1. PLANNED CITIES ON THE INDUS

2. Map

3. Mountains
Subcontinent-3 mountain ranges (Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and Himalaya) separate Indus River Valley from the rest of Asia
Mountains created natural barrier and helped protect the Indus Valley from invasions

4. Rivers and Monsoons
River-Yearly floods deposit silt, BUT the floods were very unpredictable and the river sometimes changed it course
Monsoons-seasonal winds that bring heavy rains in the spring, watered crops and caused flooding

5. Mysterious Civilization
Historians have not yet deciphered the Indus system of writing
Very little is known, except from discoveries from archaeological digs

6. Indus River Valley Located in modern day Pakistan
Area much larger than Mesopotamia or Egypt
Developed trade with distant people, including the Mesopotamians
Few weapons have been found, suggesting that it was a peaceful society
Artifacts such as clay and wooden kids toys suggest a prosperous society

7. Indus Trade Routes

8. Planned Cities
Archaeologists have found ruins of more than 100 sophisticated cities along the Indus
Laid out their cities on a precise grid system
Very-large scale building, walled cites, with fortified citadels
Separate residential (houses) districts, uniform housing suggests that social divisions were not great
Buildings were made from oven baked bricks
Very sophisticated plumbing and sewage systems
Suggests that Indus people had developed a strong central government

9. Connections to Indian culture
Religious artifacts reveal links to modern Hindu (Indian religion) culture
Figures show early representations of Shiva, a major Indian god
Other figures relate to a mother goddess and fertility
Some figures suggest the worship of cattle
ALL OF THESE BECAME PART OF LATER INDIAN CULTURE

10. Mysterious End Neared its end around 1500 BCE What happened? THEORIES
Indus River changed course and no longer fertilized fields near the cities
People wore out the valley’s land from overgrazing, overfarming, overcutting
A sudden catastrophe or natural disater
Attack from human enemies, probably a nomadic tribe

11. Mohenjo-daro view of the “Citadel”

12. The “Great Bath”

13. another view of the “Great Bath”

14. view of a small, side street

15. looks like a small tower, but actually it is a neighborhood well

16. A bathroom on a private residence

17. A public well in Harappa, or perhaps an ancient laundromat...

18. A large drain or sewer

19. Harappan grain store house