Indus Valley Civilization Notes for UPSC

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Team 99Notes October 1, 2022

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Indus Valley Civilization
The extent of the Harappan civilization
Chronology of Excavations/Discovery of sites
FAQ’s Related to Indus Valley Civilization Notes for UPSC
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Indus Valley Civilization

Indus Valley Civilization, also known as Harappan civilization was the first urban culture
in the Indian subcontinent. It was a bronze age culture that flourished in North-western
Indian subcontinent. It was earlier known as the Indus valley civilization as most sites
discovered were near the Indus valley river system. However, as the discovery of newer
sites outside the Indus river system progressed it became clear that the extent of the
civilization covered even the Ganga plains. Scholars now prefer to call it Harappa
Civilization, after name of the first site discovered here.

Chronology of Indus Valley Civilization

Although various sites in the Indus valley dates back to the Neolithic era from before
5000BCE, the ‘bronze age’ Harappan civilization is dated between 3300 BCE to 1300
BCE. This whole period is divided into three phases: Early Harappan, Mature Harappan
and Late Harappan, as given below –
 Harappan Phases Important Features
Sites

Early 1A/B Ravi Phase Harappa, Amri Regionalisation Phase Small

Harappan (Hakraware) (3300 Nal settlementsDevelopment of trade
(3300- – 2800BCE) network, Increasing
2600BCE) Specialisation in Crafts
2 – Kot Diji Phase Kot Diji
(2800-2600BCE)

Mature Further divided Mohenjo-Daro, Integration Phase Organised

Harappan into three phases: Harappa, irrigation system Full-scale
(2600- 3A (2600- Kalibangan, urbanisation,Emergence of
1900BCE) 2450BCE) 3B Dholavira. writing Uniformity in artefacts,
(2450-2200BCE) Full-fledged trade
3C (2200-
1900BCE)

Late 4 – Transitional Late Siswal, Localisation phase Decline,

Harappan Phase (1900- Rojdi, Abandonment of some sites,Rise
(1900- 1700BCE) Rangpur of the pastoral mode
1300BCE)
5 – Cemetary H Cemetery-H at
Phase (1700- Harappa,
1300BCE) Ochre colour
pottery (OCP)

Early Harappan cultures

These are situated in four clusters of cultures which cover the entire Indus basin and parts
of Baluchistan. They are: –

Kot Dijian culture

It is the largest area covering NWFP, Pakistan’s Punjab and northern Sindh.
It was occupied during both the early Harappan and mature Harappan phases.
Kot Diji had a fortified settlement with a town divided into an upper citadel and
a lower town.
We find ‘well fired red and buff wares’ pottery with motifs like a horned deity,
pipal leaves and fish scales engraved in black.

Sothi-Siswal culture

It covers northern Rajasthan (Kalibangan), Indian Punjab and Haryana.

It was fortified with a wall.
Mud brick houses with central courtyards were found here.
 A large hoard of lapis lazuli micro-beads was found here.

Amri-Nal

Amri-Nal is spread in Baluchistan, Central and Southern Sindh, with extensions in

Gujarat.

Some of the settlements were fortified.

In Baluchistan, Nal pottery and Sindh, Amri pottery were found.
The people here were pastoralists, migrating to the highlands in summer and Indus
valley in winter.

Damb Sadaat

It is a part of Central Baluchistan.

Pottery similar to Kot Diji was found here but it had a distinct plant, animal and
geometric motifs.
Mature Harappan Culture

During this phase, Harappan culture reached its peak and was the largest civilisation in
the ancient world. It covered large parts of Pakistan and North-West India, and one site is
located in Afghanistan.

We have found some new types of potteries (style, clay fabrics, vessel forms and
painting) apart from the continuous previous phase.
There was an increasing use of bronze.
Use of Baked bricks in buildings and writing was now a standard across all sites.
Civic amenities such as houses with bathrooms, an efficient network of roads, and
an elaborate system of drainage and water supply system were now a common
feature across all sites.

Late Harappan Culture

By 1900BCE most of the mature Harappan cities were abandoned. People settled into
new sites in Gujarat, Haryana and western UP, although, a few older Harappan sites
continued to be occupied such as Siswal(Called late Siswal in late Harappan), Rangpur,
Swat and Jhukar.
There was a disappearance of distinctive features of Harappan culture such as
weights, seals, special beads, writing, long-distance trade, large public structures
and craft specialisation
House construction techniques deteriorated.
There seems to be the arrival of a new group of people with distinct burial practices.
They have different pottery than Harappans. Their cultures came to be known as
‘Cemetery H‘ culture (Late Siswal Culture).
The extent of the Harappan civilization
The Indus valley civilization extended from Manda in Kashmir to South Diamabad in the
south and from Suktagendor in the west to Alamgirpur in the East.

Major sites of Harappan Culture

There are hundreds of sites in the Harappan civilization. Most of them have similar finds
such as seals, beads, pottery and city structure. However, there are few major sites which
are rich in artefacts.
Following are the eight most important Indus valley civilization sites.
Mohenjo-Daro (the mound of the dead) It is the 2nd largest site250
hectares it is the 2nd largest site
of Harappan Culture after
Rakhigarhi.

