The Story of the First Cities: NBSE Class 12 (Arts) History answers

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Get summary, textual answers, solutions, notes, extras, PDF to NBSE Class 12 (Arts) History (Themes in Indian History) chapter “The Story of the First Cities: Harappan Archaeology”. However, the educational materials should only be used for reference and students are encouraged to make necessary changes.

Introduction

The Indus Valley civilization, dating back almost 5,000 years, was one of the earliest urban societies in the world. It’s fascinating to think that this civilization’s remains are still around today, with its rich history spanning over several millennia. While the civilization’s script remains a mystery, archaeologists have been able to piece together a lot about its cities, architecture, technology, trade, economy, and art through careful study of the ruins of important urban centers such as Harappa, Mohenjodaro, Kot Diji, Lothal, Kalibangan, Ganweriwala, Rakhigarhi, and Dholavira.

Interestingly, the discovery of Harappa was accidental. It happened during the construction of the Lahore to Multan railway in 1856, when the British needed ballast and found millions of finely baked bricks from Harappa. The mounds that stood 14 to 18 meters above the fields were finally noticed in 1872, and it was only in 1920-21 that the discovery of bricks of an unknown type at Mohenjodaro led to the identification of the ancient civilization. The remains of the civilization were later discovered at Harappa by R.B. Daya Ram Sahni, and Sir John Marshall, the Director General of Archaeological Survey of India, personally took up the excavation work, announcing in 1924 that a rich and highly developed civilization had flourished in the Indus Valley around 5000 years ago.

While Sir John Marshall’s excavation methods were flawed, leading to the loss of some valuable information, archaeologists from many countries have been working jointly at both Harappa and Mohenjodaro since the 1980s. Using modern research techniques, including surface exploration, they are studying every scrap of available evidence, hoping to uncover more information about this fascinating civilization. The remains of the civilization can be found in the ruins of various cities, including Mohenjodaro, Amri, Kot Diji, and Harappa, and it’s exciting to think that there may be even more discoveries to come in the future.

Textual questions and answers

Very Short Answer Type Questions

1. Why is Indus Valley Civilisation called the Harappan Civilisation?

Answer: The Indus Valley Civilisation is called the Harappan Civilisation because the first site of this civilisation to be excavated was Harappa, located in the Sahiwal district of Punjab, Pakistan.

2. Who was Sir John Marshall? What was his contribution?

Answer: Sir John Marshall was the Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India. His contribution includes announcing the existence of the Indus Valley Civilisation in 1924 and preserving the site of Harappa in 1924-25.

3. Give the names of the archaeologists who made excavations at Harappa between 1920-25.

Answer: Daya Ram Sahni, R.D. Banerji, Sir John Marshall and M.S. Vats.

4. Where is Lothal? What was discovered here?

Answer: Lothal is located in Gujarat, India. A dockyard was discovered here, indicating that Lothal was a major trading centre of the Harappan culture.

5. What do you know about the city of Kot Diji?

Answer: Kot Diji is located 40 km east of Mohenjodaro on the left bank of the Indus River. It is one of the earliest known fortified cities with a wall four or five meters high and provides evidence of pre-Harappan culture.

Short Answer Type Questions

1. Describe the basis on which archaeologists identified the centres of crafts production in the Harappan culture.

Answer: The archaeologists generally look for raw material for making artefacts such as stones, nodules, whole shells, copper ore, etc., and tools, unfinished objects, rejects and waste material at the places of production. In fact, waste is one of the best indicators of the craft work. Apart from some specialised centres of craft production, this work was undertaken in large cities like Harappa and Mohenjodaro.

2. How have historians provided new insight into the subsistence strategies of the Harappan culture?

Answer: The Early Harappan Culture and the Mature Harappan cultures used some common food articles. They took very simple food. They ate a wide range of plant products such as wheat, barley, lentils, chickpea and sesame. In Gujarat, millets were found at many sites. Besides vegetables, fruits, dates and milk were included in their food. The animals bones found at Harappan sites include those of cattle, sheep, goats, buffalo and pig. Bones of fish and fowl have also been found. The studies of the zoo-archaeologists indicate that the people domesticated these animals. They ate animal products like mutton, beef, fish and eggs. Bones of wild animals like boar, deer and gharial have also been found. But it is not clear whether the Harappans hunted these animals themselves or obtained meat from some other hunting communities.

3. “Many reconstructions of the Harappan religion have been done on the basis of inference.” Confirm the statement with examples.

