Indus Valley Civilization | General Knowledge Encyclopedia - Class 8 PDF Download

Indus Valley Civilization Facts for Kids

• The Indus Valley civilization, a Bronze Age civilization that thrived during the mature period from 2700 to 1700 BC, was discovered by archaeologists in the 1880s. It developed along the Indus River and the Ghaggar-Hakra River, encompassing present-day Pakistan, north-west India, and Afghanistan. 
• The civilization's heyday occurred between 2500 BC and 1500 BC, and its existence possibly extended from the 33rd to the 14th century BC, when considering the civilizations before and after.
• The Indus Valley civilization occupied a vast territory, stretching from Balochistan (Pakistan) to Gujarat (India). The first city excavated was Harappa, giving rise to the name 'Harappan Civilization' for this ancient culture.
• They were skilled builders, evident from the well-designed ruins of their cities. Their multi-story buildings featured attached bathrooms, and one notable aspect was the sophisticated drainage system. Each street had a brick-lined drainage channel with removable bricks for easy cleaning and inspection.
• Harappan traders used seals on sack knots to ensure they remained intact during transportation. However, their writing system remains undeciphered to this day.
• Charles Masson mentioned the Indus Valley sites in a book in 1842, but it went largely unnoticed. It was only in 1921-22 that John Marshall organized the first archaeological dig at Harappa, leading to significant discoveries about this ancient civilization.

Discovery and History of Excavation

• The ruins of Harappa were initially described in 1842 by Charles Masson in his Narrative of Various Journeys in Balochistan, Afghanistan, and the Punjab. He heard from locals about an ancient city spanning about 25 miles. In 1856, General Alexander Cunningham visited Harappa while the British engineers John and William Brunton were laying the East Indian Railway Company line between Karachi and Lahore. 
• They discovered an ancient ruined city near the railway lines. Cunningham observed the city's well-burnt bricks and used some of them for ballast. Later, another ruined city provided ballast for a significant portion of the railway track.
• In 1872-75, Alexander Cunningham published the first Harappan seal. However, it wasn't until 1912 that more Harappan seals were found, leading to an excavation campaign by Sir John Hubert Marshall in 1921-22, which eventually revealed the existence of the Harappan civilization at Harappa.
• By 1931, a substantial portion of Mohenjo-Daro had been excavated.
• In 2010, heavy floods in Haryana, India, damaged the archaeological site of Jognakhera, where ancient copper smelting furnaces dating back almost 5,000 years were found. Additionally, the Indus Valley Civilization site was impacted by flooding, with the Sutlej Yamuna link canal overflowing and submerging the area under almost 10 feet of water.

Geography

• The Indus Valley Civilization covered a vast region, including the majority of Pakistan and parts of northwestern India and Afghanistan. 
• It extended from Pakistani Balochistan in the west to Uttar Pradesh in the east, from northeastern Afghanistan in the north to Maharashtra in the south.
• The civilization's settlements were primarily located along rivers, but they were also found on the ancient seacoast, as seen in Balakot, and on islands, exemplified by Dholavira.

Early Harappan

• The Early Harappan Ravi Phase, which derived its name from the nearby Ravi River, existed from around 3300 BCE to 2800 BCE. It is associated with the Hakra Phase found in the Ghaggar-Hakra River Valley to the west and predates the Kot Diji Phase (2800–2600 BCE, Harappan 2), named after a site near Mohenjo Daro in northern Sindh, Pakistan. The earliest examples of the Indus script date back to the 3rd millennium BC.
• Recent discoveries from Bhirrana, Haryana, India, made by archaeologist K. N. Dikshit since 2012, suggest that Hakra ware from this area dates as far back as 7500 BCE, making Bhirrana the oldest site in the Indus Valley civilization.
• During this period, the culture engaged in trade with neighboring regions, connecting with related cultures and obtaining raw materials such as lapis lazuli for bead-making from distant sources. By this time, villagers had domesticated various crops, including peas, sesame seeds, dates, and cotton, as well as animals like the water buffalo. As the Early Harappan communities developed, they eventually evolved into large urban centers by 2600 BCE, marking the beginning of the mature Harappan phase.

Mature Harappan

By 2600 BCE, the Early Harappan communities had undergone significant urbanization, transforming into large urban centers. Notable urban centers of this period were Harappa, Ganeriwala, and Mohenjo-Daro in present-day Pakistan, as well as Dholavira, Kalibangan, Rakhigarhi, Rupar, and Lothal in present-day India. Archaeologists have discovered over 1,052 cities and settlements in the broader region of the Indus Rivers and their tributaries during this era.

