1. INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION Harappa Civilization

2. 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

4. 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

5. THE INDUS RIVER CIVILIZATION

6. 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.

7. 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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9. 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

10. 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

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

12. 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. 

13. 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)

14. Submitted by
Dr. N.Kelkar
Akola, Mahrashtra