2.

2 Ancient and Medieval India

The Harappan civilisation was the first urban civilisation in South Asta, contemporaneoue
with the civilisations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Of the three aforementioned civilisations,
historian.
the Harappan civilisation occupied most area (about 8,00,000 sq km). Earlier
had called this civilisationthe Indus Valley Civilisation, but since then, major settlemente
have been excavated in the Ghaggar-Hakra belt that spread far beyond the Indus region
the
Harappa, as the first archaeological site to be discovered, therefore gives its name to
Bron
entire civilisation. It forms a part of the proto-history of India, and belongs to the man.
civilisations, in
Age. While it is classified as acivilisation that is older than Chalcolithic
Chalcolithic Age. The Harannan
ways it was far more developed than settlements in the
civilisation can be classified in three phases":
(i) The Early/Pre-Harappanphase (c. 3200-2600 BCE)
(ii) Mature Harappan phase (c. 2600-1900 BCE)
(iii) Late Harappan phase (c. 1900-1300 BCE)
'Ageneral time range is specified as there is a great deal of variation in the dates for different phases.
There exists an undeniable cultural continuity among all the phases of the Harappan
civilisation, yet they differ slightly from each other. The Early Harappan phase, known as the
Regionalisation Era, was the formative, proto-urban phase of the Harappan civilisation. It is
related tothe Hakra phase of settlements, and the settlements in this period are marked by
their fortification, afairly high levelof expertise in specialised crafts such as stone-working,
bead-making, and metal-crafting, the use of wheeled transport, and the existence of trade
networks. Most raw materials except jade, which has not been found in early Harappan
settlerments, are similar to the ones used in the mature Harappan phase. However, it did not
have the large cities that defined the mature Harappan phase, neither did it have as much
expertise in craft specialisation. Some of theearly Harappan archaeological sites are Padr1
in Gujarat, Kalibangan in Rajasthan, Dholavira in Kutch, Harappain West Punjab, Balakot.
Amri,and Bhirrana in Haryana, Kot Dijiand Gumla. It is noteworthy to add that there are
no early Harappan sites in the active Indus plain.
The Mature Harappan phase, or the Integration Era, was the urban phase of the Harappan
civilisation, which shows the characteristics of a full-fledged civilisation. It is
pertinent to notethat the unqualifiedterm, 'Harappan Culture' or 'Harappan Civilisation,
primarily refers to this mature urban phase, It is equally important is to understand the fact
that the use of term Harappan Culture' or 'Harappan Civilisation' for all the excavated sites
does not mean that all the other sites are identical toHarappa. It only pertains to the tact
that the other sites have the same basic set of Harappan material traits, such as the typical
red and black pottery, terracotta figurines, standardised brick size in 1:2:4 ratio, and so on.
The last phase of the Harappan civilisation, that is to say, the Late Harappan phase orfinalthe
Localisation Era, was the post-urban phase defined by a decline in the cities, This is the
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.3

period in the Harappan civilisation and refers to the fragmentation of the culture of the
Integration Era. The Late Harappan phase comprises five geographical zones each having
distinct phases the West Punjab Phase (Cemetery- H Culture),the Bast Punjab Phase,
the Jhukar Phase, the Rangpur Phase, and the Ganga-Yamuna Doab Phase. Late Harappan
settlements were small compared tomature Harappan ones. The transition from the mature
phase does not show any sudden discontinuity as such, but there is a gradual change in seals,
pottery confined writing, in the frequency of cubical weights, and so on. The Late Harapparn
settlements were also more in number, but they were smaller and more rural, though
marked by adiverse agricutural base. Important Jhukar sites are Jhukar, Chanhudaro, and
Amri. Rangpur Phase sites are in Kutch, Saurashtra and mainland Gujarat.
GENERAL FEATURES OF THE MATURE
HARAPPAN PHASE
Archaeological evidence reveals a great deal about the Harappan civilisation, which is
marked by both cultural homogeneity as wellas diversity. There is still no totaly accepted
theory on the origin of Harappan culture but generally it is believed to have either emerged
from pre-Harappan/indigenous village culture (which may be the more reasonable view),or,
as argued by diffusionist theorists,owes its origin to the Mesopotamian Civilisation. The
area occupied by theHarappan ciilisation was triangular in shape and was largest among
the three ancient urban civilisations, the other two being ancient Egypt and Mesopotamaia
(present day Iraq). It roughly covers modern day Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat, and
Pakistan.
N(Manda in Jammu)

