INTRODUCTION-

• INDUS VALLEY CIVILISATION is an urban,

protohistoric and bronze age civilisa<on
developed between 2500BC – 1700BC
• The history of India begins with the birth of
the Indus Valley Civiliza<on (IVC), also known
as Harappan CivilizaIon.
• It flourished around 2,500 BC, in the western
part of South Asia, in contemporary Pakistan
and Western India.
• The Indus Valley was home to the largest of
the four ancient urban civiliza<ons of Egypt,
Mesopotamia, India and China.
• In 1920s, the Archaeological Department of India carried out excavaIons in the Indus
valley wherein the ruins of the two old ciIes, viz. Mohenjodaro and Harappa were
unearthed.

• In 1924, John Marshall, Director-General of the ASI, announced the

discovery of a new civilizaIon in the Indus valley to the world.
• James Lewis (beZer known as Charles Masson, l. 1800-1853 CE) was a
BriIsh soldier serving in the arIllery of the East India Company Army.
• One of these sites was Harappa, which he found in 1829 CE. He seems to
have le_ the site fairly quickly, a_er making a record of it in his notes

• When Masson returned to Britain a_er his adventures (and having been
somehow forgiven for deserIon), he published his book NarraIve of Various Journeys in
Balochistan, Afghanistan and Punjab in 1842 CE which aZracted the aZenIon of the
BriIsh authoriIes in India and, especially, Alexander Cunningham. Sir Alexander
Cunningham (l. 1814-1893 CE), a BriIsh engineer in the country with a passion for
ancient history, founded the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in 1861 CE.
 • In 1904 CE, a new director of the ASI was appointed, John Marshall (l. 1876-1958 CE),
who later visited Harappa and concluded the site represented an ancient CivilisaIon
previously unknown.
• Indus Valley CivilizaIon (IVC) is one of the four great civilisaIons of the world. It
flourished along the flood plains of Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra. IVC was spread across the
western part of South Asia that now lies in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It flourished
in 2500 BC.
• Indus Valley CivilizaIon spread from the year 2500 – 1750 BC according to radio-carbon
daIng.
• Indus Valley CivilizaIon was the largest among the four civilisaIons of the world
(Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China)

Similari<es in IVC and Egyp<an / Mesopotamian Civiliza<on:

• Along river valleys: IVC was along Indus river basin, Sumerian developed between Tigris
and Euphrates river basin while Egyp<an civiliza<on developed along Nile river basin.
• Agricultural society: They all developed as an agrarian society with a large agricultural
class that was responsible for growing food for large centralized urban populaIons of
the city.
• Egalitarian society: Women were relaIvely empowered in these civilizaIons with IVC
showing evidence of mother goddess worship.
• IVC had a large number of shrines of female deiIes showing women had a certain
degree of independence.
• Women in Mesopotamia and Egypt could make their own business and trade contracts
and own property and could even become a ruler (e.g. female pharaoh Hatshepsut)
• Developed trade, manufacturing, and Commerce: Being free from the burden of growing
food, these civilizaIons had a large merchant and arIsans’ base
 • Highly urbanized: They had sophis<cated transport and economic networks. This
enabled them to spread to larger areas and support advanced cra_s, arIsIc producIon,
sophisIcated religions, technology, and government bureaucracies.
• Nature worship
• Wri<ng and Script: All of them had well-established art of wri<ng and script
• Burial pracIces: All three civilizaIons buried their dead with items needed in the
a_erlife

Differences between IVC and that of Egyp<an and Mesopotamian Civiliza<on:

Features HARAPPAN EGYPTIAN/MESOPOTAMIAN

Planned towns with
Urban Planning Towns show haphazard growth
a grid-like pa[ern
Invented their own Mesopotamia has a cuneiform script and the
Script typical pictographic EgypIan script is known as hieroglyphics. Both
script scripts have been deciphered
The majority of the Script The majority of the Mesopotamian script has
Wri<ng Material has been found on been found on the clay tablets while EgypIans
the seals wrote on papyrus sheets made of reeds.

