Figure 1.--This terracotta satuette is one of the few Indus artifacts showin what the prople of the Indus Valley civilization looked and how they dressed. The figure is commonly described as a priest-king, but in fact nothing is known about the individual depicted. There are no known depictions of children, of such detail. Some scholars think girls may be depicted on some seals.

The Indus River is the site of one of the earliest appearances of civilization. One interesting question is why civilization developed first along the Indus. Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, there were more than one important rivers in the sub-continent. Mehrgarh is the oldest known city in the Indus Valley, dating to about 7000 BC. The people farmed barley, maize,wheat and dates and raised cattle. The early Indus River civilization dominated India for a millennium and a half (3000-1500 BC). One of the most important centers was Harappa which may date to 3500 BC. The Indus Valley civilization is also known as Harappan culture because Harappa which was discovered by accident, was the first city to be excavated by archeologists. John Marshall began to work in the Punjab in 1921. He excavated Moen jo daro . As a result of his work and other archeologists, we now know that the Indus River civilization was one of the four great river valley civilizations where civilization first appeared. It was centered on the Indus River and thus covered a large area of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and north-western India. The high point of the civilization was about 2900-1900 BC. The basis of the economy as the other river valley civilizations was agriculture. But the Indus people were also traders, handling products like lapiz azuela and teak. The civilization encompassed about 2,000 towns and villages. This civilization was notable for planned cities which had straight streets. Artifacts have been found, but vert few providing images. Cotton is known to have been grown in India as early as 3,000 BC, but was almost certainly grown much earlier. Ancient Indians are known to have worn brightly colored clothes. The early Indus River culture is the least studied of the five great river valley cultures. When we began looking at ancient India, we assumed that given HBC's primarily European focus, our lack of information was due to the fact that we were unfamiliar with work on India. We have since found that there have been relatively few archeological finds on the early Indus River civilization and much less scholarly work. It is not precisely known why there have been relatively few sites found. One factor may be that it was smaller civilization in terms of people and thus sites, although scholars have begun to increase population estimates. Scholars now estimate a population of about 5 million people. Another problem is that the humid climate and high water table has destroyed archeological evidence that in dry, arid Egypt and Mesopotamia has been preserved. Another possibility is that the Aryan invaders that conquered the Indus Valley people found their civilization abhorrent and sought to destroy it. If the civilization had a relatively small population, this would have made it easier to destroy than a civilization with a larger population. There are only limited written records from the Indus Valley civilization and the script which has been found are still undecipherable. Thus we do not know why the Indus cities began to disappear about 1700-1500 BC. Most scholars believe it was probably the result of climate change, in the case of India--the failure of the monsoons. The monsoon rains are central to agriculture on the sub-continent. The failure of the monsoons is widely believed probably caused the rivers to shift and dry up. The Indus itself probably did not dry up, but important tributaries probably did. Climate change may be a bit of archeological political correctness. There are other possibilities such as invaders from central and western Asia. Whatever the cause, the population seems to have shifted eastward into the central part of the subcontinent. It is at this time that the Ganges becomes more important.

The Indus River

The Indus River is the site of one of the earliest appearances of civilization. The Indus is one of the world's longest rivers, about 1,800 mi (2,900 km). Annual torrents of water from the Himalayas, carved out the vast Indus River system, creating ideal conditions for the development of agriculture. The Indus rises in southwestern Tibet and is fed by the monsoon rains. It flows northwest through valleys of the Himalayas. After crossing into the Kashmir region, it continues northwestward and then turns south into what is now Pakistan. The tributaries from the Punjab include the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers. It has an average annual flow of 272 billion cu yd (207 billion cu m). This is twice that of the Nile, but less than the Ganges. The Indus not only transported water, but also rich soil. One interesting question is why civilization developed first along the Indus. Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, there were more than one important river on the sub-continent. The Maurya and Gupta empires would also rise in this fertile region. The region today is a very different place, a largely arid plain with the dried up river beds from earlier periods. The lower Indus in the third millennium BC was lush and heavily forested. There was plentiful game as well as pasturage for domesticated animals.

Narmada Valley

The Indus of course is only one river in the Subcontinent and is actually located on the periphery of the Indian Subcontinent. There are many other rivers with their own history dating back millennia, especially as the first migration out of Africa flowed along the coast of Asia toward Australia. One especially interesting of India's rivers is the Narmada or Rewa This is a river south of the Indus in central India flowing into the Arabian Sea. It is the fifth longest river in the Subcontinent. It is the third longest river that flows entirely within India, after the Godavari, and the Krishna. The Bhimbetka rock shelters are located an a dyke of the Narmada Valle, about 45 km northeast of Bhopal. The walls of these caves have magnificent pre-historic paintings dating to about 38,000 BP. The caves provide early evidence of dance. The rock shelters themselves date to the Paleolithic era, providing some of the earliest traces of human life on the Subcontinent. At least some of the shelters were inhabited by Homo erectus over 100,000 years ago. [Javid and Javeed, p. 19.]