Discovery and excavations by

RD Banerjee (1922) & John
Marshall, Ernest Mackay, K. N.
Dikshit (the 1930s).

Region: on River Indus in Sindh

Province, Pakistan

Structure of the town: The

town was divided into a western
citadel mound and an eastern
lower town. Both parts were built
on a platform and had walled
fortifications.

Major buildings/Artefacts
discovered here:

Buildings/Constructions:
Great Granary, Great Bath
(the largest building of
civilization), Assembly Hall,
Brick Kilns.
Sculptures: Bronze Image
of a nude woman dancer
(“The Dancing Girl”),
bronze bull, Steatite image
of a bearded man, Clay
figures of Mother Goddess,
cylindrical stones which
could be shiva-ling.
Seals: Pashupati
Mahadeva/ProtoShiva
(seal), 2 Mesopotamian
seals, 1398 seals (56% of
total seals of civilization).
 Other items found: Shell
strips, A fragment of woven
cotton, Dice, and Human
skeletons huddled together.

The Great Bath- is the unique

feature in this site. It was situated
in the citadel part of the town in a
hall.

In an adjacent room was a

big well, meant to supply
water to the bathing pool.
Drains were connected to
the bath for in-let and out-let
of water.
Imagesource: https://www.harappa.com/slide/great- A ring of rooms, both big
bath-mohenjo-daro-0 and small, as well as
corridors were around the
bath.
On three sides of the bath
were galleries for
spectators.
It is believed that the Great
Bath was for the exclusive
use of the ruling and
priestly classes.
Harappa Discovery and excavations by
Daya Ram Sahni(1930s).
Region: on river Ravi in Punjab,
Pakistan.
Structure of the town: Here too
the town was divided into a
western citadel mound and an
eastern lower town. The citadel
area was surrounded by a thick
mud-brick wall.
Major buildings/Artefacts
discovered here:
Buildings/Constructions:
6 Granaries in a row and a
https://www.harappa.com/slide/granary-harappa circular brick platform (for
threshing grains) in the
south of granaries, two
rooms barrack for housing
labourers, Cemetery R-37
and cemetery- H.
Sculptures: a red
sandstone male torso.
cylindrical stones which
could be shiva-ling.
Seals: Virgin goddess seal
Jewellery/Ornaments:
Vanity box
Other items found: Coffin
burials (only found here),
Piece of Pottery with Indus
Script, Copper scale,
Barley in a wooden mortar,
and Dice.
Kalibangan Discovery and excavations by
BB Lal and BK Thapad
Region: west of river Ghaggar in
Rajasthan, India
Structure of the site: It consists
of a higher citadel mound on the
west, and a lower residential
mound on the east. The citadel is
divided into a northern and
southern sector by a wall. In the
northern sector, a few houses
and a road has been recovered.
The southern sector has no
residential structure. This site
had pre-Harappan continuity.
Major buildings/Artefacts
https://www.harappa.com/blog/indus-cylinder- discovered here:
seals Buildings/Constructions:
mud brick platforms in the
southern sector of the
citadel had decorated
bricks. Sun dried bricks
were used in building
houses.
Seals: Mesopotamian style
cylindrical seal.
Other items found: a few
altars containing ash,
charcoal, and clay stele on
the mud brick platform of
the southern sector of the
citadel. Fire altars in the
eastern lower mound.
Ploughed field surface,
Wheels of a toy cart.
Chanhudaro Discovery and excavations by
N. G. Majumdar in March 1931.
Region: on River Indus in
Sindh, Pakistan
It is the only major site with no
fortified citadel. Discovery of
various factories for Bead
making, shell making, bangles
and ladles making suggest that it
was more of an industrial town.
Major buildings/Artefacts
discovered here:
Buildings/Constructions:
Workshops and industrial
quarters and some
warehouses were found
here.
Sculptures: A terracotta
model of a bullock cart,
Bronze toy cart.
Seals: Various Harappan
seal were manufactured
here.
Other items found: a
hoard of copper and bronze
tools.
Lothal Discovery and excavations by
S.R Rao in 1955.
Region: It is located in the low
deltaic region of the Saurashtra
peninsula on River Bhogava
inGujarat.
It is the only major port site of
Harappa. It is believed that the
sea was once closer to this site.
Here both the citadel and the
lower town are located within the
same complex. It was an
important site for shell working.
Major buildings/Artefacts
discovered here:
Buildings/Constructions:
warehouse building in the
citadel, a dockyard, fire
altars
Sculptures: A terracotta
model of a bullock cart and
a model of a ship. Bronze
https://www.harappa.com/lothal/14.html toy cart.
Seals: Terracotta seals
having impressions of reed,
woven fibre, cords, and
matting, Persian / Iranian
seal, Baharainean seal
Other items found: Double
burial (a male & a female in
a single grave), Rice husk
(found in only two places,
other is Rangapur), early
chess set, copper furnace.
Dholavira Discovery and excavations by
Jagat Pati Joshi in 1968.
Region: Situation on River Luni
in on an island in Runn of Kutch.
Instead of two, it has three parts a
town citadel-bailey(courtyard)
complex, a middle town and a
lower town located within the
same fortified complex.
Major buildings/Artifacts
discovered here:
Buildings/Constructions:
Buildings made of locally
available sandstone
instead of mud bricks.
Various reservoirs like such
as check dams to conserve
water, and a stadium.
Sculptures: Bronze animal
figurine, a stone sculpture
of a mongoose.
Other items found: a
Harappan inscription on a
signboard.
Banawali Discovery and
excavations by Dr R.S.Bhist in
1974.
Region: It is situated at
Dried Rangoi River in Haryana,
India
The town is fortified with a
radial pattern. The citadel and
lower town were situated in the
same complex. This site has
continuity of both pre and mature
Harappan cultures.
Major buildings/Artifacts
discovered here:
Buildings/Constructions:
A multi-roomed house may
be of a merchant.
Sculptures: terracotta
plough model
Seals: inscribed steatite
seals, terracotta seals,
Jewellery/ornaments:
beads of semi-precious
stones, terracotta, steatite
and bangles of clay, shell,
faience and copper.
Other items found: a
sophisticated red ware with
animal and floral design,
foil in gold, copper fish
hooks, and charred barley
grains.
Rakhigarhi (Hisar,Haryana) Area: It is the biggest site of
Harappa with recent finds
suggesting an area of around
550 hectares, being double the
size of Mohenjodaro. Here
Harappan Site is located exactly
below the present settlement.
River-Drishadvati River
It was continually inhabited
between 6000BCE to 2500BCE,
giving the indication of Gradual
evolution of the Harappans.
Major buildings/Artefacts
discovered here:
Around 40 human remains
were found. Some are
being used to recreate the
faces of Harappan
people.
Five trenches have
revealed residential rooms,
a bathroom with a soak jar,
Source:https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia- drainages, a hearth, and a
india-46806084 platform.
A seal and a potsherd, both
inscribed with the
Harappan script; The
potsherds are painted with
concentric circles, fish-net
designs, wavy patterns,
floral designs and
geometric designs;
Hopscotches and shell
bangles, steatite seals,
terracotta bangles,
terracotta unbaked sealing
with relief of elephants.
Structure of some houses,
lanes and a drainage
system, jewellery-making
unit were found.
 The structure of the house
revealed an aristocratic
settlement.

