INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION Harappa Civilization

Also known as Harappa Civilization The Indus Valley Civilization is also known as the Harappan Civilization, as the first of its cities to be unearthed was located at Harappa, excavated in the 1920s

THE GEOGRAPHIC SETTING Indian Subcontinent To North: Impassable Himalayas To East: Passable low hills To Northwest: Passable Hindu Kush, Khyber Pass To West: Arabian Sea Northern Plain of Indus, Ganges Rivers Southern Deccan High plateau, extremely dry Bordered on East and West by mountains Separated from north by river, low mountains The Monsoon Winds Off the land October to April: Dry Season Off the Indian Ocean May to September: Wet Season

THE INDUS RIVER CIVILIZATION

Key Features At its peak, the Indus Civilization may have had a population of well over five million. Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley developed new techniques in handicraft and metallurgy (copper, bronze, lead, and tin). The civilization is noted for its cities built of brick, roadside drainage system, and multi-storeyed houses.

HARAPPAN SOCIETY The Indus River Harappa and Mohenjo-daro Runs through north India, sources at Hindu Kush, Himalayas Rich deposits, but less predictable than the Nile Wheat and barley were cultivated in Indus valley Cultivated cotton before 5000 B.C.E. Complex society of Dravidians, 3000/2500 B.C.E. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro Possibly served as twin capitals Each city had a fortified citadel and a large granary Broad streets, market places, temples, public buildings Standardized weights, measures, architecture, bricks Specialized labor and trade Domestic trade, items inc. pottery, tools, metals Trading with Mesopotamians about 2300 to 1750 B.C.E.

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HARAPPAN SOCIETY/CULTURE Social distinctions as seen from living styles Religious beliefs strongly emphasized fertility Many deities were feminine In later Hinduism, Dravidian gods are blue-faced Harappan society declined from 2000 B.C.E. onward Ecological degradation led to a subsistence crisis Natural catastrophes - floods or earthquakes Population began to abandon their cities by about 1700 B.C.E. Almost entirely collapsed by about 1500 B.C.E Evidence of warfare, invasion

Seals Seals carved with a copper burin, coated with alkali, and baked to glaze the surface; depicted animals (e.g,humped back bull, bull, goat, elephant, crocodile) mythical animals (e.g., unicorn) standing in front of an incense burner or a trough, human figures; more than 4000 have been recovered. Note: inscription of seals (with 3-10 characters) which are not decipherable; may be used for business as the seals to signify the ownership of traded merchandise; writing disappeared for 1500 years

Pottery Hand made vessels decorated with red slip and black painted decoration (animals, geometric, floral and vegetation motifs Pipal (Figus religiosa) or Bodhi leave

Key Features A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture is evident in the Indus Valley Civilization making them the first urban centres in the region. The quality of municipal town planning suggests the knowledge of urban planning and efficient municipal governments which placed a high priority on hygiene.  Within the city, individual homes or groups of homes obtained water from wells. From a room that appears to have been set aside for bathing, waste water was directed to covered drains, which lined the major streets The advanced architecture of the Harappans is shown by their impressive dockyards, granaries, warehouses, brick platforms, and protective walls. 

Summary Harappa was highly structured, organized urban culture with an agricultural economy They probably worshipped gods and goddesses of fertility and have practiced yogic meditation and asceticism. The destruction of the civilization: flooding and water resources (the shifting of water system)

Submitted by Dr. N.Kelkar Akola, Mahrashtra