Answer: It is difficult to say anything with certainty about the religious beliefs of the Indus Valley people. No temples or any positive religious material has been discovered in Harappa and Mohenjodaro. However, some of the seals, sealings, figurines and stone images found in the ruins of the cities help in forming some ideas about the religious beliefs and practices of the people. It is probable that they had developed a complex religion based on the worship of “Mother Goddess” and animals.

4. “The most unique feature of the Harappan civilization was the development of domestic architecture.” Substantiate the statement.

Answer: The study of the remains unearthed during the excavations shows that the buildings were constructed throughout the city according to some definite plans. Dr. Pusalkar classifies the buildings into three heads: (a) dwelling houses or residential buildings; (b) large buildings; and (c) public baths. Residential houses of Mohenjodaro are of different sizes varying from a small house of two rooms to a palatial building which is 220 ft. by 115 ft. Each house had its well and drainage system. All houses are built of bricks which are usually well burnt and of good quality.

5. “There are indications of complex decisions being taken and implemented in the Harappan society.” In light of this statement, explain whether there may have been rulers to rule over the Harappan society.

Answer: Some scholars have labelled a stone statue as the “priest king” as they were familiar with the Mesopotamian civilisation and its “priest kings” and had found parallels in the Indus region. But we do not know whether the priest kings who performed religious ceremonies also held political power. However, most of the scholars opine that the Harappans had a highly centralised administration. The provinces of Sindh, Punjab, East Baluchistan and Kathiawar were connected and were under the control of a single administration. This is evident from the uniformity of culture displayed by the pattern of planning and construction. They had similar script, same type of buildings, similar weights and measures. Some scholars are of the opinion that the Indus Valley was a big empire whose two important centres were Mohenjodaro and Harappa. For administrative purposes, Harappa governed the northern portion and Mohenjodaro, the southern portion. It seems that there was an organisation like a municipal corporation to look after the civic amenities of the people.

Long Answer Type Questions

1. Describe the contributions of various archaeologists from 1875 till 1950 in discovering the Harappan civilization.

Answer: The story of the discovery of Harappa, which lay buried for many centuries, is interesting. In 1856, when the British were building the Lahore to Multan railway, they needed ballast and found it in the form of finely baked bricks of Harappa, millions of them. It was only in 1872 that notice was taken of the mounds which stood 14 to 18 meters above the level of the fields. In 1920-21, R.D. Banerji, in the course of excavation work on a Buddhist Stupa that stood at Mohenjodaro in Sindh (now in Pakistan), discovered bricks of an unknown type which led to the identification of this ancient civilisation in Indian history. About the same time, R.B. Daya Ram Sahni discovered similar remains at Harappa in Montgomery district (now called Sahiwal, Pakistan). Later on, Sir John Marshall, the Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India, personally took up this work and announced in 1924 that about 5000 years ago, a rich and highly developed civilisation flourished in the valley of the Indus. It goes to the credit of Sir John Marshall that the site was preserved in 1924-25.

2. Discuss the functions that may have been performed by the rulers in Harappan society.

Answer: We have little knowledge about the nature of political organisation or the history of the rulers of the Indus valley people. Some archaeologists have labelled a large building found at Mohenjodaro as a palace, but no spectacular finds have been associated with it. Some scholars have labelled a stone statue as the “priest king” as they were familiar with the Mesopotamian civilisation and its “priest kings” and had found parallels in the Indus region. But we do not know whether the priest kings who performed religious ceremonies also held political power. However, most scholars opine that the Harappans had a highly centralised administration. The provinces of Sindh, Punjab, East Baluchistan and Kathiawar were connected and were under the control of a single administration. This is evident from the uniformity of culture displayed by the pattern of planning and construction. They had similar script, the same type of buildings, similar weights and measures. Some scholars are of the opinion that the Indus Valley was a big empire whose two important centres were Mohenjodaro and Harappa. For administrative purposes, Harappa governed the northern portion and Mohenjodaro, the southern portion. It seems that there was an organisation like a municipal corporation to look after the civic amenities of the people. But there is no definite proof.

