RAS question
Which type of pottery is the hallmark of the Ahar-Banas culture?
Correct answer: (D) Black and Red Ware.
Black and Red Ware is the hallmark pottery associated with the Ahar-Banas Chalcolithic culture of south-eastern Rajasthan.
Explanation
Black and Red Ware identifies the Ahar-Banas Chalcolithic culture because pottery is one of the main ways this culture is archaeologically distinguished. This ware was made by an inverted firing technique and is found at Ahar, Gilund, Balathal and other Banas-culture sites. e-PG Pathshala, INFLIBNET treats Ahar-Banas as a Chalcolithic culture of south-eastern Rajasthan and describes its ceramic range: the fine wares include Tan Ware, Thin Red Ware and the ubiquitous Black and Red Ware. Many Black and Red Ware vessels were straight-sided, included shallow and deep bowls, and were painted with geometric motifs.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Northern Black Polished Ware belongs to the Gangetic plains and the Mauryan period, so it does not mark the Chalcolithic Ahar-Banas culture.
- (B) Painted Grey Ware is associated with the later Vedic period, whereas the Ahar-Banas question is about a Chalcolithic ceramic marker.
- (C) Ochre Coloured Pottery is linked with the Ganga-Yamuna doab, not with the Banas valley sites named here.
Concept
This tests the material-culture identification of Rajasthan's Chalcolithic communities, especially how pottery types are used to distinguish archaeological cultures. It recurs in RAS because Ahar-Banas links Rajasthan geography, protohistory and art-culture evidence in one compact fact.