100 years of Discovery of Harappan Civilisation

Posted 17 Oct 2024

Updated 22 Oct 2024

6 min read

Why in the News?

It has been 100 years since John Marshall, then director general of the Archaeological Society of India, announced the discovery of “Harappa civilization” on September 20, 1924.

About Harappa Civilization

Background: Harappa civilization also known as ‘Indus Valley Civilisation’. It was discovered first at Harappa in modern day Punjab province of Pakistan in 1921 by Daya Ram Sahni.
- It is identified as a Bronze-age civilization because many objects have been found that are made up of copper-based alloys.
Location: North-western regions of Indian subcontinent. It spans across 2,000 sites in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Most of the sites are found located between Indus and Saraswati River basins.
Extent of Civilization: Daimabad in Maharashtra (Southernmost), Alamgirpur in UP (Easternmost), Sutgakendor in Pakistan (Westernmost), and Manda in Jammu (Northernmost).
Time-Period: It flourished from 6000 BCE to 1300 BCE. The archaeological findings reveal the gradual development of the Harappan culture.
- Early Harappan (6000 BCE-2600 BCE) is a formative phase of the civilisation.
- Mature Harappan (2600 BCE-1900 BCE), the urban phase of the civilization, represents its most prosperous period.
- This decadent phase (1900 BCE-1300 BCE) is termed as Late Harappan.

A timeline titled "Period of Ancient Civilisation" shows the development of major ancient civilizations. The timeline is represented by a horizontal arrow pointing right, marked at intervals for 4000 BCE, 3000 BCE, and 2000 BCE. Starting from the left, there is a label for the "Beginning of Mesopotamian civilisation" at 4000 BCE, accompanied by an image of an ancient stone carving of a figure. Next, at 3000 BCE, the "Beginning of Egyptian civilisation" is marked, with an image of the Great Pyramid and Sphinx. At 2000 BCE, the "Indus-Sarasvati civilization" is depicted with an image of the ruins of the Indus Valley. An arrow connects this label slightly below the main timeline, indicating its timeframe around 2000 BCE.

Key Features of Harappa Civilization

	Key Features
Town planning and Architecture	Town Planning Grid Pattern: Towns were in a rectangular grid pattern with roads at right angles. Use of Burnt Bricks: Used burnt mud bricks joined with gypsum mortar (In contemporary Egypt dried bricks were used). Underground drainage system connecting all houses to the street drains. Architecture Included large citadels, granaries, the famous Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro, and multi-story buildings that showcased their architectural prowess.
Agriculture	Agriculture: Fields were ploughed using a wooden ploughshare. Main crops: Wheat, Rice, millets, barley, lentil, chickpea and sesame etc. They were earliest to produce cotton in the world (Greeks called it Sindon). Domestication of Animals: Oxen, buffaloes, goats, sheep, pigs, dogs, cats, asses, humped bulls camels were domesticated. Elephants & Rhinoceros were well known to them.
Craft	They were skilled in spinning, boat-making, seal making, terracotta manufacturing (potter’s wheel), goldsmiths, bead making. The variety of materials used to make beads is remarkable: stones like carnelian (of a beautiful red colour), jasper, crystal, quartz and steatite; metals like copper, bronze and gold; and shell, faience and terracotta or burnt clay. Seals made mostly from Steatite primarily used for commercial purposes, as amulets, as form of identification, for educational purposes as well. Iron was not known to the people.
Arts	Bronze Casting: Harappa used ‘lost wax’ technique or Cire Perdue for bronze casting. E.g., ‘Dancing Girl’ standing in a ‘tribhanga’ dancing posture. Stone Statues: Bearded man (made of Steatite) found in Mohenjo-daro interpreted as a priest. Red sandstone figure of a male torso (found in Harappa). Terracotta Figures: E.g., Mother Goddess, mask of horned deity, toys, etc
Trade and Commerce	Internal and foreign trade: The use of standardized weights and measures facilitated trade and commerce. Foreign trade was mainly conducted with Mesopotamia, Afghanistan and Iran. Mesopotamian records called Indus region as Meluha and mentions two intermediate trading stations i.e., Dilmun (Bahrain) & Makan (Makran coast). They exported grain, jewellery and pottery and imported thin copper and precious stones.
Religion & Culture	Deities: They worshiped male deity Pasupati (proto-Siva) represented in seals as sitting in a yogic posture and female deity Mother Goddess represented in terracotta figurines. Phallus (Linga) worship was also prevalent. No temples have been found from any of the Harappan sites. Nature Worship: Trees (e.g., pipal) and animals were also worshipped by Harappans.
Writing System	Pictographic script: Written in boustrophedon style i.e., writing in right to left in one line & then left to right in next line. However it has been not deciphered yet.

