Ancient India

Singh, Upinder [u.a.] (Hrsg.):
Ancient India : new research / ed. by Upinder Singh and Nayanjot Lahiri. - New Delhi [u.a.] : Oxford University Press, 2009. - 344 S.
ISBN 978-0-19-806028-4
Rs. 695,00
US$ 14,79 (Eastern Book Corp.)
US$ 15,79 (Bookshop of India)
US$ 33,40 (D.K. Agencies)
DDC: 934

Beschreibung
This volume brings together the research of young scholars on a variety of themes related to ancient and early medieval India. It showcases important trends in the reconstruction of India’s early past.
   The essays can be broadly grouped into four parts. The first part contributes significantly to our understanding of archaeology and prehistory through an exploration of the development of archaeology in Bengal; material remains of the Delhi Ridge; and human-plant interactions in the middle Gangetic plains. The next examines literary and archaeological landscapes of death through an analysis of megaliths of Vidarbha and martial heroism in Sangam literature.
   Underlining the importance of archaeology in reconstructing the history of religions, the third part carefully scrutinizes archaeological evidence to underscore the co-existence of different religious traditions in Gujarat. It also evaluates the nature and function of terracottas recovered from Mathura and Ahichchhatra. The last segment engages with textual sources to offer insights into urban behaviour in the first millennium and gender relations in early medieval Kashmir.
   The essays highlight the need to meticulously analyse archaeological data and to understand how this data is generated. They historicize texts and questions related to the correlation of literary and archaeological evidence. The introduction indicates how these essays are illustrative of important issues confronting the writing of early Indian history. [Verlagsinformation]

Inhalt
Preface
Introduction
1. Sanjukta Datta: Artefacts and antiquities in Bengal: some perspectives within an emerging non-official archaeological sphere
2. Mudit Trivedi: On the surface things appear to be....: perspectives on the archaeology of the Delhi Ridge
3. Shibani Bose: Human-plant interactions in the middle Gangetic plains: an archaeobotanical perspective (from the Mesolithic up to c. Third century BC)
4. Uthara Suvrathan: Landscapes of life and death: considering the region of Vidarbha
5. Meera Visvanathan: Of death and fertility: landscapes and heroism in ancient South India
6. Susan Verma Mishra: Religious coexistence in Gujarat: second/third century to eighth century AD
7. Shivani Agarwal: Terracottas from Mathura and Ahichchhatra: an archaeological study (400 BC to seventh/eighth century AD)
8. Shonaleeka Kaul: Pleasure and culture: reading urban behaviour through Kavya archetypes
9. Devika Rangachari: Gender relations in early medieval Kashmir.

Herausgeber
Upinder Singh is Professor, Department of History, University of Delhi. Faculty profile.
Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor, Department of History, University of Delhi. Faculty profile.

Quellen: Oxford University Press (India); Bookshop of India; Eastern Book Corp.; Vedams Books; WorldCat; D.K. Agencies.