THE HARAPPAN CIVILIZATION

• Indus Valley Civilization is also known as Harappan Civilization.

• It started flourishing along with river Indus (Now in Pakistan) at around
2600 BC.
• Harappan civilization was the largest Bronze age civilization in the
world.
• As in Mesopotamia and Egypt, early civilization in India and China
emerged in river valleys
• The valleys of the Indus River valley of the River supported a
flourishing civilization that extended hundreds of miles from the
Himalayas to the coast of the Arabian Sea
 India’s First Civilization
• Archaeologists have more than a thousand settlements in the region
• Two of the major cities we are going to discuss are:
a) Harappa
b) Mohenjo-Daro
 Harappa & Mohenjo-Doro
• At its height, Harappa had 35,000 inhabitants .
• Mohenjo-Daro had perhaps 35,000 to 40,000 .
• Both cities were planned carefully .
• Most buildings were constructed of mud bricks baked in oven and
were square, forming a grid pattern.
• Public wells provided a regular supply of water for all the inhabitants.
 The Harappan Civilization
• Harappa was the first site of this civilization discovered by
archaeologists.
• It was an urban civilization. Its writing is not deciphered.
• After 1900 B.C., most of the sites were abandoned due to some
reasons.
• By 1900 B.C. major part of the civilization ended.
 Period of Harappan Civilization
• The civilization is dated between 2600 BC and 1900 BC.
• The period of the civilization is broadly divided in to three:
1. The Early Harappan culture (Before 2600 BC)
2.The Mature Harappan culture (2600-1900 BC)
3.The Late Harappan culture (After 1900 BC)
Some important sites of Harappan civilization
Kalibangan, Lothal, Rakhi Garhi, Dholavira,Rupar, Harappa,
Ganeriwala,Chanhudaro, Sutakagen Dor, Mohenjodaro, Amri, Balakot,
Kot Diji, Rangpur, Nageshwar, Ganeriwala.
 Major Developments in Harappan Archaeology
• 1875-Report of Alexander Cunningham on Harappan seal
• 1924-John Marshall announced the discovery of Harappan civilization
• 1925-Excavation began at Mohenjodaro
• 1944-R E M Wheeler became the Director General of ASI
• 1946- R E M Wheeler excavates at Harappa
• 1955-S.R.Rao begins excavation at Lothal
• 1960-B.B Lal & B.K Thaper begins excavations at Kalibangan
• 1974-M.R.Mughal begins explorations in Bahawalpur
• 1990-R.S Bisht begins excavations at Dholavira
 Early Archaeological Cultures

• There were several archaeological cultures in the region prior to the

Mature Harappan.
• These cultures were associated with distinctive pottery, evidence of
agriculture, pastoralism and some crafts.
• The settlements were small in size and had no large building.
 Subsistence strategies of the people
(Economic Life)

• Subsistence strategies of the people included hunting and gathering,

cultivation, pastoralism, and distribution.
• People relied on many plants and animals, fishing and agriculture for
their food.
• There are evidences of bones of animals which prove that people
consumed meat. Terracotta models of oxen, plough etc. show that
people relied on agriculture too.
 Different types of food available to the
people
• The Harappans ate wide range of plants and animal products,
including fish.
• Archaeologists found grain such as wheat, barley, lentils, chickpea
and sesame at the Harappan sites. In Gujarat, Millets have been
found. Rice was found rarely.
• Bones of cattle, fish, fowl(a bird), sheep, goat, buffalo, pig, deer, and
bear are found at the sites. Studies indicate that these animals were
either domesticated or hunted by the Harappan
 Agricultural Technologies of Harappans
• Agriculture was the main occupation of the Harappans.
• The prevalence of agriculture is indicated by finds of grains.
• It is very difficult to reconstruct actual agricultural practices carried out by the Harappans.
• Terracotta sculptors of the bull and their representation on the seals indicate that bull was known to them.
• From this, the archaeologists assume that the oxen were used for ploughing. Moreover, the Archaeologists
have also found terracotta models of the plough at sites in Cholistan and at Banwali (Haryana).
• Evidence of a ploughed field, associated with early Harappan levels have also found at Kalibangan (Rajasthan).
• The field had two sets of furrows at right angles to each other, suggesting that two different crops were grown
together.
• Most of the Harappan sites were located in semi-arid regions. So, to enhance agricultural produce ,they
needed facilities of irrigation. Traces of canals have been found at the Harappan site of Shortughai in
Afghanistan.
• It is also likely that water was drawn from wells was used for irrigation.
• Besides, water reservoirs found in Dholavira (Gujarat) may have been used to store water for agriculture.
• Processing of food required grinding equipment as well as vessels for mixing, blending and cooking. These
equipments were made of stone, metal and terracotta.
BRICKS BEADS AND BONES PART -2
Topics discussed in the Previous Video
• Sources to reconstruct the History of Harappan Civilization
• Geography of the Civilization
• Period of the Harappan Civilization
• Some Major Developments in Harappan Archaeology
• Subsistence strategies of the people
• Different types of food available to the people
• Agricultural Technologies of Harappans
Mohenjodaro- A Planned urban centre: Architectural features of Mohenjodaro
(Town Planning)

