http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 1 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

Sir AlexanderCunningham

Unicorn SealIndus HarappanSeal Script

Zebu Bull SealHarappan Pottery ArtifactHarappan YogiSeal

The Harappan Civilization by Tarini Carr archaeologyonline.net

Some several thousand years ago there once thrived a civilization in the Indus Valley. Located in what'snow Pakistan and western India, it was the earliest known urban culture of the Indian subcontinent. (1) TheIndus Valley Civilization, as it is called, covered an area the size of western Europe. It was the largest of thefour ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India and China. However, of all these civilizations theleast is known about the Indus Valley people. This is because the Indus script has not yet been deciphered.There are many remnants of the script on pottery vessels, seals, and amulets, but without a "RosettaStone" linguists and archaeologists have been unable to decipher it.

They have thenhad to rely uponthe survivingcultural materialsto give theminsight into the

life of the Harappan's. (2)Harappan's are the name given to any of the ancient people belonging to the Indus Valley civilization. Thisarticle will be focusing mainly on the two largest cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, and what has beendiscovered there.

The discovery of the Indus Valley civilization was first recorded in the 1800'sby the British. The first recorded note was by a British army deserter, JamesLewis, who was posing as an American engineer in 1826. He noticed thepresence of mounded ruins at a small town in Punjab called Harappa.Because Harappa was the first city found, sometimes any of the sites are

called the Harappan civilization.Alexander Cunningham,who headed the Archaeological Survey of India, visited this

site in 1853 and 1856 while looking for the cities that hadbeen visited by Chinese pilgrims in the Buddhist period. Thepresence of an ancient city was confirmed in the following 50years, but no one had any idea of its age or importance. By1872 heavy brick robbing had virtually destroyed the upperlayers of the site. The stolen bricks were used to buildhouses and particularly to build a railway bed that the Britishwere constructing. Alexander Cunningham made a few small

excavations at the site and reported some discoveries of ancient pottery, some stone tools, and a stoneseal. Cunningham published his finds and it generated some increased interest by scholars.It wasn't till1920 that excavations began in earnest at Harappa. John Marshall, then the director of the ArchaeologicalSurvey of India, started a new excavation at Harappa. Along with finds from another archaeologist, whowas excavating at Mohenjo Daro, Marshall believed that what they had found gave evidence of a new

civilization that was older than any they had known. (3)

Major excavations had not been carried out for forty years until 1986 when the late George Dales of theUniversity of California at Berkeley established the Harappan Archaeological Project, or HARP. Thismultidisciplinary study effort consists of archaeologists, linguists, historians, and physical anthropologists.

Since the establishment of HARP, Jonathan Mark Kenoyer has served as co-director and field director ofthe project. Kenoyer was born in Shillong, India, and spent most of his youth there. He went on to receive

his advanced degrees from the University of California at Berkeley. He is now a professor of Anthropology

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 2 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

Harappa City site

Harappa City site

Harappa City site

Richard Meadow ofHarvard

his advanced degrees from the University of California at Berkeley. He is now a professor of Anthropologyat the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and teaches archaeology and ancient technologies. Kenoyer'smain focus has been on the Indus Valley civilization's where he has conducted research for the last 23years. Ever since he was a young graduate student, Kenoyer was particularly interested in ancienttechnology. He has done a great deal of work in trying to replicate processes used by ancient people in theproduction of jewelry and pottery. One of his first efforts in replicating shell bangle making was thenco-authored with George Dales and published in an article. His doctorate studies were based upon thisresearch, and his dissertation is a milestone in the field of experimental archaeology and

ethnoarchaeology, besides being the definitive study of Harappan shell working. (4)Today, Kenoyer is assisted by co-director Richard Meadow of Harvard University and

Rota Wright of New York University (A. C.I.V.C. Kenoyer preface) Kenoyer uses acontextual archaeological approach. His work is characterized by the use of coldevidence to draw the outlines of this ancient civilization.