3. Describe the history of early urban centres of the Harappan Civilisation.

Answer: Urbanisation was achieved by the Harappan civilisation in the 3rd millennium BC on the Indian subcontinent. It was an important breakthrough from the earlier hunting-gathering and self-sufficient village socio-economic organisations. In between the southern metropolis of Mohenjodaro and the northern capital of the Indus Valley, Harappa, traces of many flourishing cities dating back four to five thousand years are found. One of these is Amri, also on the right bank of Indus some 160 km south of Mohenjodaro, which French archaeologist J.M. Casal puts as 4000 years old. He also traced cities dating back to 2500 BC in the Kalat Division of Baluchistan, Nindowai, and Ornach. But Kot Diji, 40 km east of Mohenjodaro on the left bank of Indus, is one of the earliest known fortified cities with a wall four or five meters high. It was a startling discovery in the late fifties of the twentieth century, which gave new evidence of pre-Harappan culture. Harappa city is similar in planning to Mohenjodaro, and it seems that it had almost everything for comfortable living and a well-disciplined life. Objects found at Harappa are an unending variety of pottery, jewellery, ornaments, human and animal figurines, stone vessels, copper, bronze and silver utensils, metal objects, beads, household implements, and, of course, seals. Like Kot Diji, it too has a fortification wall with watch towers and bastions. Harappa’s layout shows a lofty fortified citadel and low-lying city with public and private buildings, worker’s colonies, work platforms, and furnaces.

4. Describe the causes of decay and disappearance of the Harappan Civilisation. What is the legacy of this civilisation?

Answer: The scholars have no definite answer to the puzzle of how this remarkable civilisation was destroyed. This widespread civilisation could neither come to an abrupt end nor could it be destroyed by only one cause. Dr. B.G. Gokhle is of the view that “nature and man must have combined to cause its complete destruction.” According to Sir John Marshall, the Indus Valley Civilisation collapsed about a thousand years before the coming of the Aryans. But recent researches indicate that this culture must have continued up to 800 BC. Even after its important centres were ruined, the civilisation continued and gradually mixed up with the Vedic culture. The following causes have been put forward for the decay and disappearance of this magnificent culture:

(1) Floods: The vagaries of Indus were largely responsible for the destruction of the Indus Valley cities. Frequent occurrence of floods in the Indus might have submerged vast territories and thus buried them under thick layers of mud.
(2) Famines: It is possible that the rainfall in Sindh, which might have been more plentiful than it is now, could have become scanty about 2000 BC and Sindh might have become a desert. As a result, the people might have migrated to other areas.
(3) Earthquakes: It is also possible that earthquakes might have brought havoc in the Indus valley. Vast areas might have been split, thus, destroying the cities.
(4) Changes in the course of the river Indus: Abrupt changes in the course of the Indus river might have washed away large areas, thus, leading to the destruction of the civilisation.
(5) Evidence of Invasions of the Aryans: Probably, the invasions of the Aryans brought about the end of the flourishing Indus civilisation because soon after the Harappan culture vanished, a warrior race called the Aryans fell upon India. The invaders came through the Himalayas, destroyed the culture, and subjugated the people of the Indus Valley. There are some references to this effect in the Vedic Mantras. But the theory is not supported by any convincing archaeological evidence.
(6) End of the Harappan State: Some archaeologists are of the view that the Harappan culture came to an end. This contributed to the collapse of the entire civilisation. This is evident from the disappearance of seals, the script, distinctive beads and pottery, the shift from a standardised weight system to the use of local weights, and the decline and abandonment of cities.

The Legacy of the Harappan Civilisation: Although the Indus cities disappeared probably as a result of plagues, floods, or invasions, yet the culture and the civilisation of the Indus did not wholly collapse. In the course of time, the Aryans borrowed some features of the Indus culture. Some fundamental aspects of Hinduism of today may be traced to those remote days. In addition to the worship of Shiva and Shakti, the Indus people worshipped animals, rivers, and trees. All these practices are prevalent in India even today. “There is enough in the fragments we have recovered,” says Sir John Marshall, “to demonstrate that this religion of the Indus people was the lineal progenitor of Hinduism.”