• The most spectacular part of Harappan structure is the large scale

town layout.
• The city of Mohenjodaro was divided into two halves i.e, the Upper
town also called Citadel and the lower city.
• Citadel- It was built on mud brick platforms. It was walled and
separated from the Lower Town.
The citadel was probably used for special public purposes.
The Lower Town was walled. Several buildings were made on the
platform that served as foundation.
Artist representation of Citadel and Lower Town at
Kalibangan
 Layout of Mohenjodaro: Architectural features of
Mohenjodaro
• Labour was mobilized at a very large scale.
(Town Planning)
• The settlement was first planned and then implemented.
• Bricks used in the buildings were uniform in size.
• The roads and streets in the lower town were laid out in a grid pattern, intersecting at right angles.
• The streets and drains were first laid out and then houses were built on the same pattern.
• The Lower Town of Mohenjodaro provides examples of residential buildings.
• Most of these were centred on a courtyard, with rooms on all sides.
• Different activities like cooking, weaving etc. were carried out in the courtyard particularly during the hot and dry seasons.
• There were no windows along the walls on the ground floor. So privacy could be maintained. The main entrance did not
provide view of courtyard and interior.
• Every house had bathroom paved with bricks which was connected through the wall to the street drains.
• In some houses remains of staircases to reach second storey or roof have been found.
• Many houses had wells which were reachable from outside for the use of outsiders.
• It is estimated that the total number of wells in Mohenjodaro was about 700.
 Drainage system of the Harappans
• One of the striking features of Harappan cities was the well planned drainage
system.
• Every house was connected to the street drains.
• The drains were made of mortar (kummayam), lime and gypsum.
• They were covered with big bricks which could be lifted easily to clean the drains.
• For sewage from the houses, pits were provided at either side of the street. Very
long drainage channels were provided at intervals with sumps for cleaning.
• In smaller settlements such as Lothal, the houses were built of mud bricks and
drains were made of burnt bricks.
• Little heaps of materials mostly sand have frequently been found alongside the
drains.
• This shows that the drains were cleaned at regular intervals.
 The Great Bath

• Size:11.8 x 7.01 x 2.43 m

• On citadel, some special buildings were built like 'The Great bath of Mohenjodaro’.
• Such buildings were used on some religious occasions or on public gatherings
• The Great Bath was a large rectangular tank surrounded by corridors on all four sides.
• There were two flights of steps on north and south leading into the tank. The tank was made
watertight by laying bricks on the edge and using mortar and gypsum.
• Rooms were made on three sides of the tank, with one room having a large well.
• The water from the tank flowed into a huge drain.
• Across the lane there was a smaller building with eight bathrooms, four at each side of a
corridor, with drains from each bathroom connecting to a drain that ran along the corridor.
 Tracking Social Differences: Strategies to find out
social differences
1. Studying Burials
• Strategies to analyse social and economic differences amongst people living within
a particular culture include study of burials.
• At burials in Harappan sites the dead were generally laid in pits.
• Some of the pits were lined by bricks.
• Some of the burials contained ornaments, pottery etc, may be a belief that these
things can be used after life.
• In some instances the dead were buried with copper mirrors.
• Jewelleries were found in both men and women burials which mean that both
men and women used ornaments.
• But in general, Harappans never believed in burying precious things with the dead.
 Tracking Social Differences: Strategies to find out
social differences
2.Studying Artefacts
• Studying artefacts is another strategy to find out social differences.
• Artefacts are divided into utilitarian and luxuries.
• Utilitarian artefacts include objects made of stone or clay. These
include querns,pottery, needles, flesh rubbers etc. and are usually
found distributed throughout settlements.
• Luxury artefacts are rare objects made of valuable materials are
generally concentrated in large settlements like Mohenjodaro and
Harappa. For Example, little pots were used as perfume bottles.
 Finding out about craft production
Raw materials required for craft production