W
(Suktagendoe in Baluchistan) E(Alamgirpur in UP)

S(Malvan in South Gujarat)

Town Planning
Harappan civilisation is known for its urban outlook and sophisticated sense of civic
planning and organisation. In most cases the Harappan city was divided into two parts:
Citadel/Raised Part This part occupied a smaller area, and was frequently
situated to the west of the city. Rulers of the city lived here. It also contained public
buildings, granaries, and important workshops.
Lower Part - The common citizenry lived and carried on their professional lives in
this part of the city.
 2.4 Ancient and Medieval India

City planning roughly followed a grid pattern and streets rarn from north and cut at
angles. Distinguishing aspects of Harappan town planning are as follows: ripht
The streets were wide, the main street being ten metres wide and dividing tthe
into rectangular and square blocks. town
There were lamp-posts at intervals. They used burnt bricks of good qualityof
and the unique feature of this brick was its identical ratio of 1:2:4 in terms
thickness:width:length across all Harappan structures. Equally striking was tha
uniformityin the average size of bricks- 7x 14 x28 cm' for houses and 10 30
x40cm for city walls.
They had an excellent drainage system drainswere made of mortar, lime and
gypsum and covered with large brick slabs for easy cleaning.
Houses were often of two or more storeys, though varied in size but quite
monotonous. No window faced the streets and the houses had tiled bathrooms
Some houses had their own wells.

Society
The Harappan society was an urban society, comprising mostly
of the middle classes. The houses excavated suggest at least
three distinct socialgroups: Ruled, rich merchants and poor
labourers who lived in the lower part of the city. However,
there is still no dear idea amnong historians about the nature of
inheritance in Harappan society. Other characteristic features
of the Harappan society were:
The Harappans were great experts in the use of the
potter's wheel but were poor in artistic works of stone.
Primarily red black pottery (red ware pottery painted
with black designs, usually that of trees and circles)
was popular. Some of these pots were used for storing
grain or water, while some perforated pots were
probably used for brewing fermented alcoholic beverages.
A lot of terracotta has been found at many sites, including figurines of animals
such as bulls, buffaloes, dogs, monkeys, toy carts, and humans. Terracotta bangles
have also beenfound. It is important to note that more female figurines have been
uncovered in comparison to male figurines.
The Harappans refined the art of bead-making, and jewellery excavated includes
gold and silver jewelery, including necklaces, bracelets, pendants, earring
brooches. At Allahdino (near Karachi), a lot of necklaces made of gold silver,
carnelian and semi precious stones have been found.
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.5

" Copper, bronze, silver, and gold were metals known and used by Harappans, but
iron was not.

They were alsogood at metallurgy and producing alloys. The craftsmen used to
both make artifacts out of pure copper as well as bronze such as spears, knives,
short swords, mirrors, axes, needles, rings, and bangles. It is rather interesting
that the number of pure copper artifacts was far greater than alloyed bronze ones,
but it does not mean technological backwardness rather points towards cultural
preference in all likelihood.
Harappan people generally wore garments of cotton / wool.
The Harappans relished non-vegetarian food. Fish-eating was common. Milk and
curd was also consumed.
The Harappan societies of Sindh and Punjab largely consumed wheat and barley
while those of Rangpur and Surkotda consumed rice and millets.
The Harappan script was pictographic and logosyllabic (each symbol stood for a
word/syllable). Harappan writing was boustrophedon, that is tosay, right to left
and left to right in alternate lines. The Harappan script has not been deciphered so
far. The evidence of a common script however points to great cultural integration,
and itsvirtual disappearance by c.1700 BCEhints at the lack of sufficient downward
percolation of writing.

Economy
Theinferences about Harappan Economy havebeenderivedfromits flourishing trade relations
with its contemporary Mesopotamian and Persian civilisations. The Mesopotamians called
the Indus Region 'Meluhha'. The Mesopotamian texts speak of three intermediate trading
stations called Dilmun (probably Bahrain on Persian Gulf), Makan (probably the Makran
coast, Oman) and, Meluhha. Seals hold a special significance in the Harappan context. Every
merchant probably had a seal bearing an emblem, often of areligions character and a name /
brief description on one side. The standard Harappa seal was a square/oblong plaque made
of steatite stone. Though its primary purpose is inferred to mark the ownership of property,
they may also have served as amulets. The key aspects of Harappan trade networks and
economy are as follows:
They carried out internal and external trade. There was no metallic money in
circulation and trade was conducted by means of barter. Inland transport primarily
employed bullock carts.
2.6 Ancient and Medieval India

