Bricks, Beads and Bones

The Harappan Civilisation

By
Mrs Mamta Yadav

What do you know about the

Harappan / Indus valley civilisation?
Questions to be asked:
Time line
Location
Highlights of the civilisation

Let us see
what we know about the Harappan civilisation,
how we know about it.
We will explore how archaeological material is
interpreted and
How interpretations sometimes change.

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Harappa
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Dholavira

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Mohenjodaro

Lothal

1. Beginnings
Early Harappan

Distinctive pottery
Evidence of agriculture and pastoralism
Some craft
Small settlement
No large buildings

Break b/w Early Harappan and Harappan

civilisation
Large scale burning at some sites
Abandonment of some settlements

2.

Subsistence Strategies

Harappan culture developed in areas occupied by Early Harappan

civilisation
The Harappans ate a wide range of plant and animal products,
including fish.
Who are Archaeologist, Archaeo-botanists, Archaeo-zoologists?
Found: wheat, barley, lentils, chickpea and sesame. Also found:
cattle, sheep, goat, buffalo, pigs, boar, deer, gharial and bones of
fish.

2.1 Agricultural technologies

Difficult to reconstruct actual agri practices. Were seeds broadcast
(scattered) on ploughed lands?
Oxen used for ploughing
Terracotta models of the plough found at sites in Cholistan and at
Banawali (Haryana).
evidence of a ploughed field at Kalibangan (Rajasthan), associated
with Early Harappan levels.
Field had two sets of furrows at right angles to each other, suggesting
two different crops were grown together.
Most Harappan sites are located in semi-arid lands, where irrigation
was probably required for agriculture.
canals found-site of Shortughai in Afghanistan
Water reservoirs found in Dholavira, Gujrat

3.

MOHENJODARO (A Planned Urban Centre)

What is a Citadel?
The settlement is divided into two sections,
Citadels were smaller but higher and the other much larger
but lower.
buildings were constructed on mud brick platforms.
It was walled, which meant that it was physically separated
from the Lower Town.
The Lower Town
also walled.
buildings were built on platforms, served as foundations.
3.1 Laying out drains
Distinctive features- carefully planned drainage system.
Grid pattern
Intersecting at right angle
Drains laid first
One wall along a street for draining

3.2 Domestic Architecture

Residential building: Center of house- Courtyard- Rooms on all sides
Courtyard- centre of activities- cooking and weavingparticularly Hot and dry weather
Privacy- no windows along ground level
Main entrance does not give direct view of the courtyard
Every house has own bathroom
Staircase- proof of second story building
Wells- reached from outside- also used by passer-by
Esti. 700 wells in Mohenjo-Daro

3.3 The Citadel

Used for special public purpose
Warehouse
A massive structure
Great Bath
Large rectangular tank
Courtyard surrounded by corridors on all four sides
Tank made water tight- setting
Bricks on edge- using mortar of
Gypsum
Had rooms on three sides- one of
which had a large well
Water from tank flowed into huge
drains

TRACKING SOCIAL DIFFERENCES

Burials

Q. What are the strategies used by the archeologists to determine the socioeconomic differences amongst people living within a particular cultures.
Q. Explain the socio-economic differences in Harappan Society that
archeological finds seem to suggest. 5 marks
Do you know about the massive pyramid of Egypt?
Many of them were royal burials- enormous wealth was buried
Burials in Harapa
Dead laid in pits
Differences in the way the burial pit made
Some hollowed out spaces were lined with bricks
Some contain pottery & ornaments- indicating afterlife
Jewellery found- men & women
On whole they did not believe in burying precious things
Looking for Luxuries
Another strategies- study artefacts
First category- objects of daily use- made out of stone or clay- querns,
pottery, needles
found distributed through out settlement

Luxuries- made of non-local, costly with complicated technologies

Found mostly in maj settlements like Mohenjodaro & harappa
None at Kalibangan or small settlements
Gold very rare

FINDING ABOUT CRAFT PRODUCTION

Locate Chanchudaro on Map 1
Tiny settlement (7 hectare) compared to Mohenjodaro (125 hectare)
Devoted to craft production
Bead making, shell- cutting, metal- working, seal making, weight- making
Material used to make beads
Stones like Carmelian, jasper, crystal, quartz, steatite
Metals like copper, bronze, gold
Shapes like disk shaped, cylindrical, spherical, barrel shaped
Decorated by incising or painting

Techniques
Beads moulded out of a paste made of steatite powder
Specialised drills have been found at Chanhudaro, Lothal and recently
Dholavira for grinding, flacking, polishing and drilling
Locate Nageshwar and Balakot Map 1
Near coast- specialised centre for making shell objects
Bangles, ladles and inlay
IDENTIFYING CENTRES OF PRODUCTION
To identify centre for craft production archeologists look for: Raw materials- stones, nodules, whole shells, copper ore, tools, unfinished
objects, rejects and waste material
WASTE MATERIAL best indicator for a place of production & to determine
if the place is large or small
Large pieces used to make smaller object.

