mid‑Palaeolithic to late‑upper Palaeolithic age.
Rock art comprises images of tigers, human shapes, and wild animals. ‘A man hunting the tiger’ is a distinctive image not found elsewhere in Telangana. Discovered by New Telangana History Group (NTHG).
Mesolithic Middle Stone Age Rock Art (c. 10,000 BCE – 4,000 BCE)
Exclusive mesolithic rock art sites.
Mesolithic rock paintings occur along with rock paintings of other culture phases.
A prehistoric rock shelter with rock paintings from the Mesolithic age, megalithic burials and microliths. Microliths (stone tools) from the Mesolithic period were found. Cairns, cists and a menhir (Megalithic burials) were also found. The hillock has many red ochre colour paintings on the inner side. A human figure standing behind four bison was drawn using an X pattern, similar to the petroglyph of a man with a weapon at Regonda.
Prehistoric rock painting of animals and men. Mesolithic stone tools and Neolithic grooves in close proximity. A full figure of a lady carrying something on her head (early historic period) and two human couples in erotic postures (medieval, 15th‑16th centuries) indicate the shelter continued to be habitable from Mesolithic to medieval times.
Estimated to be at least 10,000 years old, this rock art has paintings of two snakes, three tortoises, human figures and grass. Found by A Karunakar and Joel of the KTCB.
Rock art sites located atop hillocks.
A neolithic rock art site located close to the base of the hillock (unusual, as most are atop hillocks).
Inside a cave at the base of a hillock, paintings of a tiger and other figures were discovered.
Pre‑historic rock paintings belonging to the Mesolithic period discovered on the banks of the Krishna river (Telangana side). A 2,000‑year‑old port was also found near the fort. These are rare rock paintings, similar to those in Hastalpur. Some paintings of bulls with horns and reproductive organs could be from the Chalcolithic age (3500‑1700 BC).
Neolithic & Copper Age (Chalcolithic) Rock Art (c. 4000 BCE – 1750 BCE)
Neolithic rock art characterised by humped bull, the hallmark of neolithic art (both petroglyphic and pictographic) of South India. A humped bull is very realistically drawn in flat wash along with geometric symbols and human figures datable to succeeding culture periods.
Neolithic rock art with humped bulls.
Copper Age rock paintings discovered by Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam (KTCB). Images of a leopard opposite a bow‑clad hunter, a deer with long horns, and a long‑tailed animal. Similar to rock art in Kokapet, Ranga Reddy district. Dozens of dolmens (Iron Age burial sites) in damaged state were also found on Gajjelonigutta near Nandipet.
A rock bruising of a bull dating back to the early phase of the Neolithic period discovered during a survey for developing the hill as a spiritual centre.
Two neolithic celts (small axes) discovered on the floor of a natural shelter. Axes measure 12.0x7.2x2.1 cm and 9.2x3.9x2.2 cm.
New prehistoric rock art site inside a cave at 240 metres altitude. Depicts a large tiger‑like animal, a stag with antlers, a small mouse deer‑like animal, a hunting scene, and two humans standing beside each other. Pre‑neolithic period, a rare kind among sites found.
Neolithic era rock art atop ‘Sithari Gattu Maisamma Gutta’. Nine designs painted on a huge boulder (Padigerayi) covering 6 ft x 10 ft. Each pattern has inner circles and ray‑like designs. Locals from Tenugu (Mudiraju) community worship the rock art as deity ‘Maisamma’.
Megalithic Iron Age Rock Art (c. 1200 BCE – 300 BCE)
Dozens of dolmens (burial sites) in damaged state belonging to Iron Age.
Prehistoric paintings identified by KTCB – lizard and anthropomorphic images comparable to those in Ontigundu. Scorpion, circles, triangles, vertical and horizontal lines, a human figure with raised arms, two dogs. Rock art expert Bandi Muralidhar Reddy opined the paintings belong to the megalithic era.
Expansion of Known Rock Art Sites (2014 – Present)
- Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam (KTCB) – Exploration reports and field studies.
- New Telangana History Group (NTHG) – Discoveries at Medikonda, Fakkeeroni mitta, and other sites.
- Bandi Muralidhar Reddy, Rock Art Society of India (RASI).
- Sriramoju Haragopal, Convener of Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam.
- E. Sivanagi Reddy, archaeologist – Neolithic celts discovery at BNR Hills.
- Kondaveeti Gopi & K. Gnaneshwar – Ontigundu Palaeolithic findings.
- The Hindu – Reports on megalithic burials and rock art discoveries (various dates).
- New Indian Express – Coverage of Pullur Banda, Medak, and Siddipet excavations.
The rock art of Telangana, from the Palaeolithic hand axes to the vivid Mesolithic deer and Iron Age war scenes, offers an unbroken visual chronicle of human adaptation, belief, and creativity over 50,000 years. The dramatic increase from 18 to over 60 documented shelters since 2014 underscores the immense potential for future discoveries.