Ch 03 – Indus Valley / Harappan Civilization

Type: Bronze Age Civilization

Area: ~1.3 Million sq. km

Spread: Northwestern/western South Asia

Mature phase dating: c. 2600–1900 BCE

Mature Phase: 2600–1900 BCE

📌 Introduction & Key Facts ▼

Named After

Harappa

First excavated site · Under Sir John Marshall's direction

Major Harappa Excavations

Dayaram Sahni — 1921

Harappa excavations; Marshall announced the civilisation in 1924

Contemporary Civilizations

Mesopotamian · Egyptian

One of world's earliest urban civilizations

Phase

First Urban Revolution in South Asia

Mature phase c. 2600–1900 BCE; C-14 dates suitable organic samples

🧭 Geographical Spread — Four Key Sites Spread: Northwestern and western South Asia · Area: ~1.3 million sq. km ▼

▲ NORTH

Manda

Jammu & Kashmir (Akhnoor) · River: Chenab

▼ SOUTH

Daimabad

Maharashtra (Ahmednagar) · River: Pravara (Godavari Basin)

▶ EAST

Alamgirpur

Uttar Pradesh (Meerut) · River: Hindon (Yamuna Trib.)

◀ WEST

Sutkagendor

Baluchistan (Pakistan border) · River: Dasht

🥇 Major Sites — Size Estimates Vary ▼

1

Rakhigarhi — Haryana, India ← Widely recognised as largest known by geographical spread
Site

Mohenjo-daro — Pakistan
Site

Harappa — Pakistan
Site

Dholavira — Gujarat, India

12 foundation blocks in 2 rows of 6; “granary” interpretation debated Toy Cart (Terracotta) Cemetery R-37 Objects interpreted as lingam/yoni; identification debated Female figurine; Mother Goddess interpretation Unicorn seals; site-wide maximum not established

Great Bath (Ritual bathing) Large structure traditionally called a granary; function debated Bronze Dancing Girl (Tribhanga posture) Pashupati Seal (proto-Shiva interpretation debated) Bearded Man — “Priest-King” (conventional label; Steatite) Piece of Woven Cotton

Bead-making factory Pigment objects; use as lipstick is an interpretation No separate citadel documented Animal tracks; a chase cannot be established with certainty

Early Harappan ploughed field; cross-furrows Fire Altars (Ritual significance) Camel bones Wells; not evidence for one in every house Decorated Bricks Mesopotamian Cylindrical Seals

Massive Fortification Wall Stone arrows Houses with stone foundations

Rice Husks (Crucial evidence) Fort made of unbaked bricks

Dog buried with Human First site excavated in independent India

Brick-lined basin commonly interpreted as a dockyard Reported rice remains; interpretation requires scrutiny Fire Altars Double burial; household relationship not securely established Ivory Scale Door placement varied between buildings

Toy Plough (Terracotta) High quality Barley Washbasin in houses

🏙 City Structure — Two Parts Settlement divisions varied; Mohenjo-daro had citadel and lower town ▼

Upper Town

Citadel

Fortified (protected by walls) · Great Bath and other public structures; royal identities uncertain

Lower Town

Residential Area

Houses of varied sizes, often with courtyards

⚡ Exception — Dholavira: Divided into THREE parts:
1. Citadel (Castle) | 2. Middle Town (Fortified) | 3. Lower Town

📐 Construction Features ▼

Grid Pattern: Streets intersected at right angles (90°)
Construction Material: Baked and sun-dried bricks; Dholavira used stone prominently
Drainage System: Main/defining feature of the civilization
House Windows: Houses had windows
Doors: Many entrances protected privacy; arrangements varied
Exception: Lothal — door arrangements were not a universal exception

Granaries

Great Granary: Found at Mohenjo-daro (function debated)
Harappa Granaries: Twelve foundation blocks in two rows of six; granary function debated

🌾 Agriculture Crop remains vary by site ▼

Major Crops: Wheat, barley, pulses and sesame; cotton for fibre; millets at some Gujarat sites
Rice: Found at Rangpur and Lothal
Ploughed field evidence: Kalibangan
Irrigation: Canal traces at Shortughai; wells and reservoirs were other water sources
Dholavira: Unique water harnessing — dams/reservoirs
Horse: Debated — bones reported from Surkotada (Gujarat)

⚖ Trade System ▼

System

Exchange Networks

No coins used

Measurement

Linear measurement

Ivory scale found at Lothal

Weights

Binary (lower) + Decimal (higher)

Lower denominations: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32; 16 is not a defined physical base unit

Seals

Steatite (Soft stone)

Mesopotamian cylindrical seals at Kalibangan & Mohenjodaro

📦 Materials — Proposed Sources and Uses ▼

Item	Source / Origin
Gold	South India is a possible source; exact routes require evidence
Silver	Used in ornaments; exact sources require evidence
Copper	Khetri (Rajasthan), probably Oman; source list is not exhaustive
Lead	Used in metalwork; source attribution requires evidence
Tin	Used with copper for bronze; supply routes debated
Lapis Lazuli	Badakhshan (Afghanistan)
Limestone	Stone resources from several regions; exact supply routes require evidence
Carnelian	Bharuch (Gujarat)

✍ Script & Writing Art ▼

Script Type

Undeciphered; evidently not alphabetic

NOT alphabetical · About 375–400 signs; exact linguistic structure unknown

Writing Direction

Mostly right to left

Boustrophedon occurs only in some longer examples

Engraved On

Steatite Seals

Many steatite seals are square; inscriptions also occur on other artefacts

Fish-shaped sign: Fish
U-shaped sign: U-shape
Script is still undeciphered — therefore Harappan civilization = Protohistoric