Spread was 20 Imes that of

Extent of CivilizaIon Less area as compared to IVC
Mesopotamian and EgypIan CivilizaIon
EgypIans used Dried Bricks,
Building Material Burnt Bricks whereas Mesopotamians
used Baked Bricks
Had elaborate religious prac<ces,
No temples or religious structures have
Religion magic spells, and dominance of
been found
priest
 Clear evidence of wars and
Weapons No clear evidence of war or weapons expediIon in other two
civilizaIons

• In 1924, John Marshall, Director-General of the ASI, announced the discovery of a new
civilisaIon in the Indus valley to the world.

• JOHN MARSHAL, the first scholar to use the term “INDUS VALLEY CIVILISATION”
• GEOGRAPHICAL EXTENT-

MANDA
[J &K]
CHENAB RIVER

SUTKAGEND
OR IVC ALAMGIR
GEOGRAPHICAL PUR HINDON
[BALUCHISTA
EXTENT [UP]
N] RIVER

DAKSH RIVER DAIMABAD

[M.H] GODAVRI RIVER
 • Since the first seZlement was discovered along
the banks of river Indus, the archaeologists
named the civilisaIon as Indus Valley
CivilizaIon. But on the contrary only around
100 sites have been found in the Indus Valley,
while over 500 sites are found along the
Ghaggar-Hakra River.
• Most of the archaeologists prefer to call them
‘Indus-SaraswaI CivilizaIon’ based on the two
river systems

Major Sites of the Harappan Civiliza<on

HARAPPA
• Daya Ram Sahini in 1921
• Situated on the bank of river Ravi in Montgomery
district of Punjab (Pakistan).
• Rigveda MenIon it as a Hariyupia
• Sandstone statues of Human anatomy
• Only sites which yield the evidence of coffin burial
• two row of 6 granaries
• Piece of PoZery with Indus script

• Most ciIes had similar paZerns. There were two parts:

a citadel and the lower town.
• Bullock carts
• dice, copper scale and mirror

• Cemetery H & R37

• Image of a Dog AZacking a Deer
Sites Features

• 1st Indus site to be discovered

• Two rows of six granaries
• The largest number of wheat grains
• Red sandstone torso of nude male
Harappa (on Ravi River) • Evidence of Coffin burial
• Two types of burial
pracIce- R37type and cemetery H type
Mohenjo-Daro
• R.D Banerjee in 1922
• Situated on the Bank of river Indus in Larkana district of Punjab
(Pakistan).
• the great Bath
• a large granary
• The term means ” Mount of the dead”

• bronze dancing girl

• seal of PashupaI Mahadeva
• SteaIte statute of a beared man supposed to a priest
• A piece of woven coZon
• Ivory weight balance
 • 2nd Indus site to be discovered
• Great granary (the largest building)
• Pasupa< seals
• Bronze dancing girl
• SteaIte image of bearded men said to be the priest
Mohenjo-Daro (Indus river) • 3 cylindrical seals of Mesopotamia
(mounds of Dead) • Great Bath
• Mul<-pillar assembly halls
• Mohenjo-Daro has no cemeteries and 5 tragic sites
Bronze mirror, needle, saw, and the Bronze statue of the bull
PARCHAM
Kalibangan
• A.Ghose in 1953.
• The Kalibangan pre-historic site was discovered by Luigi Pio Tessitori, an Italian
Indologist.
• Amlānand Ghosh was the first person to recognize this site as Harappan and marked it
out for excavaIons.
• Kalibangan has also provided proof of the world's first
documented "Earthquake.“

• Fire Altar.
• Copper ox.
• In Kalibangan, there was no drainage system.
• Wooden plough.
• Camel’s bone.
• Known as the third capital of the Indus Empire.
 • Wells found in many house
Kalibangan (on Ghaggar river, RJ) (means • Evidence of mixed cropping
‘Black Bangles’) • The earliest ploughed field in India
Fire altars (shows cult of sacrifice)