Although , Harappa was undoubtedly occupied previously, it was between 2600-1900B.C. that it reached its height of economic expansion and urban growth. Radio carbondating, along with the comparison of artifacts and pottery has determined this date forthe establishment of Harappa and other Indus cities. This began what is called thegolden age of Harappa. During this time a great increase in craft technology, trade, and

urban expansion was experienced. For the first time in the history of the region, there was evidence formany people of different classes and occupations living together. Between 2800-2600 B.C. called the KotDiji period, Harappa grew into a thriving economic center. It expanded into a substantial sized town,covering the area of several large shopping malls. Harappa, along with the other Indus Valley cities, had alevel of architectural planning that was unparralled in the ancient world. (5) The city was laid out in agrid-like pattern with the orientation of streets and buildings according to the cardinal directions. Tofacilitate the access to other neighborhoods and to segregate private and public areas, the city and streetswere particularly organized. The city had many drinking water wells, and a highly sophisticated system ofwaste removal. All Harappan houses were equipped with latrines, bathing houses, and sewage drainswhich emptied into larger mains and eventually deposited the fertile sludge on surrounding agriculturalfields. It has been surprising to archaeologists that the site layouts and artifact styles throughout the Indusregion are very similar. It has been concluded these indicate that there was uniform economic and socialstructure within these cities. (6)

Other indicators of this is that the bricks used to build at these Indus cities are all uniform in size. It would seem that a standard brick size was developed and used throughout the Indus cities. Besides similar brick size standard weights are seen to have been used throughout the region as well. (7) The weights that have been recovered have shown a remarkable accuracy. They follow a binary decimal system: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, up to 12,800 units, where one unit weighs approximately 0.85 grams. Some of the weights are so tiny that they could have been used by jewelers to measure precious metals. ( 8)

Ever since the discovery ofHarappa, archaeologistshave been trying to identifythe rulers of this city. Whathas been found is verysurprising because it isn'tlike the general patternfollowed by other earlyurban societies. It appears

that the Harappanand other Indusrulers governedtheir cities throughthe control of tradeand religion, not by

military might. It is

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 3 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

Siva Linga - MS Wats 1940

Unicorn SealSeven Sages SealZebu Bull SealPasupati Siva SealHarappan YogiSeal

Mohenjodaro Binary Weights

Lothal Drainage SystemMphenjodaro WellHarappa Bath Platforms

military might. It isan interestingaspect of Harappaas well as the otherIndus cities that inthe entire body ofIndus art andsculpture there areno monuments

erected to glorify, and no depictions of warfare or conquered enemies. ( 9) Itis speculated that the rulers might have been wealthy merchants, or powerfullandlords or spiritual leaders. Whoever these rulers were it has beendetermined that they showed their power and status through the use of sealsand fine jewelry.

Seals are one of the most commonly found objects in Harappan cities. Theyare decorated with animal motifs such as elephants, water buffalo, tigers, andmost commonly unicorns. Some of these seals are inscribed with figures that

are prototypes to later Hindu religious figures, some of which are seen today.

For example, seals havebeen recovered with therepeated motif of a mansitting in a yogic positionsurrounded by animals.This is very similar to the

Hindu god of Shiva, who is known to have been the friend of the animals and sat in a yogicposition. These seals are known as the Shiva seals. Other images of a male god have been found, thusindicating the beginnings of Shiva worship, which continues to be practiced today in India. (10)

This is an interesting point because of the accepted notion of an Aryaninvasion. If Aryan's had invaded the Indus Valley, conquered the people, andimposed their own culture and religion on them, as the theory goes, it wouldseem unlikely that there would a continuation of similar religious practices upto the present. There is evidence throughout Indian history to indicate thatShiva worship has continued for thousands of years without disruption. [cf.

]harappan cultural continuity

The Aryan's were supposed to have destroyed many of the ancient cities rightaround 1500 B.C., and this would account for the decline of the Induscivilization. However the continuity of religious practices makes this unlikely,

and other more probable explanations for the decline of the Harappan civilization have been proposed inrecent years; such as climate shifts which caused great droughts around 2200 B.C., and forced theabandonment of the Indus cities and pushed a migration westward. Recent findings have shown that theSumerian empire declined sharply at this time due to a climate shift that caused major droughts for severalcenturies. (11) The Harappans being so close to Sumer, would in all probability have been affected by thisharsh shift in climate.

Many of the seals also are inscribed with short pieces of the Indus script. These sealswere used in order to show the power of the rulers. Each seal had a name or title on it, as

well as an animal motif that is believed to represent what sort of office or clan the owner

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 4 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

Harappan Beads 3Harappan Beads 2Harappan Beads 1

Dhaulavira Signboard Deciphered Script

Dholavira Signboard Script

Dhaulavira Signboard

Zebu Bull Seal

well as an animal motif that is believed to represent what sort of office or clan the ownerbelonged to. The seals of the ancient Harappan's were probably used in much the sameway they are today, to sign letters or for commercial transactions. The use of these sealsdeclined when the civilization declined.