Discovery

The Indus River Valley civilization disappeared entirely from history. It was unknown even by the peoples who lived near the ancient cities which were covered by sand. The first reports of the civilization came from Harappa as a result of British railroad building (mid-19th century). Until recently, it was assumed that Aryan invaders from central Asia brought civilization to South Asia. It was seen as a late-developing river valley civilization of much less importance than Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China. John Marshall began to work in the Punjab (1921). He excavated Mohenjo-Daro. As a result of his work and other archeologists, we now know that the Indus River civilization was one of the four great river valley civilizations where civilization first appeared. The discoveries at Harappa and other Indus Valley sites changed this. We now know that the Indus Valley civilization developed much earlier than previously believed. And the discovery of many other sites reveal a civilization of some size and extent. What is not fully understood is the degree of interaction with Mesopotamia and Egypt and the extent to which Harappan culture developed independently. Or why the greatest early Indian civilization developed on the periphery of the Subcontinent and not on the many other Indian rivers.

Origins

One of the great mysteries of the Indus/Harappan people is who they were and where they came from. The language could provide clues, but we know little about it. The script that has been found offers only limited clues because it has not yet been deciphered.

Urban Centers

Harappan civilization was notable for planned cities which had straight streets. Mehrgarh is the oldest known city in the Indus Valley, dating to about 7000 BC. Harappan towns are intriguing, in part for their similarity. They are laid out on a similar grid design. The towns had efficient system of drains and sewers that led to and from the houses. Not until the Roman Empire do we have similar sophisticated use of water and plumbing. The early Indus River civilization dominated India for a millennium and a half (3000-1500 BC). One of the most important centers was Harappa which may date to 3500 BC. The Indus Valley civilization is also known as Harappan culture because Harappa, which was discovered by accident, was the first city to be excavated by archeologists. The civilization encompasses about 2,000 towns and villages, many of which were mathematically planned. These are the world's first planned cities. The largest city was Mohenjo-Daro. The people lived in baked mud brick houses two and three stories high, and had sewage systems. Each home had its own private drinking well and its own private bathroom. Clay pipes led from the bathrooms to sewers located under the streets. Some scholars are convinced that Indus cities did not develop slowly over time. This suggests whoever built these cities seems to have have developed the mathematics and technology in some other place.

Area

The Indus River civilization was centered on as the name suggests the Indus River and thus covered a large area of the north-western part of the sub-continent. This includes areas of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and north-western India.

Chronology

There is no precise chronology of the Indus Valley people. Archeologists begin to note agricultural development along the Indus (about 3200 BC). The high point of the Indus Valley civilization was about 2900-1900 BC. The Aryan invasions occur (about 1600-1500 BC).

Economy

The basis of the economy as the other river valley civilizations was agriculture. The Indus people used irrigation to water their fields. The people farmed barley, maize, wheat, dates, and a variety of vegetables and fruits. They also developed cotton agriculture. Several animals, including the long-horned, humped bull, were domesticated and bred. Cotton appears to have been the principal plant used for clothing. It was woven and dyed. Wheel-made pottery was made and decorated with animal and geometric motifs. They also became skilled metal workers. Depictions of fish on the seals suggest that fishing was an important part of the economy. The long-horned bull was a central image in the Indus culture and interestingly remains important in subsequent Indian iconography. The Indus people were a bronze Age culture. Copper and bronze were in use. They used bronze tools. The Indus people benefited from contacts with Mesopotamia. Some scholars believe that they may have acquired bronze technology from the Sumerians. They did not, however, develop iron technology. The Indus people were also traders, handling products like lapiz azuela and teak. The Indus culture developed in contact with Mesopotamia. Trade was carried out through the sea as far as Oman and Mesopotamia.

Governmental Organization

Nothing is known about the governmental organization. There are no known images of rulers in the seals, but one terracotta sculpture may be some kind of priest-king (figure 1). Archeologists believed that there was probably a centralized administration of some kind, because of the general cultural uniformity. Agricultural societies, especially those involving irrigation works almost by definition required some kind of centralized authority. The source of authority may have been a priestly or a commercial oligarchy. Curiously, archeologists have not found any evidence of palaces or large estates that would suggest kingship. This makes Harappan society distinctive. Almost all human societies from the beginning of civilization in Sumeria to the America Revolution were founded on some version. of forced labor. There are many types of forced labor. Slavery was the most egregious, but not the most common. The most common and a condition that involved most of humanity throughout history was a landless poverty. This was important because land was the primary sources of wealth. Harappan society seems to have been a relatively egalitarian society, meaning that land ownership may have been widespread. This is something we can not know with any certainty because of the paucity of written records. .

Burials

Much of what we know about early civilizations comes from the study of burial mounds and tombs. Funerary practices provide us a window into the minds of ancient people, especially preliterate societies or in the case of the Indus Valley people whose script we can not read. Artifacts tell us about art and technology. Much of this is lost above surface, but are preserved as unintended time capsules below the surface. Unfortunately, archeologists have not found elaborate tombs in Indus Valley sites they are excavating. They have fond some burials , but curiously they seem to be migrant people from the hinterlands (based on isotope analysis of teeth). This is not fully understood. Some suggest some kind of formalized migration and the differential treatment of the migrants.