6. Strategies for Procuring Materials

clay were locally available, many such as stone, timber and metal
had to be procured from outside the alluvial plain
Materials from the subcontinent and beyond
Procured material for craft production in various way
1. Est. settlements in
Nagarshwar and Balakot
Shells
Shortughai (Afganistan) Lapis Lazuli
Lothal
Carnelian
(Bharuch- Gujrat)
Steatite
(South Rajasthan & North Gujrat)
Metal (Rajasthan)
2. To send expedition
Khetri region of Rajasthan Copper
South India
Gold
. These expeditions established communication
6.2 Contact with distant lands
. Copper probably bought from Oman

 Chemical analysis Omani copper and Harappan copper traces of nickel

suggest common origin.
Other traces of contact
Distinctive vessels large Harappan jar coated with thick layer of black
clay found at Omani sites
Thick coating prevented percolation of liquids
Excahanged by Harappan for Omani copper
Mesopotamian text copper from region called Magan (1 st name for Oman)
large quantity of copper with nickel traces found at Mesopotamian sites
Long distance contact includes
Harappan seals, weights, dice and beads
Mesopotamian texts Regions:1. Dilmun (island of Bahrain)
2. Magan (Oman)
3. Meluhha (Possibly Harappan region)
-. Mentioned about products from Meluhha :- Carnelian
- Lapis lazuli
- Copper
- Gold
- Varieties of wood
-. Communication likely by sea
-. Depictions of ships and boats on seals

7. SEALS, SCRIPTS, WEIGHTS

7.1. seals and sealings
Facilitate long distance communication
Bag tied wet clay seal pressed seal intact bag not tampered
Seal conveyed identity of the sender
7.2. An Enigmatic Script
Seals
Line of writing containing Name & title of owner
Motif generally animal conveyed to those who could not read
Inscriptions short
Longest about 26 signs
Signs 375 to 400
Written from right to left
Writings found on:
Seals
Copper tools
Rims and jars
Copper, terracotta tablets
Jewellery
Bone rods
Even ancient sign boards

7.2 Weights
Exchanges regulated by weights called CHERT generally cubical no marking
Lower denomination binary (1,2,4,,8,16,32 etc up to 12,800)
Higher decimal system
Smaller weight for weighing jewellery & beads
Metal sclae pans also found
8. ANCIENT AUTHORITY
Indication complex decisions taken implemented Harrapan society
Uniformity in: Artefacts
Pottery
Seals
Weights
Bricks
Bricks not produced in single centre yet uniformity from Jammu to Gujrat
Settlements strategically set up
Q who organised theses activities?
8.1. Palaces & Kings
No records in archelogical finds
Large building at Mohenjodaro labelled as palaces no finds
A stone statue found known as priest-king- because similar statue found in
Mesopotamian history
Religious practices not understood
Different theory/ opinion on rule
No rule- equal rights to all

 Different rulers in different region

Single ruler due to uniformity found
9. THE END OF THE CIVILISATION
1800 BCE most of Mature Harappan site region like Cholistan
abandoned
Population grew into new settlements in gujrat, haryana and western UP
Disappearance of distinctive artefacts: Weights
Seals
Special beads
Writing
Long distance trade
Fewer techniques used to make fewer things
House construction techniques deteriorated
No large public structures
Overall indicated rural ways of life also called Late Harappan or
successor culture
Q. What brought about these changes?
Several explanation
Climatic change
Deforestation
Excessive floods

 Shifting or drying up of rivers

Over use of the landscape
These causes may hold for certain settlements but not for all.
There has to be a unifying element
10. DISCOVERING THE HARAPPAN CIVILISATION
Q. How archeologists discovered the civilisation?
Artefacts discovered
Occasionally surfaced
Washed by floods or
Exposed by soil erosion or
Turned up while ploughing fields
Or digging for treasures
10.1 Cunninghams confusion
Mid 19 CE- archaeologists used-the written word as a guide
to investigations. In fact, Cunningham-interest- archaeology of the Early
Historic
(c. sixth century BCE-fourth century CE) and later
periods.
used accounts Chinese Buddhist pilgrims who had visited the
subcontinent(4th-7th CE)to locate early settlements. Also collected,
documented and translated inscriptions found during his surveys. When
he excavated sites he tended to recover artefacts that he thought had
cultural value.