• The variety of materials used to make beads is remarkable:

• stones like carnelian (of a beautiful red colour) jasper, crystal, and
metals like copper, bronze and gold; and shell, and terracotta or burnt
clay.
 Methods of making craft by the
Harappans
• Sometimes beads were made of two or more stones by cementing together, while
some of stone with gold caps.
• They were made in different shapes such as cylindrical, spherical, barrel-shaped, and
segmented.
• Some were decorated by painting and some had designs etched on them.
• They made bangles, ladles(a large spoon) out of shells. Special tools were used for
craft work.
• Specialized drills have been found at Chanhudaro, Lothal and more recently at
Dholavira.
• Nageshwar and Balakot were specialized centres for making shell objects.
• Chanhudaro was the centre of crafts production. It was specialist in bead-making,
shell-cutting, metal-working, seal-making and weight-making.
Beads and Weights found at different Harrapan sites
 Identifying centres of production.
How centers of production were identified by the archaeologists?
• Simply by evidences of tools, raw materials, unfinished objects,
rejects, waste materials, etc.
Strategies for procuring materials for craft
Production
• The Harappans procured materials for craft production in various ways.
• Two methods of procuring materials for craft production.
1. They established settlements in Nageshwar, Balakot and Shortughai.
2. They might have sent expeditions to areas such as the khetri region of
Rajasthan (for copper) and south India (for gold).
• Nageshwar and Balakot were areas for shell.
• Shortughai, in far-off Afghanistan, was the best source of lapis-lazuli, and
Lothal which was near sources of carnelian, and metal from Rajasthan.
• Expeditions to the khetri region and south India established communication
with local communities.
 Contact with distant lands
(Trade relation with the world)
• Archaeological finds suggest that the Harappans maintained long distance trade.
• The main source of long distance contacts includes seals, weights, dice and
beads.
• Harappans probably had trade contacts with the Oman peninsula.
• Chemical analyses have shown that both the Omani copper and Harappan
artefacts have traces of nickel, which suggests a common origin. There are
similarities between certain other types of objects found at this site.
• A Harappan jar coated with a thick layer of black clay has been found in Oman.
• Mesopotamian texts refer to contact with regions named Dilmun (probably the
island of Bahrain), Magan and Meluhaha, possibly the Harappan.
 Seals and Sealings
• Seals and Sealings were used to facilitate long distance
communication.
• When a bag of goods was sent from one place to another, its mouth
was tied with a rope.
• On the knot was affixed some wet clay on which one or more seals
were pressed, leaving an impression.
• If the bag reached with its sealing intact, it meant that it had not
been tampered with.
• The sealing established the identity of the sender.
 Characteristics of seals and script
• Harappan seals usually have a line of writing.
• Seal had the name and title of the owner.
• The seal had a motif-main theme (generally an animal) which conveyed
a meaning to those who could not read. Seals were basically used to
convey the identity of the sender and to facilitate long distance
communication.
• The Harappan inscriptions are short.
• The script was not alphabetical and written right to left.
• Many signs were used and they are around 375- 400 in numbers.
• The script still remains un deciphered to date
Indus Script
 Weights
• Exchanges were regulated by a precise system of weights usually
made of a stone called chert (a kind of stone, generally cubical with
no markings).
• Lower denominations of weights were binary (1, 2,4,8,16,32 etc.),
while the higher denominations followed the decimal system.
 Ancient Authority
Different arguments given by the Archaeologists regarding the
central authority of Harappa