The Indus valley age saw many striking features that the civilizations of that time, namely,
Mesopotamia, Egypt and China lacked. These include the focus on sanitation, city
planning, secular society and the degree of equality. This aspect is discussed in detail in
our next page.

Chronology of Excavations/Discovery of sites

Following is the gist of all the major excavations that have taken place till date in the Indus
valley civilization.
Year Archaeologist Excavations/Finds

1829 Charles Masson He came across Harappa in 1829 and

wrongly identified it as Sangala, a city of the
time of Alexander.

1856 Alexander Cunningham (1st Visited Harappa & wrongly concluded it to be

ASI director) a Buddhist monastery.

1872- He published about 1st

75 Harappan Seal and said it
was not of Indian origin as it
depicted a bull without a
hump.

1900s Daya Ram Sahni (1st Indian Discovered many Seals in the area.
ASI director)

1921 Began excavating Harappa

with MS Vats, on the banks of
the river Ravi.

1921 Rakhal Das Banerji, Ernest – Found similar seals at Mohenjo-Daro,

JH Mackay, John Marshall leading to the conjecture that sites were part
(ASI director) of a single archaeological culture. –
Continued excavation by JH Mackay, GF
Dales & MS Vats.

1946 REM Wheeler Excavates Harappa and Kot Dijian deposits

1955 SR Rao Began excavations at Lothal.

1955 F.A Khan Identified Kot Diji

1960 BB Lal & BK Thapar Began excavations at Kalibagan

1974 MR Mughal Began excavations at Bahawalpur

1980 German & Italian team Began surface explorations at Mohenjo-

Daro.

1986 American team Began excavations at Harappa.

1990 RS Bisht Began excavations at Dholavira.

2004 L.S Rao Began excavations at Bhirrana (Haryana)

 2019 New archaeological findings in Keezhadi
(Tamil Nadu) suggested connection with
Harappan culture

2022 S K Manjul New round of excavations at Rakhigarhi

FAQ’s Related to Indus Valley Civilization Notes for UPSC

Who discovered harappan civilization?

Harappan Civilization was discovered by archaeologist Sir John Marshal and Daya Ram
Sahni in 1921. Daya Ram Sahni excavated the site of Harappa in modern day Pakistan.

Top 10 Sites of Indus Valley Civilization

10 famous sites of Indus Valley civilization-

1. Mohenjo-Daro, Pakistan
2. Harappa, Pakistan
3. Dholavira, India
4. Lothal, India
5. Kalibangan, India
6. Ganeriwala, Pakistan
7. Rakhigarhi, India
8. Surkotada, India
9. Rupar, India
10. Banawali, India

Which is the oldest civilization in the world?

Sumerian Civilization in Mesopotamia, dating back to around 4500BCE, is considered the

world’s oldest civilization. Indus Valley civilization (3300BCE- 1300BCE)

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