Seals
Harappans seals have been found in Mesopotamian cities like Susa and Ur. in
Nippur, a seal has been found bearing Harappan script and a unicorn. Recently,
some ancient sites in the Persian Gulf like Failaka and Bahrain have also yielded
Harappan seals.
In Mohenjo-Daro, three cylinder seals of the Mesopotamian type have been found,
which underlines their trading relations.
In Lothal, a button seal has been found.
There were bead-making factories at Chanhudaro and Lothal. The products of these
factories were items ofexport.
- Adockyard has been exacavated in Lothal and sea ports have been found at
Rangpur, Somnath and Balakot.
Aremarkable aspect of the Harappan Culture was its standardisation and accuracy
in the context of weights and measures. Weights followed a binary system in the
lower denominations -1, 2, 8, 16,32 to 64, and then in decimal multiples of loU
like 160, 320, 640, 1600, 3200, and so on.
Weights were made of chert, limestone, and steatite and were generally cubical in
shape.
Measures of length were based on the foot (37.6 cm) the cubit (51.8 to 53.3 cm). A
shell scale has been found at Mohenjo-Daro, a shell object probably used to measure
angles has been found at Saurashtra, and an ivory scale has been discovered at
Lothal.
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.7

Harappan Imports
Metals
Source Region
Gold Afghanistan, Iran, Kolar (South India)
Copper Khetri (Rajasthan), Baluchistan
Tin |Afghanistan, Iran
Lapis lazui Afghanistan
Jade Pamir
Turquoise Khorasan
Steatite Tapi Chahya (Iran)
Bitumin Baluchistan, Mesopotamia
Lead South India

ANDIA
PAKISIN
R QUATOR
Indtan ocean

OtANTE Bac t r i

Gut

SOUTH ASIA Rakhigahi

26001900 BC
Ancient oivitizouon Kara Saras wari Rher
Cancent river)
rsancenter Dholavira
Teacde route ARABIAN
Setttemernt SEA
day boundaries
place-names in gray

Trade Routes of Indus Valley

Religion
Harappan civilisation is considered as asecular society as not asingle structure qualifying
as temple has been found. Sacred ritual spots included the Great Bath at Mohenjo-Daro,
where the elite in all likelihood undertook ritual activity that incuded ceremonial bathing.
ldolatry was practiced. The Harappan people generally worshipped:
 2.8 Ancient and Medieval India

Mother goddess
Pashupati Mahadeva or proto-Shiva(mostly an upper class preference,
him in a yogic posture) seals depict

Pashupati Shiva
" Lingam (phallus) and yoni worship (cult of fertility)

Fertility Goddess
Pipal tree
Humped Bull
Birds (dove and pigeon)
One-horned unicorn (may in fact be the
Other key inferences about the rhinocerous)
Harappan
Fire altars have been found in Religious practices are as follows:
The seal of Pashupati Kalibangan and Lothal.
buffalo, and a deer, andMahadeva
is surrounded by an
it is likely that these elephant, a tiger, a
Dead bodies were placed in a animals were also worshipped.
by objects including food, north-south direction and were generally accompa
pottery, ornaments, and tools. These items
were
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.9

expensive in comparison to those in contemporary Mesopotamian or Egyptian

cultures.
Used threemethods of burial:
Complete burial
Fractional burials (where the bones were gathered and buried after exposure
of the body to birds and beasts)
Cremation followed by burial of the ashes
In Harappa, coffins containing bodies have been found.
In Kalibangan, small circular pits containing large urns and pottery have been
found. Furthermore, a triangular terracotta calke has been discovered, which has a
horned deity on one side and an animal being dragged by a human on the end of a
rope on the other, pointing towards animal sacrifice in all likelihood.
At Lothal, a pair of male and female skeletons have been discovered together.