There are three major views about the existence of a central authority
in the Harappan society.
1. Some archaeologists are of the opinion that there were no rulers in
the Harappan society and that everybody enjoyed equal status.
2. Others are of the opinion that there was no single ruler but several
rulers. Monenjodaro had a separate ruler, Harappa had separate
and so on.
3. Some others suggest that there was a single state. This theory was
based on the similarity of artefacts, planned settlements etc.
 The End of the Civilization
The Evidences that reflected the disappearance of Harappan
civilization by 1800 BCE
• By 1800BCE most of the mature Harappan sites were abandoned.
• The expansion of population and its migration took place towards
Gujarat, Haryana, and Western U.P
• After 1900B.C.sites which existed marked the transformation of
material culture i.e. disappearance of distinctive artefacts of civilization
like weights, seals, distant trade, Writing, long-distance trade, and craft
specialization also disappeared.
• House construction techniques deteriorated and large public structures
were no longer produced.
• This indicates a rural way of life named late Harappan.
 Several explanations for the decline of
Harappan civilization
The reasons responsible for the end of the civilization is still unknown. But
probable reasons according to Historians are-
1. Climatic Change
2. Deforestation
3. Excessive floods
4. Over use of the landscape
5. The shifting and or drying up of rivers
6. Invasion most probably by the Aryans
7. Harappan state might have ended because there are evidences of absence of
distinctive artefacts like seals, pottery, etc
 Discovering the Harappan Civilization Cunningham and
his Confusions
• Cunningham was the first Director General of ASI (Archaeological Survey of India).
• He was known as the father of Indian archaeology.
• He began archaeological excavations in the mid 19th century.
• His main interest was in the archaeology of early history from 6th century BCE-4th century CE, and later periods.
• He used the accounts left by Chinese pilgrims who had visited the subcontinent between the 4th and 7th centuries CE
• He also collected, documented and translated inscriptions found during his surveys.
• Site like Harappa did not fit well in his area of investigation.
• Although Harappan artefacts were found during the 19th century and some of these reached Cunningham.
• But he did not realize how old these were as they were not part of the itinerary of Chinese pilgrims and was not known as
an Early Historic city.
• An English man gave a Harappan seal to Cunningham.
• But he was unable to place it in the time frame with which he was familiar. He thought that Indian history began with the
first cities in the Ganga valley.
• So, it is assumed that he missed the significance of Harappa.
 Different methods adopted by Marshall and Wheeler in
reconstructing Harappan civilization
• Daya Ram Sahni and Rakhal Das Banerji found similar seals at Harappa and Mohenjodaro
respectively.
• Based on these finds, in 1924, John Marshall, Director General of the ASI, announced the
discovery of a new civilization in the Indus valley to the world.
• Marshall tended to excavate along regular horizontal units, measured uniformly
throughout the mound, ignoring stratigraphy of the site.
• This meant that all the artefacts recovered from the same unit were grouped together,
even if they were found at different stratigraphic layers.
• As a result, valuable information about the context of these finds was irretrievably lost.
• R.E.M Wheeler rectified this problem. He recognized that it was necessary to follow the
stratigraphy of the mound rather than dig mechanically along uniform horizontal lines.
 Problems faced by Archaeologists in the
interpretation of religious practices of Harappa
• The problems of archaeological interpretation are perhaps most evident in attempts to reconstruct
religious practices.
• Attempts have also been made to reconstruct religious beliefs and practices by examining seals, some of
which seem to depict ritual scenes. Others, with plant motifs, are thought to indicate nature worship.
• Many reconstructions of Harappan religion are made on the assumption that later traditions provide
parallels with earlier ones. This is because archaeologists often move from the known to the unknown,
that is, from the present to the past. The discovery of pots, querns, beads etc in the Harappan sites and
their graves provide enormous information.
• Traces of cotton and dresses depicted on seals and sculptures, give us an idea about the dressing style of
the Harappan people.
• The terracotta figurines of women indicate the worship of mother goddess.
• Plant motifs seem to suggest the practice of nature worship.
• The conical stones indicate linga worship
Archaeologist’s attempts to reconstruct the
religious practices of Harappan people
• In Some seals a figure shown seated cross legged in a ‘yogic’ posture,
sometimes surrounded by animals has been regarded as a depiction
of proto-Siva that is an early form of one of the major deities of
Hinduism.
• Some animals such as the unicorn depicted on seals seem to be
mythical, composite creatures.
• The two important structures that have been found by archaeologists
are: 1.The fire altars found at Kalibangan and Lothal 2.The Great Bath
at Monhenjodaro, something meant for ritual use.