In 2001 Kenoyer's excavations unearthed a workshop that manufactured seals andinscribed tablets. This was significant in that combined with the last 16 years of excavations, it provided anew chronology for the development of the Indus script. Previously, the tablets and seals were all groupedtogether, but now Kenoyer has been able to demonstrate that the various types of seals and tabletsemerged at different times. The writing on the seals and tablets might have changed as well through theyears. Kenoyer as well as others are trying to conclude when the dates of the script changes were. Therevision of this chronology may greatly aid in the decipherment of the script. (12) There has been attemptsat deciphering this script, and the results are not widely agreed upon, and its still a point of controversy.

[Reading from right to left]

The ruling elite controlled vast trade networkswith Central Asia, and Oman, importing rawmaterials to urban workshops. There is evenevidence of trade with Mesopotamia, forHarappan seals and jewelry have been foundthere. Harappa, along with other Indus cities,established their economic base on agricultureproduce and livestock, supplemented by theproduction of and trade of commodities andcraft items. Raw materials such as carnelian,steatite, and lapis lazuli were imported for craftuse. In exchange for these goods, such things

as livestock, grains, honey and clarified butter may have been given. However, the only remains are thoseof beads, ivory objects and other finery. What is known about the Harappan's is that they were very skilledartisans, making beautiful objects out of bronze, gold, silver, terracotta, glazed ceramic, and semipreciousstones. The most exquisite objects were often the most tiny. Many of the Indus art objects are small,displaying and requiring great craftsmanship.

The majority ofartifactsrecovered atHarappa andMohenjo Darohave been thatof craftedobjects.

Jonathan Kenoyer has been working to recreate many of the craft technologies used by these people. Hehas successfully recreated the process by which the Harappan's created faience. The process of creatingfaience ceramics is very complex and technical. It requires such processes as the grinding and partialmelting of quartz, fusion aids, and a consistent high temperature of 940 Celsius. A discovery in 2001 of afaience producing workshop revealed that the type of kiln used was very different from what they hadthought. As no kiln was discovered in the workshop, Kenoyer suspected that the ancient crafts people hadused a kiln assembled from two firing containers. This formed a smaller kiln that was unlike the usual large

firing containers. Along with some of his students Kenoyer replicated the process of creating faience using

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 5 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

firing containers. Along with some of his students Kenoyer replicated the process of creating faience usingsimilar tools that the Harappan's had. The result was similar to that of the Harappan's. This showed thatthe canister-kiln type was a very efficient way of producing faience. (13) Interestingly , Kenoyer has noticedthat many of the same firing techniques and production procedures are used today in India and Pakistanas they were thousands of years ago. This is another point indicating that there was a continuity in culturethat has been mostly unchanged for thousands of years.

The late George F. Dales, who was a long time mentor of Kenoyer's and established HARP, has saidregarding the Aryan invasion theory:

"Nine years of extensive excavations at Mohenjo-Daro ( which seems to have been rapidlyabandoned) have yielded a total of some 37 skeletons which can be attributed to the Indusperiod. None of these skeletons were found in the area of the fortified citadel, where reasonablythe last defense of this city would have taken place." He further states that "Despite extensiveexcavations at the largest Harappan sites, there is not a single bit of evidence that can bebrought forth as unconditional proof of an armed conquest and destruction on the scale of thesupposed Aryan invasion." (14)

The skeletal remains found at Harappan sites that date from 4,000 years ago, show the same basic racialtypes as are found today in Gujarat and Punjab, India. This is interesting, because if a foreign light-skinnedpeople entered and took over, it would seem likely that there would be genetic evidence for this. The longcontinuity of ethnic groups in this region would indicate that the people living there had not seen an influx ofa different ethic group that would have mixed with their own. (15)

After 700 years the Harappan cities began to decline. This is generally attributed to the invasion of aforeign people. However, it now believed by Kenoyer and many other archaeologists that the decline of theIndus cities was a result of many factors, such as overextended political and economic networks, and thedrying up major rivers. These all contributed to the rise of a new social order. There is archaeologicalevidence that around the late Harappan phase, from 1900-1300 B.C. the city was not being maintainedand was getting crowded. This suggests that the rulers had were no longer able to control the dailyfunctioning of the city. Having lost authority, a new social order rose up. Although certain aspects of theelites culture, seals with motifs and pottery with Indus script on it, disappeared, the Indus culture was notlost. (16) It is seen that in the cities that sprung up in the Ganga and Yamuna river valleys between600-300 B.C., that many of their cultural aspects can be traced to the earlier Indus culture. Thetechnologies, artistic symbols, architectural styles, and aspects of the social organization in the cities ofthis time had all originated in the Indus cities. (17) This is another fact that points to the idea that the Aryaninvasion did not happen. The Indus cities may have declined, for various reasons, but their culturecontinued on in the form of technology, artistic and religious symbols, and city planning. Usually, when apeople conquer another they bring with them new ideas and social structures. It would seem that if indeedAryan's invaded India, then there would be evidence of a completely different sort of religion, craft making,significant changes in art and social structure. But none of this has been found. There appears to be anunderlying continuity in the culture of India, and what changes have occurred are due to largely internalfactors. This is an idea shared by many prominent archaeologists, such as Kenoyer, George Dales, JimShaffer, and Colin Renfrew.