Harappa not part of Chinese pilgrims itinerary- not fit with his
framework of investigation
Harappan artefacts found fairly in 19th CE- Cunnigham did not
realise how old these were
Harrapan seal given by Englishman- but unsuccessfully place it
with time frame- because like many others thought Indian history
began with first cities in the Ganga valley
10.2 A New Old Civilisation
Seals discovered at Harappa by archaeologists such as Daya Ram
Sahni- early 20th CE, in layers-definitely much older than Early
Historic levels
archaeologist, Rakhal Das Banerji found similar seals at
Mohenjodaro, leading to the conjecture that these sites were part
of a single archaeological culture
similar, till-then-unidentified seals were found at excavations at
Mesopotamian sites. It was then that the world knew not only of a
new civilisation, but also of one contemporaneous with
Mesopotamia
John Marshall 1st professional archaeologist to work in Indiainterested to find patters of everyday life

excavate along regular horizontal units, measured uniformly

throughout the mound, ignoring the 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. Result valuable information lost.
10.3 New techniques and Questions
R.E.M. Wheeler- recognised that it was necessary to follow the
stratigraphy of the mound rather than dig mechanically along
uniform horizontal lines
as an ex-army brigadier- brought- military precision to the practice
of archaeology
Partition- major
Sites- in Pakistan- extensive survey- Kutch- Harappan settlementsexplorations in Punjab and Haryana- Kalibangan, Lothal, Rakhi
Garhi and most recently Dholavira

11. Problems of Piecing Together the Past

material evidence that allows archaeologists to better reconstruct
Harappan life
11.1 Classifying Finds
One simple principle of classification is in terms of material, such as
stone, clay, metal, bone, ivory, etc. The second, and more
complicated, is in terms of function: archaeologists have to decide
whether, for instance, an artefact is a tool or an ornament, or both,
or something meant for ritual use.
Archaeologists also try to identify the function of an artefact by
investigating the context in which it was found: was it found in a
house, in a drain, in a grave, in a kiln?
archaeologists have to take recourse to indirect evidence- traces of
cotton- depend on indirect evidence including depictions in sculpture
11.2 Problems of interpretation
problems of archaeological interpretation- reconstruct religious
practices- unusual or unfamiliar may have had a religious
significance- terracotta figurines of women, heavily jewelled, some
with elaborate head-dresses- mother goddesses- priest-kingseated with one hand on the knee
Structures- assigned ritual significance- Great Bath and fire altars
found at Kalibangan and Lothal

traditions provide parallels with earlier ones- archaeologists- move

from the known to the unknown- speculative- extend it to
religious symbols
Let us look, for instance, at the proto-Shiva seals.
The earliest religious text, the Rigveda (compiled c. 1500-1000
BCE) mentions a god named Rudra, which is a name used for
Shiva in later Puranic traditions
(in the first millennium CE; see also Chapter 4). However, unlike
Shiva, Rudra in the Rigveda is neither depicted as Pashupati (lord
of animals in general and cattle in particular), nor as a yogi. In
other words, this depiction does not match the description of
Rudra in the Rigveda. Is this, then, possibly a shaman as some
scholars have suggested?

Was this a mother goddess?

A proto-Shiva seal

Questions

What are the aspects of Harappan economy that have been reconstructed from
archaeological evidence?
Q8. Discuss how archaeologists reconstruct the past. 4 marks
Or
How have archaeologists used evidence from material remains to piece together
parts of a fascinating Harappa history? Explain
Ans. Piecing together parts of Harappa history
i. Cunninghams confusion Harappan artifacts were found fairly often during the nineteenth century and some of
these reached Cunningham, he did not realise how old these were but unsuccessfully
tried to place it within the time-frame of c. sixth century BCE-fourth century CE.
ii. John Marshall`s Ignorance Marshall tended to excavate along regular horizontal units, measured uniformly
throughout the mound, ignoring the 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
Harappan civilisation was irretrievably lost.
iii. R.E.M. Wheeler`s problems R.E.M. Wheeler took over as Director-General of the ASI in 1944, rectified many
problems. Wheeler recognized that it was necessary to follow the stratigraphy of the
mound rather than dig mechanically along uniform horizontal lines.
iv. Daya Ram Sahni Seals were discovered at Harappa by archaeologists such as Daya Ram Sahni in the
early decades of the twentieth century, in layers that were definitely much older than
Early Historic levels. It was then that their significance began to be realized.

v. Rakhal Das Banerji

in 1924,John Marshall, Director-General of the ASI, announced the
discovery of a new civilization in the Indus valley to the world.
vi. S.N. Roy As S.N. Roy noted in The Story of Indian Archaeology, Marshall
left India three thousand years older than he had found her.This
was because similar, till-then-unidentified seals were found at
excavations at Mesopotamian sites. It was then that the world
knew not only of a new civilization interesting results in the future.

Map
P-2. Mature Harappan sites :
Harappa, Banawali, Kalibangan,
Balakot of Rakhigadi, Dholavira,
Nageshwar, Lothal, Mohenjodaro,
Chanhudaro, Kot Diji