Indus Valley Civilization

● Period (I): Early Harappa culture - Before 2600 BCE
● Period (II): Mature Harappa culture-2600BCE to 1900 BCE (III) Late Harappa culture -
After
● 1900 BCE Extent of
● Harappan Civilisation: -
● • Northern boundary - Manda Southern Boundary-Daimabad
● • Eastern boundary- Alamgirpur Western boundary-Sutkagendor Characteristics of the
● Harappan
● Civilisation: -
● Two Sections:
● (I) The Citadel
● (II) The Lower Town
● • Carefully planned drainage system.
● • At burials in Harappan sites the dead were generally laid in pits.
● • Seals and sealings were used to facilitate long distance communication.
● • Exchanges were regulated by a precise system of weignts, usually made of a stone
called
● Chert and generally cubical, with no markings.
● • Some archaeologists are of the opinion that Harappan society had no rulers, whereas
● other archaeologist feels that there was no single ruler but several rulers.
● • Several explanations for the decline of Harappan civilisation are Climatic changes,
● deforestation, excessive floods, the shifting and/or drying up of rivers. Metals known: -
● Gold, Silver, Copper, Bronze.
● Scripts: The Harappan scripts are undeciphered. There are 375-400 signs. The script
was
● written from right to left.
● Craft: The place Chanhudaro was totally involved for craft production. There were
experts in
● bead makings, shell cutting, seal making, weight making. Lothal was also one of the
● important places for craft production.
● Modes of Transportation: Bullock carts and Boats.
● Seals and Sealing’s:
● • Seals and sealings were used to facilitate long distance communication. Imagine a bag
of
● goods being sent from one place to another.
● • Its mouth was tied with rope and 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 Indus Valley Civilization was established around 3300 BC.
● It flourished between 2600 BC and 1900 BC (Mature Indus Valley Civilization).
● It started declining around 1900 BC and disappeared around 1400 BC.
●
● This is also called Harappan Civilization after the first city to be excavated, Harappa
(Punjab, Pakistan).
● Pre-Harappan civilization has been found at Mehrgarh, Pakistan which shows the first
evidence of cotton cultivation.
●
● Geographically, this civilization covered Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, Rajasthan, Gujarat
and Western Uttar Pradesh.
● It extended from Sutkagengor (in Baluchistan) in the West to Alamgirpur (Western UP)
in the East; and from Mandu (Jammu) in the North to Daimabad (Ahmednagar,
Maharashtra) in the South.
● Some Indus Valley sites have also been found in as far away as Afghanistan and
Turkmenistan.
●
● Indus Valley Civilization Important Sites
● In India:
● Kalibangan (Rajasthan),
● Lothal,
● Dholavira,
● Rangpur,
● Surkotda (Gujarat),
● Banawali (Haryana),
● Ropar (Punjab).
● In Pakistan: Harappa (on river Ravi), Mohenjodaro (on Indus River in Sindh),
Chanhudaro (in Sindh).
●
● The civilization was first discovered during an excavation campaign under Sir John
Hubert Marshall in 1921–22 at Harappa following the discovery of seals by J Fleet.
●
● Harappan ruins were discovered by Marshall, Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni and Madho
Sarup Vats.
●
● Mohenjodaro ruins were excavated for the first time by R.D. Banerjee, E. J. H. MacKay
and Marshall.
●
● The Indus Valley cities show a level of sophistication and advancement not seen in other
contemporary civilizations.
●
● Most cities had similar patterns. There were two parts: a citadel and the lower town.
●
● Most cities had a Great Bath.
● There were also granaries, 2-storied houses made of burnt bricks, closed drainage lines,
excellent stormwater, and wastewater management system, weights for measurements,
toys, pots, etc.
●
● A large number of seals have been discovered.
●
● Agriculture was the most important occupation. The first civilization to cultivate cotton.
●
● Animals were domesticated like sheep, goats, and pigs.
● Crops were wheat, barley, cotton, ragi, dates, and peas.
●
● Trade was conducted with the Sumerians.
● Metal products were produced including those with copper, bronze, tin, and lead. Gold
and silver were also known. Iron was not known to them.
● No structures like temples or palaces have been found.
● The people worshipped male and female deities. A seal which was named ‘Pashupati
Seal’ has been excavated and it shows an image of a three-eyed figure. Marshall
believed this to be an early form of Lord Shiva.
● Excellent pieces of red pottery designed in black have been excavated. Faience was
used to make beads, bangles, earrings, and vessels.
● Civilization also was advanced in making artworks. A statuette named ‘Dancing Girl’ has
been found from Mohenjodaro and is believed to be 4000 years old. A figure of a
bearded Priest-King has also been found from Mohenjodaro.
● Lothal was a dockyard.
● Disposal of the dead was by burial in wooden coffins. Later on, in the H Symmetry
culture, bodies were cremated in urns.
● The Indus Valley script has not yet been deciphered.
● The decline of Indus Valley Civilization
● Causes of the decline of this civilization have not been firmly established. Archaeologists
now believe that the civilization did not come to an abrupt end but gradually declined.
People moved eastwards and cities were abandoned. Writing and trade declined.
● Mortimer Wheeler suggested that the Aryan invasion led to the decline of the Indus
Valley. This theory has now been debunked.
● Robert Raikes suggests that tectonic movements and floods caused the decline.
● Other causes cited include a drying up of the rivers, deforestation, and destruction of the
green cover. It is possible that some cities were destroyed by floods but not all. It is now
accepted that several factors could have led to the decline of the Indus Valley
civilization.
● New cities emerged only about 1400 years later.

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What were the major cities of the Indus Valley civilization?

What was the social structure like in the Indus Valley cities?

● Period (I): Early Harappa culture - Before 2600 BCE

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