5. Explain the distinctive features of the residential buildings of Mohenjodaro.

Answer: The study of the remains unearthed during the excavations shows that the buildings were constructed throughout the city according to some definite plans. Dr. Pusalkar classifies the buildings into three heads: (a) dwelling houses or residential buildings; (b) large buildings; and (c) public baths. Dwelling Houses: Residential houses of Mohenjodaro are of different sizes, varying from a small house of two rooms to a palatial building which is 220 ft. by 115 ft. Each house had its well and drainage system. All houses are built of bricks which are usually well burnt and of good quality. Dr. Pulaskar observes, “Even at the lowest levels we find well-made bricks which would be a credit even to modern brick-makers.” Floors of the houses are earthen or kutcha. The roofs were flat and made of wood or thatched reed matting. The doors of the houses vary from 3 to 7 ft. in breadth. We cannot know how the doors or windows were fixed as no wooden material has survived these five thousand years. Many big dwelling houses had two or more storeys as indicated by marks of beams in the walls and the staircases of the houses. They were furnished with paved floors and courtyard doors, windows, and narrow stairways. The pottery jars were used as cupboards and there were wooden shelves also. In one corner of this house, there was a kitchen, though most of the cooking was done in the courtyard.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which is the most antiquated object of the Indus civilisation?

A. Harappan jewellery B. Harappan seal C. Harappan weapons D. Harappan houses

Answer: B. Harappan seal

2. In the Indus civilisation, the mud plows are found in which sites?

A. Kalibangan B. Harappa C. Lothal D. Mohenjodaro

Answer: A. Kalibangan

3. Piece of harvested land is found in which site?

A. Banawali B. Lothal C. Harappa D. Mohenjodaro

Answer: A. Banawali

4. Rare commodities made from expensive material were seen in:

A. Mohenjodaro and Harappa B. Lothal and Mohenjodaro C. Mohenjodaro and Kalibangan D. Harappa and Lothal

Answer: A. Mohenjodaro and Harappa

5. The region of Harappa, ‘Meluha’ known in Mesopotamia as?

A. Region of Kings B. Region of farmers C. Region of craftsman D. Seafarers

Answer: D. Seafarers

Competency-based questions

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Match the following and select the correct option.

List-I (Harappan Site)	List-II (Famous for)
I. Lothal	A. Specialised centres for making shell objects
II. Kalibangan	B. Near sources of carnelian
III. Dholavira	C. Evidence of ploughed field found
IV. Nageshwar	D. Water reservoirs found.

• (a) I-B, II-C, III-D, IV-A
• (b) I-A, II-D, III-C, IV-B
• (c) I-C, II-B, III-D, IV-A
• (d) I-D, II-A, III-B, IV-C

Answer: Correct option: (d)

2. Which of the following material were found at craft production centres in Harappan civilisation?

(i) Carnelian (ii) Jasper (iii) Crystal (iv) Quartz

A. (i), (ii) (iii) and (iv) B. (iii) and (iv) C. (ii), (iii) and (iv) D. (i) and (ii)

Answer: A. (i), (ii) (iii) and (iv)

3. “The domestic architecture of Mohenjodaro along the ground level meant for privacy of the residents.” Identify which of the following statements prove it.

(i) Houses were centred on a courtyard. (ii) There were no windows in the walls. (iii) The main entrance did not give direct view. (iv) Many houses had wells often in room for passers by.

A. (i) and (ii) B. (ii) and (iv) C. (iii) and (iv) D. (i) and (iv)

Answer: A. (i) and (ii)

4. Read the following information and identify the practitioners of a sub-discipline of archaeology.

They are the specialists in ancient animal remains. They tried to study and understand the Harappans subsistence strategies through animal bones and found at Harappan sites and indicated that Harappan domesticated few animals.

A. Archaeo-Botanist B. Archaeo-Zoologist C. Geo-Archaeologists D. Anthropologists

Answer: B. Archaeo-Zoologist

Assertion-Reason Questions

1. Assertion (A): The humpless bull found in the Indus Valley civilisation was called a unicorn. Its horns were adjacent and protruded forward in the picture inscribed on the seals. Perhaps, it was an imaginary animal.

Reason (R): The hump animals in the seals have received less priority than the humpless animals.

Answer: (b) Both (A) and (R) are true but R is not the correct explanation of (A).

2. Assertion (A): Many items of the Indus Valley civilisation were found in Sumeria.

Reason (R): Sumeria appears to have had trade relations with the Indus Valley.

Answer: (a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).

Case-based Questions

1. Read the following excerpt carefully and answer the questions that follow:

Evidence of an “invasion”

Deadman Lane is a narrow alley, varying from 3 to 6 feet in width…. At the point where the lane turns westward, part of a skull and the bones of the thorax and upper arm of an adult were discovered, all in a veryfriable condition, at a depth of 4 ft 2 in. The body lay on its backdiagonally across the lane.Fifteen inchesto the west were a few fragments of a tiny skull. It is to these remains that the lane owes its name.