The Aryan's aresupposed to havebrought the Vedicculture to India. Thesepeople and their

literature is believed to

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 6 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

Kalibangan Fire Altars

Colin RenfrewJames Shaffer

George DalesJonathan MarkKenoyer

literature is believed tohave then originatedafter the decline of theIndus Valleycivilizations. The Vedashave been dated asbeing written some time

after the Aryan's supposedly invaded, somewhere between1500-1200 B.C. Many of the Indus sites have been found

along the banks of the now dried up Sarasvati river. This river is mentioned throughoutthe Vedas (18) Recent geological investigations has shown that the Sarasvati was once a very large river(as well as ), but dried up around 1900 B. C. due tosatellite photos of the indus-sarasvati river basintectonic movements. (19) The Vedas, however speak of the Sarasvati as a very large and flowing river. Ifthe dating of the Vedic literature is correct, than there is a discrepancy because the Sarasvati river dried upbefore the Vedas were supposed to have been written. This is an interesting situation. It might seempossible then, that with other evidence showing that there was no influx of an invading people, that theVedas were then written by the people of the Indus Valley.

Another point that might indicate the Harappan's being a Vedicculture is the discovery of fire altars at several Indus sites. Firerituals and sacrifice were an important part of Vedic religiouspractices. But what was significant about these alters, is thatthey were aligned and constructed in the same manner aslater discovered altars were. The fire altars were then Vedic inconstruction indicating that the Harappan's were a Vedicculture.

The idea that there wasn't in fact an Aryan invasion issupported on many levels, as I have tried to demonstrate.Even today, it is seen in India the legacy of these Indus citiesin the traditional arts and crafts, and in the layout of housesand settlements. If there really was an invasion of a people

that completely obliterated this other culture, then the many striking similarities we see today in thecontinuity of Indian culture is certainly most curious. The remains of the Indus civilization are enormous,and most of them are yet to be excavated. There are whole cites that have yet to be excavated, like thelargest known Indus culture site of Ganweriwala, in the Cholistan desert of Pakistan. No doubt thecontinuing excavations will lend more insight into the world of this enigmatic civilization.

Bibliography1. Indus Valley Civilization (1990) In (p. 302). Chicago, IL.Encyclopedia Britannica.2. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. pg 71.Scientific American.3. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (1998). Oxford, New York. OxfordAncient Cities of the Indus Valley Civilization.University Press. 20-214. Ibid. Preface.5. Ibid. 52 .6. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. . pg 71.Scientific American7. http://www.Harappa.com/har/har1.html)8. Feurstein, George, Kak, Subash, Frawley, David. (2001) In Search of the Cradle of Civilization.Wheaton, Illinois. Quest Books. 83.9. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. pg 71Scientific American.10. Knapp, Stephen. (2000). Detroit, Michigan. The WorldProof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence.

http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappa-mohenjodaro

Page 7 of 7 May 08, 2015 06:27:18AM MDT

9. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. pg 71Scientific American.10. Knapp, Stephen. (2000). Detroit, Michigan. The WorldProof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence.Relief Network. 42.11. Rajaram, N.S, Frawley, David, (2001) Vedic Aryans and the Origins of Civilzation: a literary and

New Delhi, India. Voice of India. pg. 304.scientific perspective.12. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. pg. 74Scientific American.13. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (1998). Oxford, New York. OxfordAncient Cities of the Indus Valley Civilization.University Press. pg. 97.14. Dales, George F., The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-Daro.15. Knapp, Stephen. (2000). Detroit, Michigan. The WorldProof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence.Relief Network. pg. 43.16 Kenoyer, Jonathan. (July 2003) Uncovering the keys to lost Indus cities. pg. 67Scientific American.17. Kenoyer, Jonathan. (1998). Oxford, New York. OxfordAncient Cities of the Indus Valley Civilization.University Press. 19.18. Frawley, David, The India Times.The Myth of the Aryan Invasion of India.19. Feurstein, George, Kak, Subash, Frawley, David. (2001) In Search of the Cradle of Civilization.Wheaton, Illinois. Quest Books. pg. 91.