Indus Valley Civilisation for UPSC, SSC, PPSC, PCS

Indus Valley Civilization for SSC, UPSC, PCS

Indus Valley Civilization

➢ Precursor: Mehrgarh
○ Neolithic (7000 BCE to 2500/2000 BCE) site located near the Bolan Pass on the Kacchi Plain of Balochistan.

➢ Dates:
○ established around 3300 BC
○ flourished between 2700 BC and 1900 BC (Mature Indus Valley Civilization).
○ started declining around 1900 BC and disappeared around 1400 BC.
➢ Contemporary civilizations:
○ Egypt
○ Mesopotamia
○ China

Geographical Extent

➢ North:
○ Manda (Jammu)
○ Beas river
➢ South:
○ Daimabad (Maharashtra)
○ Pravara River, a tributary of the Godavari River
➢ East:
○ Alamgirpur (UP)
○ Hindon river
➢ West:
○ Sutkagendor (Balochistan)
○ Dasht river

Names

➢ The Indus Valley Civilisation:
○ named after the Indus Valley, where the first remains were found.
○ This term was first used by Sir John Marshall
➢ Harappan civilisation: after Harappa, the first of its sites to be excavated in the 1920s, in what was then the Punjab province of British India.
➢ Bronze Age civilisation
➢ Sindhu-Saraswati Civilisation: the Ghaggar-Hakra river is identified by some with the mythological Sarasvati river.

IVC Phases

➢ Pre-Harappan Phase -
○ Mehrgarh
○ Time period - 7000–3300 BCE
○ Findings:
■ oldest ceramic Human figurines
■ Burials
■ Pottery
■ Copper items

➢ Early-Harappan Phase -
○ Time period - 3300–2800 BCE
○ Findings:
■ Crops: peas, sesame seeds, dates, cotton
■ Domesticated animals: buffalo
■ people migrated from villages to cities

➢ Mature-Harappan Phase -
○ Time period - 2600–1900 BCE
○ Findings:
■ Granaries
■ The giant bath
■ Citadels
■ Steatite seals have images of animals, people (perhaps gods), and other types of inscriptions

Important Sites

➢ In India: Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Lothal, Dholavira, Surkotada (Gujarat), Banawali (Haryana), Ropar (Punjab).
➢ In Pakistan: Harappa (on river Ravi), Mohenjodaro (on Indus River in Sindh), Chanhudaro (in Sindh).

➢ Harappa ( Punjab, Pakistan):

○ First site to be discovered
○ Excavated by: Daya Ram Sahni, John Marshall
○ Year: 1921–22
○ Findings:
■ Coffin burial
■ Granary outside the fort
■ Steatite seals
■ Phallus worship, Graveyard, Mother goddess.
■ Use of copper, bronze
■ Crops: cotton

➢ Mohenjo-daro ( Punjab, Pakistan):

○ Excavated by: Rakhal Das Banerjee, Ernest J. H. Mackay, and Marshall.
○ Year: 1922
○ Findings:
■ Pashupati seal.
■ Statue of a dancing girl.
■ Ivory weight balance.
■ The Great Bath.
■ The Great Granary.
■ Priest king statue

➢ Chanhudaro ( Punjab, Pakistan):

○ Excavated by: N G Majumdar
○ Year: 1931
○ Findings:
■ Bangle factory.
■ Ink pot.
■ Only city without citadel.
■ Carts with seated driver.
■ Bead Making Factory
■ Crops : sesame, peas


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