Indus Valley Civilization Notes

Indus valley civilization is one of the oldest civilization of the world ,It is also known as Harappan civilization as the Harappa site was first discover in year 1921 by Daya Ram Sahni. In 1856, British colonial officials in India were busy monitoring the construction of a railway connecting the cities of Lahore and Karachi in modern-day Pakistan along the Indus River valley. At that time they found some fire-baked bricks but they ignored it, Though they did not know it then, and though the first major excavations did not take place until the 1920s, these railway workers had happened upon the remnants of the Indus Valley Civilization, also known as the Harappan . It’s date has been established to be between 2500 to 1750 BC by carbon dating system. The civilization belong to the Bronze Age. John marshall give name Indus valley civilization. According to archaeological tradition it is called Harappan Civilization and According to geographical point of view it is known as Indus – Saraswati Civilization.

Indus valley civilization

Indus Valley Civilization Geographical overview

  • In the North-most of the indus valley Civilization was Mandu ( Jammu and kashmir).
  • In the south-most there was a Daimabad in Maharashtra.
  • The Eastern-most site of indus valley civilization was Alamgirpur.
  • The Western-most site of Indus Civilization Sutkagendor on Pakistan – Iran Border.
Harappan civiliazation map
Map of indus valley civilization

Famous siteIn river bank ofState and CountryDiscover or Excavators
HarappaRaviPunjab, PakistanDaya Ram Sahni in year 1921
MohenjodaroIndusSindh ,pakistanRakhal Das Bannerji in year 1922
ChanhudaroIndusSindh ,PakistanMackay 1925 , N G Mazumdar 1931
LothalBhogavaGujarat, IndiaS.R Rao in year 1954
KalibangaGhaggarRajasthan, IndiaAmalanand Ghosh 1951
BanawaliGhaggarHaryana, indiaRS Bist 1973
DholaviraLuniGujarat , indiaJP joshi

Important things that where found from all this Famous Site

Harappa

  • Six Granaries in Row
  • Stone symbols of Lingam (Male Sex Organ) and Yoni (Female Sex Organ)
  • Wheat And Barley in Wodden Mortar
  • Copper scale
  • Copper made Mirror
  • Vanity Box
  • Dice

Mohenjodaro

  • Great Bath (largest building of the civilization)
  • Assembly hall
  • Pashupati Mahadeva i.e the lord of animals (Lord shiva) is surrounded by for animals (elephant ,tiger Rhino, buffalo) and two deer sitting near his feet.
  • Bronze image of nude women dancer
  • Clay figures of Mother goddess(Matridevi Or Shakti)
  • Piece of cotton cloth.

Chanhudaro

  • It is only city without citadel
  • Inkpot and lipstick
  • Imprint of Dog’s paw on the Brick
  • Terracotta model of a bullock cart
  • Bronze toy cart

Lothal

  • It was a acient port city of Indus civilization
  • Rice husk was found
  • Fire Altars
  • Double burual (burying a male and female in a single grave)
  • Painted Jar with bird and fox panted on it

Kalibanga

  • Ploughed field surface
  • Decorated bricks
  • Wheels of a toy cart
  • Mesopotamian cylinderical seal

Banawali

  • lack of Gridiron pattern town planning
  • Lack of systematic drainage system
  • Clay figures of Mother Goddess

Dholavira

  • A Unique water harnessing system and its storm water drainage system
  • A large well and a bath
  • A stadium

Surkotada (Gujarat) is the only site where the actual remains of horse has been found.

Point to Remember Note on Indus valley Civilization

  • Mahenjodaro was the largest site of indus Civilization.
  • Mohenjodaro was known as the city of “Mound of dead”
  • Rakhigarhi in Haryana was the largest Indian site in indus Civiliztion
  • Shatughai and Mundigaq were important site of Afghanistan
  • Harappans were the earliest people to produce the Cotton.
  • there is no evidence of Coin so the barter system was the method of trade or exchange of goods.
  • Indus Civilization was ruled by merchants
  • Iron was not known to the people of this civilization
  • Dice game was known to the people
  • They mostly worship the nature like animals and tree especially peepal tree , they mostly worship the Unicorn animal that seems like Horse with one horn.
  • They worshiped the Mother Goddess ( Matridevi or Shakti) and male god Pasupati Mahadeva the lord of Animals a seal was found of with sitting in Yoga posture , he is surrounded by four animals elephant , tiger ,rhino ,buffalo and two deer setting at his feet
  • Cow and Lion were not known to them.

Main Features of Indus Valley Civilization

  • Town Planning was very systematic all the houses were arrange on the grid system
  • They used burnt bricks for the construction of the houses.
  • Underground drainage system was found on all the houses the were connected to the street main drainage line.
  • Fortified citadel was build on all the the town except Chanhudaro.
  • Houses were build on both the side of the street but No window are build on the side of main street.

Agriculture in Indus Valley Civilization.

  • Wheat and Barley were the main crop grown here.
  • Evidence of rice are found at Lothal and Rangpur in Gujarat only.
  • They were the first producer of the cotton .
  • Indus valley civilization was blessed with Alluvial soil , so the land was very fertile.

There was extensive inland and foreign trade with Mesopotamia , Baharin etc. This people imported gold and silver for Afganistan ,Persia and south India.

The exact decline of this civilization is not known but most scholar believe ,The civilization likely ended due to climate change and migration.

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