📉 Historical Decline Theories — Not Established Universal Causes ▼

Scholar / Historian	Theory of Decline
Gordon Childe, Mortimer Wheeler	Historical invasion theory; later reassessments challenged it
John Marshall, Mackay, S.R. Rao	Floods — Massive flooding in Indus
Aurel Stein, A.N. Ghosh	Climate Change — Aridity / Drying up of rivers
M.R. Sahni	Geological Changes — Tectonic uplift / Damming of Indus
John Marshall	Administrative Weakness
K.A.R. Kennedy	Disease hypothesis; one epidemic is not a proved universal cause

⚠ TRAP 01 — Discoverer vs Excavator

Dayaram Sahni: Harappa excavations, 1921.
R. D. Banerjee: Mohenjo-daro investigations, 1922.
John Marshall: ASI director; announced the recognised civilisation in 1924. The mounds were known earlier.

⚠ TRAP 02 — Largest Site

Rakhigarhi, Haryana, is widely recognised as the largest known Harappan settlement by geographical spread. Sizes of Mohenjo-daro, Harappa and Dholavira depend on surveyed boundaries and phases; rigid second/third/fourth ranks are unsafe.

⚠ TRAP 03 — Only City Without Citadel

Chanhudaro is commonly described as lacking a separate citadel. Dholavira has citadel, middle town and lower town; settlement plans varied across sites.

⚠ TRAP 04 — Doors Direction

Many Mohenjo-daro entrances protected privacy by avoiding direct views into interiors. Door placement varied across sites and buildings; Lothal is not a universal exception rule.

⚠ TRAP 05 — Rice Sites

Rangpur: reported rice-husk impressions; Lothal: reported rice finds need scrutiny. Koldihwa is Neolithic and associated with early rice remains; this does not establish a worldwide first.

⚠ TRAP 06 — Granaries

The “granary” labels at Mohenjo-daro and Harappa are interpretations; grain-storage functions are debated.
Harappa: twelve foundation blocks in two rows of six.

⚠ TRAP 07 — Lothal Basin Interpretation

Lothal: large brick-lined basin commonly interpreted as a dockyard, with its function also debated. “Manchester of IVC” is a modern exam-reference nickname. S. R. Rao excavated Lothal and Rangpur.

⚠ TRAP 08 — First Site in Independent India

Ropar (Rupnagar) = First IVC site excavated in independent India (1953, Y. D. Sharma)[cite: 12]
Harappa and Mohenjo-daro were excavated in 1921 and 1922, respectively, in British India.[cite: 12]

⚠ TRAP 09 — Cotton

Woven cotton evidence is associated with Mohenjo-daro; very early cotton-use evidence also comes from Mehrgarh. The Greek term “Sindon” does not establish a Harappan etymology.

Harappa excavations (1921) led by?

Dayaram Sahni, 1921

Mohenjo-daro excavated by?

R.D. Banerjee, 1922

Mohenjo-daro meaning?

Mound of the Dead

Largest IVC site (Subcontinent)?

Rakhigarhi, Haryana

IVC geographical spread?

Northwestern/western South Asia · approximately 1.3 million sq.km

Chenab site near Akhnoor?

Manda (J&K)

River: Chenab

Late Harappan-associated Pravara site?

Daimabad (Maharashtra)

River: Pravara

Hindon site near Meerut?

Alamgirpur (UP)

River: Hindon

Western site near Pakistan–Iran border?

Sutkagendor (Baluchistan)

River: Dasht

Great Bath — where?

Mohenjo-daro

Large structure traditionally called a “granary” — site?

Mohenjo-daro

Harappa “granary” foundation blocks?

12 blocks (two rows of six; function debated)

Bronze Dancing Girl — where?

Mohenjo-daro

Tribhanga posture

Pashupati Seal — where?

Mohenjo-daro

Proto-Shiva interpretation debated

Craft centre without separate citadel?

Chanhudaro

Bead-making factory — where?

Chanhudaro

Early Harappan ploughed field?

Kalibangan

Kalibangan meaning?

Black Bangles

Basin commonly interpreted as dockyard?

Lothal (Artificial)

Lothal nickname?

Manchester of IVC

First site in independent India?

Ropar (Rupnagar)

Y.D. Sharma, 1953

Dog buried with human — where?

Ropar

Toy Plough (Terracotta)?

Banawali

Dholavira unique feature?

3-part city (Citadel + Middle Town + Lower Town)

IVC script type?

Undeciphered; evidently not alphabetic

Undeciphered

Writing direction of IVC?

Mostly right to left

Mostly R→L; some longer examples alternate

Fish-shaped sign — deciphered?

Fish-shaped; meaning/phonetic value unestablished

Lapis Lazuli came from?

Badakhshan, Afghanistan

Sindon — textile term?

Textile term; Harappan etymology unestablished

Unicorn seals — major find site?

Harappa

Seals mostly made of?

Steatite (Soft stone)

Pashupati seal animals (mnemonic)?

D-E-R-T-B

Deer, Elephant, Rhino, Tiger, Buffalo

Aryan invasion theory — who?

Gordon Childe, Mortimer Wheeler

Epidemic as sole decline cause?

Not conclusively established

Lower weight denominations?

1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32

Binary lower, Decimal higher