Clothing and Adornment

Artifacts have been found, but relatively few providing clear images of the Indus Valley people and how they dressed. The images come from clay seals and terracotta figures. Archeologists have found large numbers of small figurines of women. These statuettes differ from those found in other early sites in the level of detail given to hairstyles and jewelry. Women wore jewelry including gold and precious stone. They also had lipstick. A statue shows a women wearing a bracelet similar in design to those worn in modern India. Clothing is somewhat more difficult to depict in detail. The impression is that men and women dressed in robes or draped cloth. . The depictions of adult clothes are valuable in that it is very unlikely that there were basically different styles and garments for children. Ancient Indians are believed to have worn brightly colored clothes. Clothes were made from cotton. Cotton is native to India and is known to have been grown in India as early as 3,000 BC, but was almost certainly grown much earlier.

Children

We know virtually nothing about children in the Indus Valley civilization. There is every reason to believe that childhood in the Indus valley would have been similar to that in Mesopotamia, but there is no real evidence. We do note that toys have been found among the artifacts. This includes some of the village sites at a very early stage contained tiny carts with clay wheels. There were even tiny clay pots caries in the carts. These may be some of the very e earliest children's toys. Certainly they are the earliest really sophisticated toys. The creation of such toys does suggest a concern with childhood. An appreciation of the importance of play is a very modern concept. Toys of course have been found in the other river valley civilizations, but the Indus toys seem remarkably sophisticated.

Scholarship

The early Indus River culture is the least studied of the five great river valley cultures. When we began looking at ancient India, we assumed that given HBC's primarily European focus, our lack of information was due to the fact that we were unfamiliar with work on India. We have since found that there have been relatively few major archeological studies on the early Indus River civilization. There are various reasons for this. Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Indus River culture was not connected with the Greek and Roman civilization that laid the cultural base for Western Civilization. Other problems include the lack of elaborate burials which reduce the number of artifacts and cultural phenomenon that can be studied. And there are rather limited finds of writing that has prevented the script from being deciphered.

Studies

It is not precisely known why there have been relatively few sites found. One factor may be that it was smaller civilization in terms of people and thus sites, although scholars have begun to increase population estimates. Scholars now estimate a population of about 5 million people. Another problem is that the humid climate and high water table has destroyed archeological evidence that in dry, arid Egypt and Mesopotamia has been preserved. Another possibility is that the Aryan invaders that conquered the Indus Valley people found their civilization abhorrent and sought to destroy it. If the civilization had a relatively small population, this would have made it easier to destroy than a civilization with a larger population.

Language and Writing

There are only limited samples of Indus Valley civilization (Harappan) script. While about 4,000 artifacts with script have been found, much of what has been found has only about five characters. Most of these items were seals. This makes any study of script very difficult. And as a result, the script which has been found still have not been deciphered. The origins of the script fate to the fourth millennium B.C. The script gradually developed into what seems a mature writing system (26th and 20th centuries BC). As the Indus civilization seems to have disappeared abruptly, it has no linguistic descendants in the modern world. The fact that the language the script is based on is completely unknown language greatly complicates the problem of determent. The number of characters/signs suggests that the Indus script is probably logo phonetic. This means it had both signs which had meanings and signs representing phonetic values. The language appears to be an isolate. It is not known if the language is related to other Indian language. It is even unknown whether the early Indus scripts were truly a writing system. Although the Indus people were in contact with Mesopotamia, there are no known bilingual texts. Unless such a text is found, decipherment seems unlikely.

Disintegration

The absence of decipherable records means that we do not know why the Indus cities began to disappear about 1700-1500 BC. Some scholars believe the end came very suddenly rather than gradually. Many scholars believe that it was probably the result of climate change, in the case of India--the failure of the monsoons. The monsoon rains are central to agriculture on the sub-continent. The failure of the monsoons is widely believed probably caused the rivers to shift and water volumes fall. The Indus with reduced volumes was no longer to support the intensive irrigation system. Some of the tributaries may have even dried up. Climate change may be a bit of archeological political correctness. There are other possibilities such as invaders from central and western Asia. And of course a society weakened by declining agricultural production would have been less able to resist foreign invasion. Whatever the cause, the population seems to have shifted eastward into the central part of the subcontinent. It is at this time that the Ganges becomes more important and Sanskirt appeared. What is interesting is while the population may have shifted, they did not bring Harappan language with them or perhaps Harappan influenced Sanskrit. Sanskrit or the mother language with led to it appears to have developed outside the Indian subcontinent, although scholars still disagree on all of this.

Impact

The nomadic Aryan invaders that moved into the Indus Valley (about 1700 BC) were herders that had little interest in agriculture and the Indus irrigation system that supported it. The failure of the monsoon may also have been a factor. The Indus civilization thus did not survive to be the cultural and geographical center from which a continuous civilization developed like that developed in Egypt and Mesopotamia and later in China. Thus it is unclear as to just what elements of Indus culture were transmitted to the subsequent civilizations which developed on the Indian subcontinent.

Sources

Javid, Ali and Tabassum Javeed. World Heritage Monuments and Related Edifices in India (2008).

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