INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

INTRODUCTION

Indus valley civilization was one of the five ancient most civilizations of the world that existed from
3300 BCE to 1300 BCE. Discovered in 1920’s, archaeologists excavated a site which became the
ancient most chapter in history of India and established the notions of beginnings of a civilized
society. Spread in various parts of north western India, parts of Pakistan, east Afghanistan and
southeast Iran, it was a home to 5 million people who had settled near river Indus. Harappa was the
first city to be discovered in 1921 by Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni, due to which some scholars had
named it as Harappan civilization. But when R.D. Banerji discovered Mohenjodaro in 1922 it became
the largest city in the vicinity and henceforth many other cities such as Lothal, Rakhigarhi, Dholavira,
Mehrgarh, Kalibangan etal. came to be excavated. The site thus popularly came to known as the
Indus valley civilization.

ARCHITECTURE:

Aerial view of Mohenjodaro Great Bath

City of Mohenjodaro

 An aerial view of the city of Mohenjodaro revealed that the city was fortified and divided
into upper and lower part, upper part identified with the presence of a citadel.
 The entire city was planned at right angles revealing the desire of the Indus people for
organization and centralization of building authority.
 The city had a variety of structures, some of them double storied with a proper drainage
system. The drains were covered and connected from the houses to the street and then to
the main drain outside the city. This establishes the fact that the people of Indus valley were
hygiene conscious. This also in this worlds’ first sanitation system.
 The Great Bath is one of the most popular structures found at Mohenjodaro. It measures 12
X 7 X 2.4 meters. Constructed out of standardized baked bricks, it had fitted walls and floors
joined with gypsum for making it water tight. Punctuated with a flight of stairs on north and
south, it also had ramps on east and west. Believed by most scholars to be serving a
ritualistic function, the Great Bath was surely a public structure with a series of rooms on the
eastern side, one of which had a well.

Other cities such as the city of Dholavira had very advanced water conservation system such as wells
and connected reservoirs. It also had two dams that establish the fact that the people of Indus had a
sense for water management. The city of Lothal was probably the trade centre of this civilization as
many structures such as oldest dockyard in the world and the only port in Indus valley, warehouse
and workshop for beads etc. have been found.

Water Reservoir at Dholavira Dockyard at Lothal

SCULPTURE

Various figurative sculptures in stone and metal have been excavated at various sites.

Dancing girl Male torso Priest Figure

Dancing Girl: This nude female figure cast in bronze is one of the most popular sculptures from the
Indus valley.

 It measures 10.8 cms as it stands with its weight on one leg.

 With one arm on her waist and other resting on her thigh, she stands in a classical dance
posture.
 Her head is high and eyes closed as if in meditation
 Though she is carved nude, she is wonderfully ornamented with an entire arm full of
bangles, a practice that is still prevalent in western India. The arm which is placed on the
waist also has two sets of bangles, one on the wrist and other above the elbow. She is also
wearing a simple necklace.
 The hair is twisted on to one side and neatly tied in a bun which acts a visual record of the
fashion followed by women in that era.
  Her body and limbs are proportionate, though her overall appearance is thin which is
markedly in contrast with other female figurines found in the area, that are voluptuous
having prominent breasts and wide hips.

Male torso: This nude male figure is an important artwork from Indus valley as it is realistic in
rendition and establishes the fact that the artist had a good sense of observation and mastery over
his skill of representation.

 Carved in red sandstone, the head and arms of this male torso are broken
 There are drill holes on the shoulders
 With a slight protruding belly, it seems life like and breathing

Priest Figure: Though there is no clear indication, most scholars believe that this is a figure of a
priest or a king.

 It is carved in white steatite stone and measures 17.5 cms in height

 It is one of the privileged figure to be draped with a robe that is draped around his left
shoulder
 The cloth has a trefoil pattern punctuated randomly with circles. It is an indication of the
existence of clothing trend during the period.
 The ornamentation consists of a headband and armlet
 The face is held high and eyes are closed as if in meditation
 The carving is realistic but the depiction of hair and beard is stylized. He has no moustache

Seals

More than 3,500 seals with numerous motifs, made out of steatite and measuring 2.3 cms on all
sides have been found at various sites of the civilization. The exact purpose of the seals is not known
but the variety of motifs carved on them suggests an occupational use. Most seals have a
pictographic script arranged in a row on the topmost part, which still remains to be deciphered. The
lower two third of the seal area is covered with a carved design, which may range from observed to
imagined.

 The yogi seal depicts a seated three faced male figure on a throne, wearing a horned
headdress and an impression of bangles on both stretched out arms, suggesting that
ornamentation was not restricted to females. Above the headdress is a miniscule branch of
pipal tree. Pinched stomach is a deliberate expression by the artist for its yogic activity.
 The pashupati seal is popular as the earliest depiction of Hindu deity Shiva. Similar in
posture to the yogi seal, the carving shows a greater detail in its form. It is known as
pashupati or protector of animals since it has two animals on its either side. With a wild
buffalo and rhinoceros on one side and tiger and an elephant on another, it is an excellent
example of observation on part of the artist and technical expertise in space management.
 The bull seal is one of the finest specimens of animal seals from Indus valley. It depicts the
humped bull in profile while both its horns are visible as a design convention. The strength
 of the animal is clearly visible in its muscular form beautifully contrasting with its delicately
carved legs and neck folds.
 The most inquisitive seal from the Indus valley is the Unicorn seal which has a standardized
depiction of animal in profile with one horn. The animal is usually ornamented and has a
decorative alter placed in front.

OTHER OBJECTS

Pottery of various shapes and sizes has been found at numerous sites, including some near the
burial sites. Some of them have organic designs that are arranged in rows with black colour,
displaying their choice for aesthetics in utility items and great sense of balance in positive and
negative space.

Some of the vessels are perforated suggesting their use as a lamp holder or incense burner.

Utensils in bronze include plates, tumblers and pots of various sizes.

Tools found for various use range from arrow heads, hammers and axes.

Also found in bronze and terracotta are small toys, some with wheels certainly meant for
entertainment and play of children.

Harappans were the first to develop a uniform system of weights and measures in the ratio of
5:2:1 and weights of .05, .02,1,2,5,10,20, 50, 100,200 and 500 units.

The people of Indus for the purpose of their relaxation used games such as with dice and chess.

IMPORTANT READS:

The Indus Civilization by Mortimer Wheeler

Harappan Art by D.P Sharma