Ancient Rock Art Site Rediscovered in Southern India

KUPGAL HILL, INDIA, March 19, 2004: A rock art site dating back to the Neolithic or late Stone Age has been rediscovered in southern India. There is evidence that the site was first found in 1892 but the exact location was lost to future archaeologists. The Kupgal Hill site, according to the article, has boulders which have small, groove-like impressions called "musical stones" by locals. When struck with small granite rocks, these impressions emit deep, "gong-like notes." These boulders may have been an important part of formalized rituals by the people who came there. Researchers believe that shamen or young males came to Kupgal Hill to "tap into" the power of the site. Dr. Nicole Boivin from the University of Cambridge in the UK has written a book called "The Antiquity," and in this book she explains that in some cultures percussion plays a role in rituals that are intended for shamen to communicate with the supernatural world. At the Kupgal Hill site Dr. Boivin observed that the motifs on the rocks are of cattle and some human-like figures either on their own or with the cattle. Dr. Boivin is concerned about modern day commercial granite quarrying in the area.

~ from the BBC News site at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3520384.stm