Evidence of the domestication of animals (sheep and goat) in the Mesolithic period has been found at which site in Rajasthan?

Bagor, on the Kothari river in the Bhilwara district of Rajasthan, has provided some of the earliest evidence of the domestication of animals in India, from the Mesolithic period.

About Bagor:

It is one of the largest and best-documented Mesolithic sites in India.

It was excavated by V. N. Misra of the Deccan College, Pune, from 1967 to 1977.

It is located on a sand dune near the river.

It shows three phases of occupation:

• Phase I (Mesolithic): microliths, and bones of wild and domestic animals.
• Phase II: pottery and copper objects appear.
• Phase III: iron and later pottery.

Evidence of domestication:

• Bones of sheep and goat found in the earliest phase suggest that these animals were domesticated, possibly around 5000 BCE or earlier.
• Bones of wild animals, such as deer, wild boar, and others, show that hunting continued.

Other finds:

• Huge numbers of microliths, made of quartz and chert.
• Circular huts with floors paved with stones.
• Burials in which the dead were laid out with grave goods.

Mesolithic sites with evidence of domestication:

Bagor (Rajasthan) and Adamgarh (Madhya Pradesh) are often cited for the earliest domestication of animals in India.

Changes in the Mesolithic period:

• Warmer climate after the last Ice Age.
• More grasslands and animals.
• Smaller tools (microliths).
• Beginnings of animal domestication and plant collection, which led to farming in the Neolithic.

About the Kothari river:

It is a tributary of the Banas, which joins the Chambal.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Chopani Mando (Uttar Pradesh) is a Mesolithic site in the Belan region with early pottery.
• ✗Bhimbetka is famous for its rock paintings.
• ✗Langhnaj (Gujarat) is a Mesolithic site with burials and microliths.