Agriculture
The Harappan civilisation was the earliest known civilisation to produce cotton. Known as
'Sindon' by the Greeks as from Sindh. In the Indus plain, people sowed seeds in the flood
plains in November, when the flood water receded and reaped their harvests of wheat and
barley in April, before the advent of the next flood. They produced sufficient food grains
to feed themselves and the surplus food grains was stored in granaries. The characteristic
features pertaining to the agricultural practices of the Harappans are mentioned below:
The Harappans grew wheat (especially in Mehrgarh), barley, horse gram, peas,
melon, watermelon, sesame, dates, millets, grapes, henna (mehndi), garlic, mustard,
rice (Lothal).
They also exploited riverine and marine resources wherever possible. For example,
coastal sites of
molluscs were an important protein-rich food element in the
Gujarat people.
cattle (oxen,
The Harappans domesticated animals on a large scale. Besides
buffaloes,goats, humped bulls, sheep,pigs, asses, camels),cats and dogs were also
domesticated.
with the
Horse wasn't regular used but the Harappans were well acquainted
was not
elephant and the rhinoceros. It is pertinent to note that Harappan culture
horse-centred.
rare. On different
Tigers were often represented in figurines but leopards were
wild fowl
pottery paintings one can easily find rabbits,peacocks, ducks, pigeons,
and monkeys.
 2.10 Ancient and Medieval India

Ploughed fields, possibly with the help of wooden

wooden ploughs, have been
at Kalibangan. Terracotta models of plough have been found
Bahawalpur.
found at discovered
Banawali and
Remains of horses at Surkotda and dogs with men in graves at Ropar
discovered. have been
Decline

The Harappan decline is roughly dated around 1900 BCE,but no archaeological ed

accurately provides an explanation for the de-urbanisation. The Mature phase wasfol
by the late Harappan phase. Possible theories of decline of the Harappan Civilisation avs es
follows:
Cause Historian
Aryan Invasion Wheeler,Gordon
Ecological disturbance Fairchild
Change in River course Dales, M.S. Vatsa, H.T. Lambrick
Low Rainfall Stein
Flood Macay, S.R. Rao
Drying of Ghaghar and Increasing Aridity D.P. Aggarwal and Sood
Earthquake Raikes and Dales
Natural Calamities K.A.R. Kennedy
Famous Harappan Sites
Site State River Excavator Specialty
Harappa Pakistan Ravi Dayaram Two rows of six granaries
(Punjab) Sahini Evidence of coffn burial and
(1921) cemetery 'H culture
Single room barracks
Two red stone idols of a
dancing girl and naked bust
of male, female genitalia.
Evidence of direct
trade Interaction with
Mesopotamia,
Post-cremation burials more
numerous.
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-190O BCE)/Bronze AgeCivilisation 2.11

Mohenjo-Daro Pakistan Indus R. D. - Multi-pillared assembly Hall

(Sindh) Banerji Great Bath (a public venue)
(1922)
College of Priests.
Large granary
"Mound of the E. Makay, - Piece of woven cotton cloth
dead" Kashinath Superficial evidence of Horse
Dixit,
Sir John Bronze dancing girl
Marshall - Violent death of some
(1930) inhabitants (discovery of
human skeletons together)
Seal representing Mother
Goddess, Pashupati, bearded
man and a woman to be
sacrified,.
Evidence of ship/big boat
Bangles of clay
Lothal Gujarat Bhogava S.R. Rao Dockyard
(Ahmedabad and (1957) Important sea trade Centre
District, at Sabarmati and bead-making factory
the head of river
Town not divided into two
the Gulf of confluence
sectors
Cambay) City divided into six sectors
and each section was built on a
wide platform of unique brick
Remains of rice husks

Houses with entrances on

the main street (houses of all
other sites had side entries)
Painting on a jar resembling
the story of the cunning fox
in Panchatantra
Evidence of double burial
(male and female together).
 2.12 | Ancient and Medieval India

Brick-built tank-like structure

Seal from Mesopotamia
found here
- Ivory scale found here
Terracota model of ship has
been found
The lower part of the city is
walled
- Fire altars
Kalibangan Rajasthan Ghaggar Amlanand - Ploughed fheld
(Ganganagar) Ghosh
"Black Fire altars showing practice
(1953) of cult of sacrifice
Bangles"
Remains of massive brick
Dr. B. B. wallaround both citadel and
Lal and B. lower town
K. Thapar Bones of camel
(1961)
Not as well-planned and
organised as Mohenjo-Daro,
did not even have a drainage
system
Burials in circular and
rectangular grave
Provides evidence of pre
Harappan civilisation at
lower layer of excavation and
mature Harappan at upper
layer of excavation
Decorative bricks used in
flooring only at this site
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.13

Chanhu-Daro Pakistan Indus N.G. Remains of both pre-Harappan

(Sindh), near Mazumdar and Mature Harappan culture.
Mohenjo (1931) and Bead factory site as lots of
Daro
E. Makay beads, seals, ornaments
unearthed

Residents were good craftsmen.