Significance of Discovery of Harappa Civilization
Provides earliest evidence of settled life in South Asia.	Advanced urban planning influenced later urban development concepts.	Provides earliest evidence of extensive trade networks & cultural exchanges in ancient world.	Addressing Climate change Mitigation as it is believed IVC declined due to environmental changes.

Challenges Regarding Harappa Civilization

Undeciphered Writing System: Limits our understanding of the language, culture, and beliefs of the Harappa Civilization.

New Evidences for Harappa Civilization

New Archaeological excavation reveals 5,200-year-old Harappan settlement at Padta Bet in Kachchh, Gujarat.
DNA analysis of skeletons from Rakhigarhi revealed that DNA of the Harappans has continued till today and a majority of South Asian population appears to be their descendants.
- Due to trade and cultural contacts of the Harappans with distant regions, there is a mixture of genes in small quantities.

Lack of Clear Hierarchies: While the Harappa Civilization had cities and residential segregation, there is no definitive evidence of a centralized political authority or a clear social hierarchy.
Role of Women: While there are some depictions of women in art and seals, their exact status and rights remain unclear.
Decline of Harappa Civilization: Many factors such as decline in soil fertility, earthquake, climate change, and invasion by Aryan etc. are attributed decline of Harappa civilization however exact reason is unknown.
Challenges About Excavation
- Limited Excavation: Political and geographic factors, such as the India-Pakistan border and local development, have hindered more extensive archaeological work.
- Recovering and Classifying Artifacts: Valuable artefacts that are found intact were either lost in the past or hoarded and never retrieved.
- Destruction of sites: The sites of the Indus Valley Civilization were buried for thousands of years, and many have been subject to damage due to flooding, erosion, or modern development.

Conclusion

The Harappa Civilization, one of the earliest and most advanced urban societies of the ancient world declined by 1300 BCE. However, it left its mark in urban planning, craftsmanship, and metallurgy etc. Despite the mysteries surrounding its undeciphered script and sudden decline, the Harappans contributed significantly to the cultural and historical foundation of South Asia.

Major Cities/Sites & Findings
Site/city	Location	Discovered/Excavated by	Major Findings
Harappa	Pakistan	Daya Ram Sahni in 1921	Red sandstone Male torso, Stone symbols of Lingam, Granaries, Mother Goddess etc.
Mohenjo-Daro	Pakistan	R D Banerjee in 1922	Town Planning, Citadels, Drainage system, Great Bath
Ganweriwala	Cholistan area of Pakistan	Rafique Mughal in 1973	Terracotta unicorn figurines, Twisted clay tablet with Indus script etc.
Rakhigarhi	Haryana in India	First discovered in the 1960s by Archeological Survey of India.	Granary, cemetery, drains, terracotta bricks.
Dholavira	Rann of Kachchh (Gujarat)	Jagat Pati Joshi in 1968	Unique water harnessing system and its storm water drainage system, only site divided in 3 parts, Megalithic stone circle.
Lothal	Gujrat	S Rao in 1955	Dockyard, fire altars