1. He was a British geologist and archaeologist who conducted geological surveys
of prehistoric locations in India
2. he discovered the first conclusive Paleolithic stone tool (a hand axe) in India. He
found the tool in southern India (Pallavaram, near Madras).
3. He went on to discover more such tools and settlements in Southern and
Western India. He is considered the “Father of Indian Prehistory”.
4. Discovery of hand axe was an epochal event. It was a hand-axe made of a hard
rock called quartzite. He recognised it as a Palaeolithic tool. His discovery changed
the antiquity of humankind who lived in the Indian subcontinent. It put India on
the world map of prehistory
5. He found numerous stone tools, including hand-axes, cleavers and flake tools, at
Attirampakkam, near the Kortallayar river, in Tiruvallur district
6. Prehistoric man had used them to hunt animals gathering around waterholes and
exploit plant and aquatic resources.
7. Foote not only discovered stone tools but also classified, catalogued and
described them systematically.He tried to understand the technology that went
into their making.
8. He studied whether the tool was made of quartzite, agate, chalcedony or chert (a
form of microcrystallite quartz), whether it belonged to Palaeolithic, Neolithic or
Iron Age,he painted a holistic picture of every discovery he made
9. Foote was also the first to discover tiny tools called microliths in the Tirunelveli
10. He is among the foremost intellectuals of the 19 century