No fortified structure
Only Harappan city without a
citadel
Evidence of Human sacrifice
Clay model of four-wheeler
Bronze model of roofed
chariot
Rangpur Gujarat Madar M.S. Vatsa Remains of both pre
(Near Lothal) River (1931) Harappan and Mature
Harappan culture
S.R. Rao Flakes
(1953-54) Yellow and grey color pots of
pre-Harappan people.
Banawali Haryana Rangoi R.S. Bist Centre of pre-Harappan,
(Hisar) (1973-74) Mature Harappan as well as
Late Harappan civilisation
High quality barley
Ceramics, steatite seal
Fire altars
Clay model of plough
Seals found only in lower
town and not in citadel
Alamgirpur Meerut (UP) Hindon Y.D. Late- Harappan culture
Sharma Impression of doth on a
(1958) trough
Pottery and beads
 2.14 Ancient and Medieval India

Koti-Diji Sindh Sindh Ghurey Pre- Harappan site

(Pakistan) (1835) House made of stone
Fazal City destroyed by force
Ahmed
(1955)
Amri Sindh Sindh Ghurey
(1835)
Pre-Harappan settlement
(Pakistan) Transitional culture between
Fazal pre- and post- Harappan
Ahmed culture
(1955) Actual remains of rhinoceros.
trace of jhangar culture in
Late Harappan and fire altars.
Ropar Punjab (India) Sutlej Y.D. Cemetery, seal,earthen pot.
Sharma
Buildings mainly of stone and
(1955-56) soil.
Evidence of burying dog
below hunan.
Surkotada Gujarat (Bhuj) J.P. Joshi - Bones of horse and graveyard.
(1964)
Suktagendor Sindh Dasht/ A
Stein, Ash filled pot, copper axe,
(Pakistan) Dashak George earthen bangles &pottery
Baluchistan River Dales Originally aport but later cut
off from sea due to coastal
uplift
- Had trade links with Babylon.
Dholavira J.P. Joshi Giant water reservoir
Gujarat
(1990-91) - Unique water harvesting
System.
- An Inscription comprising
ten large sized signs of the
Harappan script similar to a
signboard.
Shows all three phases of
Harappan Culture.
Large-scale use of sandstone
along with mud brick.
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze AgeCivilisation2.15

Rakhigarhi Haryana Over 350 hectares with

(Near Hisar), new findsof two additional
Bhirrana mounds, making it the
(Fatehgarh) largest IndusValley
Civilisation site and town in
the world.
Shows allthree phases of
Harappan Culture.
At Bhirrana afragmented
artefact of a thick, sturdy red
ware with an incised fernale
figure has been found, with
a pose similar to the bronze
Mohenjo-Daro 'dancing girl.
Harappan Egyptian/Mesopotamian
(1) Planned towns with chess board system, (1) Towns show a haphazard growth.
excellent drainage system.
(2) Rectangular houses with brick-lined (2) Such town planning absent.
bathrooms and wells together with their
stairways are found in all Harappan cities.
(3) Produced their own characteristic pottery (3) Nosuch unique aspect.
and seals.
(4)Invented their owm typical script, which (4) Mesopotamia has cuneiform script
bears no resemblance to the Egyptian and and the Egyptian script is known
Mesopotamian scripts. as hieroglyphics. Both scripts have
been deciphered, which tell us a lot
about the civilisations.
(5) Script mostly on seals. (5) Mesopotarnians pressed letters onto
moist cday tablets while Egyptians
wrote on papyrus sheets made of reeds.
(6) No signs of existence after 1900 BCE (6)Continued to exist even after
1900 BCE
(7) Spread over a wider area. (7) Less area as compared to Harappa.
Post-Urban Phase of Harappan Culture/Late Harappan Phase (c.1900 BCE-1300 BCE)
The Mature Harappan phase was followed by the Late Harappan phase, which was marked
bythe declineof urban life and the diversification of agriculture. The stylistic homogeneity
of Harappan ivilisation disappeared and the post-Harappan stage was marked by sharp
 2.16 Ancient and Medieval India

