Copper Hoards | Indian Archaeology, Chalcolithic Finds, and Metal Culture

The Indian Journal of Archaeology has given more sustained attention to the copper hoard phenomenon than to any other single topic in the corpus. Across volumes 1–10 (2016–2025), the journal has published a series of detailed catalogues, field reports, and interpretive studies establishing the typology, geographical distribution, chronology, and cultural meaning of copper hoard objects found primarily across the Upper Gangetic Plain, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh, tying them consistently to the Ochre Colour Pottery (OCP) horizon.

Key Sites

• Nigohi (District Shahjahanpur, U.P.) - largest single reported hoard in the corpus: 222 artefacts including shouldered axes, lugged axes, chisels, swords, harpoons, and 14 anthropomorphic figures; carbon dated 2328–1619 B.C.
• Hastinapur - shouldered axe and chisel purchased from site; reinforces B.B. Lal’s OCP at the lowest levels
• Hapur - multiple flat celts and ingots
• Chandausi (District Sambhal) - shouldered axes; collection of Atul Mishra
• Faridpur, Bareilly - celts and chisels
• Barood Khera (District Aligarh) - discovery of burnished OCP directly associated with copper hoard
• Baghpat / Baraut - Shahjad Rai Research Institute holds the largest institutional collection in the corpus
• Ganeshpura (District Mainpuri) - 77 weapons and anthropomorphic figures found together
• Madarpur (District Moradabad) - hoard with implements
• Bajpur (District Shahjahanpur) - hoard with weapons
• Barkot (Himalayan foothills) - lugged shouldered axes; supports Himalayan origin for that type
• Gohana (District Sonipat, Haryana) - hoard of 282 copper ring-bangles, weights in multiples of the tola unit, identified as ring currency
• Rataul (District Baghpat) - associated finds
• Gurukul Jhajjar Museum (Haryana) - institutional collection catalogued in Vol 7, No. 1

Key Findings

1. OCP–copper hoard association: The journal repeatedly establishes that copper hoard weapons are the material culture of the OCP people. The first confirmed co-occurrence was at Saipai. OCP is dated broadly to the late third and early second millennia B.C.
2. Typological diversity: The corpus distinguishes flat celts, shouldered axes, lugged shouldered axes, bar celts, harpoons (two regional types), swords, chisels, tanged scrapers, ingots, anthropomorphic figures, and ring-bangles.
3. Regional typology: Narrow-barbed harpoons with broad blades occur east of the Yamuna; triangular-barbed harpoons with small tips occur to the west. Lugged shouldered axes derive from Himalayan manufacturing traditions.
4. Carbon dates: Five AMS dates from the Nigohi hoard (Vol 7, No. 4) range 2328–1619 B.C., placing OCP copper hoards firmly in the Bronze Age.
5. Anthropomorphic figures as deity cult: Vijay Kumar’s 2022 study (Vol 7, No. 2) interprets the anthropomorphic figures as images of Skanda/Kartikeya/Murugan/Naigamesha, connecting OCP cult practice to later pan-Indian deity traditions.
6. Horned deity on harpoon: Vol 8, No. 2 identifies the engraved deity on a Nigohi harpoon as proto-Shiva, suggesting continuity with Indus-valley iconography.
7. Garuda–bird anthropomorphs: Vol 8, No. 1 traces the bird-shaped anthropomorphic copper objects to the Garuda / eagle cult among Indo-European speakers.
8. Ring currency: Vol 10, No. 3 identifies copper ring-bangles as a weight-based ring currency, with weights in multiples of the tola (11.66 g), providing the semantic origin of the term kārṣāpana (karsha weight).
9. Military organisation: The settlement-pattern study (Vol 7, No. 2) reconstructs OCP village layout and weapon-arsenal distribution as evidence of organised military capacity.