Cities

• The Indus Valley Civilization exhibited a highly sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture, making them the earliest known urban centers in the region. The cities, such as Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro, and the partially excavated Rakhigarhi, showcased evidence of urban planning and a strong emphasis on hygiene.
• These urban centers featured an ingenious urban plan, incorporating the world's earliest known urban sanitation systems. Houses or groups of homes accessed water from wells, and waste water was directed to covered drains along the major streets, originating from rooms likely designated for bathing. Homes faced inner courtyards and smaller lanes.
• The sewerage and drainage systems developed by the ancient Indus civilization surpassed contemporary urban sites in the Middle East and were more efficient than many present-day areas in Pakistan and India.
• The impressive architecture of the Harappans included dockyards, granaries, warehouses, brick platforms, and protective walls. The massive city walls served not only to protect the Harappans from floods but also potentially acted as a deterrent against military conflicts.
• The purpose of the citadel in the Indus Valley Civilization remains a topic of debate. Unlike their contemporaries in Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, this civilization did not construct large monumental structures such as palaces or temples, and there is no evidence of kings, armies, or priests.
• The majority of city dwellers in the Indus Valley Civilization seem to have been traders or artisans, residing in well-defined neighborhoods with others pursuing similar occupations. These cities utilized materials from distant regions for crafting items like seals and beads. 
• Among the artifacts discovered were beautifully glazed faïence beads, and steatite seals were found with images of animals, people (possibly gods), and other inscriptions, including the still undeciphered writing system of the civilization. These seals were likely used to stamp clay on trade goods and possibly served other purposes as well.
• The prehistory of the Indo-Iranian borderlands shows a gradual increase in the number and density of settlements over time. The population in the Indus plains grew due to activities such as hunting and gathering.

Technology

• The people of the Indus Valley Civilization demonstrated impressive proficiency in measuring length, mass, and time, and they were among the pioneers in developing a standardized system of weights and measures.
• In the field of metallurgy, the Harappans introduced innovative techniques and produced various metals such as copper, bronze, lead, and tin. Their engineering prowess was particularly remarkable, notably in the construction of docks.
• Archaeologists studying the remains of two individuals from Mehrgarh, Pakistan, in 2001, revealed that the people of the early Harappan periods had knowledge of dentistry.
• An intriguing discovery in Banawali was a touchstone bearing gold streaks, likely used for testing the purity of gold, a technique that still finds application in certain regions of India today.

Arts and Crafts

• Excavation sites of the Indus Valley Civilization have yielded a diverse range of artifacts, including sculptures, seals, pottery, gold jewelry, and intricately detailed figurines made from terracotta, bronze, and steatite.
• Among the discoveries are numerous figurines depicting girls in dancing postures, suggesting the existence of some form of dance in the civilization. Additionally, terracotta figurines representing animals like cows, bears, monkeys, and dogs have also been found.
• Skilled craftsmen utilized various techniques such as shell working, ceramics, and agate and glazed steatite bead making to create exquisite necklaces, bangles, and other ornaments.
• Evidence of personal grooming items was also found, including terracotta female figurines with red color applied to the "manga" or hair partition, dated around 2800-2600 BCE.
• Seals excavated at Mohenjo-Daro display intriguing depictions of a figure standing on its head and another sitting cross-legged, resembling a yoga-like pose. This figure, known as a Pashupati, has been subject to different interpretations, with some identifying a resemblance to the Hindu god Shiva.
• Musical instruments were also part of the Indus Valley Civilization's cultural expressions. An Indus seal portrays a harp-like instrument, while two shell objects discovered at Lothal indicate the use of stringed musical instruments.

Trade and Transportation

• The economy of the Indus Valley Civilization heavily relied on trade, which was made possible through significant advancements in transportation technology.
• The Indus Valley Civilization is believed to have been one of the first to utilize wheeled transport, including bullock carts that are similar to those still used in South Asia today, as well as boats.
• Boats used in trade were likely small, flat-bottomed crafts, possibly sail-driven, resembling the ones seen on the Indus River today. However, there is evidence suggesting the existence of sea-going vessels. Archaeologists have discovered a massive dredged canal and what they interpret as a docking facility in the coastal city of Lothal in Gujarat, India. Additionally, an extensive canal network was used for irrigation purposes.
• The trade networks of the Indus civilization integrated a vast area, spanning parts of Afghanistan, coastal regions of Persia, northern and western India, and Mesopotamia. Archaeological findings and studies of tooth enamel from individuals buried at Harappa suggest that some residents migrated to the city from beyond the Indus valley. There is also some indication of trade connections reaching Crete and possibly Egypt.
• Maritime trade between the Harappan and Mesopotamian civilizations began as early as the middle Harappan Phase, enabled by the innovative development of plank-built watercraft equipped with a single central mast supporting a sail made of woven rushes or cloth.

Writing system

• A total of around 400 to 600 different Indus symbols have been discovered on various artifacts such as seals, small tablets, ceramic pots, and several other materials. Among these artifacts, there was even a "signboard" that was possibly displayed above the entrance gate of the inner citadel in the Indus city of Dholavira. These symbols remain a subject of study and intrigue, as the Indus script has not been fully deciphered to date.
• Typical Indus inscriptions consist of only four or five characters and are usually quite small in size. The longest inscription found on a single surface measures only 1 inch (2.54 cm) square and consists of 17 signs. On another object, three different faces contain a total of 26 symbols.
• In a 2009 study published in Science by P. N. Rao et al., computer scientists analyzed the pattern of symbols in the Indus script and compared it to various linguistic scripts and non-linguistic systems, including DNA and computer programming languages. The results suggested that the pattern of the Indus script resembles that of spoken words.
• The messages on the seals are too brief to be decoded by a computer, posing a challenge for researchers trying to decipher the Indus script.