stylistic diversity. There was a complex interplay of change and

continuity. Elements of
urbanismn like seals, specialised crafts, cities, long distance trade, and so on,
declined but did
not completely disappear. Some of the few urban centres surviving in the Late
were Kudwala in Cholistan, Bet Dwarka in Gujarat, and Daimabad. Akey Harappanin
this phase was the beginning of double cropping-wheat and barley were grown as winterdevelopment
crops and rice, millets, and sorghum were grown as summer crops. Other key
this period were: features of
The declining culturein this phase is also referredto as sub-Indusculture,
The rural settlements of this phase are primarily Chalcolithic in nature.
The post-urban Harappans lived in villages, subsisting on agriculture, stock-raising
hunting, and fishing.
In this period, painted Harappan pottery is replaced with less intricate desiens
and painted grey ware (PGW). Al Late Harappan sites lack human figurines. In
comparison with Mature Harappan pottery, the pottery in the Late Harappan
phase was less bright. The pots were thicker and sturdier and many peculiar
Harappan shapes like perforated jars, s-shaped jars disappeared.
No object for measuring length is noticed.
The period marks the end of the Harappan trade with West Asian centres,as lapis
lazuli, chert, carnelian beads, copper and bronze vessels, are either absent or scarce
as trade items.

Important places pertaining to this phase are Prabhas Patan (Somnath),Rangpur

(Gujarat), Swat Valley, Manda in Jammu, Sanghol in Punjab, Daulatpur in Haryana,
Alangirpur, Hulas in U.P
 Harappan Civilisation (c. 2600-1900 BCE)/Bronze Age Civilisation 2.17

Latest Developments
Scientists from IT-Kharagpur and the Archaeological Survey of India
(AS) have uncovered evidence that the Indus Valley Civilisation is
at least 8,000 years old, and not 5,500 years old, taking root well
before the Egyptian (7000 BCE-3000 BCE) and Mesopotamian
(6500 BCE - 3100 BCE) civilisations. What's more, the researchers
have found evidence of a pre-Harappan civilisation that existed for
at least 1,000 years before this.
b. The civilisation proliferated to other Indian sites like Bhirrana
and Rakhigarhi in Haryana, apart from the known locations of
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro in Pakistan and Lothal, Dholavira and
Kalibangan in india.
C. The scientists believe they also know why the civilisation ended
out 3,000 years ago-cdimate change. The Indus Valley people
were very resolute and flexible and continued to evolve even in the
face of declining monsoon. The people shifted their crop patterns
from large-grained cereals like wheat and barley during the early
part of intensified monsoon to drought-resistant species like rice in
the latter part. As the yield diminished, the organised large storage
system of the Mature Harappan period gave way to more individual
household-based crop processing and storage systems that acted
as acatalyst for the de-urbanisation of the civilisation rather than
an abrupt collapse, they say.
2.18 Ancient and Medieval India

Doyou Know?
à. Burnt Bricks: Harappa
Dried Bricks: Egypt
Baked Bricks: Mesopotamia/Sumeria
At the time of the Harappan civilisation, Sindh and
b
not desert areas as they are today. Rajasthan were
C. The Great Bath at Mohenjo-Daro served ritual bathing.
d. Contemporary Sumerian cities also
and domesticated the same animals asproduced the same food grains
Harappans, but the Harappan
people in Gujarat produced rice and domesticated
was not the case with the people of elephants, which
e.
Mesopotamian cities.
The Harappans knew the use of wheel but
wheel.
not that of the spoked
f No temples or religious structures (except the
found at Harappa. It is very likely that no priestsGreat Bath) have been
they did in Mesopotamia. ruled in Harappa, as
g. The Harappans did
not have weapons.
h. The Inhabitants of the Indus
region worshipped gods in the form of
trees, animals,and human beings, but the
temples as was done inancient Egypt and gods were not placed in
Mesopotamia.
Terracotta refers to figurines made of fire-baked
Female terracotta figurines outnumber male earthen day.
Harappa. figurines in the case of
Aithough Harappan culture was a Bronze Age
used bronze on a limited scale,and Culture, yet they
implements. largely continued to use stone
k. Ragi or Finger Millets have not been
North India. found in any Harappan site in
1.
Shortughai is a Harappan trading post in
m. Pre-Harappan Afghanistan.
Banwali Phase--Kot Digi, Amri, Harappan, Kalibangan,
Mature phase--Harappa, Mohanjo-Daro,
Chanhudaro, Kalibangan