From John Marshall, Mohenjodaro and the Indus Civilisation,1931.

i. Why is the lane called the Deadman Lane?

Answer: The lane is called the Deadman Lane because at the point where the lane turns westward, part of a skull and the bones of the thorax and upper arm of an adult were discovered, all in a very friable condition, at a depth of 4 ft 2 in. The body lay on its back diagonally across the lane. Fifteen inches to the west were a few fragments of a tiny skull.

ii. State the conclusions that scholars and archaeologists draw from this information?

Answer: Scholars and archaeologists conclude that these remains are the evidence of an “invasion” because the lane owes its name to these remains found there.

iii. Give reasons to justify that the earlier interpretations can sometimes be reversed?

Answer: Earlier interpretations can sometimes be reversed because new evidence or re-evaluation of existing evidence can provide a different perspective. This shows that interpretations are not fixed and can change with new discoveries or insights.

2. Read the following case carefully and answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option.

Archaeological sites are formed through the production, use, and discarding of materials and structures. When people continue to live in the same place, their constant use and reuse of the landscape results in the build-up of occupational debris, called a mound. Brief or permanent abandonment results in the alteration of the landscape by wind or water activity and erosion. Occupations are detected by traces of ancient materials found in layers, which differ from one another in colour, texture, and the artefacts that are found in them. Abandonment or desertions, what are called “sterile layers,” can be identified by the absence of such traces. Generally, the lowest layers are the oldest, and the highest are the most recent. The study of these layers is called stratigraphy. Artefacts found in layers can be assigned to specific cultural periods and can thus provide the cultural sequence for a site.

i. Which of the following is a feature of a Mound?

A. Occupational debris
B. Continuous inhabitation
C. Land reclamation
D. All of the Above

Answer: A. Occupational debris

ii. Which of the following is an indication of sterile layers?

A. Absence of occupational traces
B. Presence of inhabitation
C. Shards of pottery
D. Bricks

Answer: A. Absence of occupational traces

iii. Assertion (A): The lowest layers in a site are the oldest and the highest ones are the most recent. Reason (R): Continued occupation or abandonment of a site over time leads to the formation of a new layer above the old.

A. Both (A) and (R) are correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
B. Both (A) and (R) are correct but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
C. (A) is incorrect but (R) is correct.
D. (R) is incorrect but (A) is correct.

Answer: A. Both (A) and (R) are correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).

iv. Which of the following is the correct definition of stratigraphy?

A. Study of soil/rock layers in an archaeological site
B. Study of texts produced within a particular region
C. Study of artifacts
D. Study of local folklore about an archaeological site

Answer: A. Study of soil/rock layers in an archaeological site

v. How are different cultural periods specified?

A. Through different kingdoms
B. Through the script
C. Through layers of occupation
D. Through pottery styles

Answer: C. Through layers of occupation

vi. How were the occupations of Harappan people detected?

A. Through scriptures
B. Through artefacts found in layers
C. Both (a) and (b)
D. None of the above

Answer: B. Through artefacts found in layers

Additional/extra questions and answers

1. What is the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: The Indus valley civilization was one of the earliest urban societies in the world, which existed in the great Indus valley of India. It is the oldest living civilization in the world, with a record of progress spread over almost five thousand years.

2. What are some important urban centers of the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: Besides Harappa and Mohenjodaro, the other important urban centers of this civilization were Kot Diji, Lothal, Kalibangan, Ganweriwala, Rakhigarhi, and Dholavira.

3. How was the Harappa civilization discovered?

Answer: The discovery of the Harappa civilization is interesting. In 1856, when the British were building the Lahore to Multan railway, they found ballast in the form of finely baked bricks of Harappa. It was only in 1872 that notice was taken of the mounds which stood 14 to 18 meters above the level of the fields. It was in 1920-21 that R.D. Banerji discovered bricks of an unknown type which led to the identification of this ancient civilization in Indian history.

4. Who announced the discovery of the Harappa civilization?

Answer: Sir John Marshall, the Director General of Archaeological Survey of India, personally took up the work of discovering the Harappa civilization and announced in 1924 that about 5000 years ago, a rich and highly developed civilization flourished in the valley of Indus.

Q. What is the importance of Sir John Marshall’s work in discovering the Harappa civilization?

Answer: Sir John Marshall’s work is credited with preserving the Harappa site in 1924-25. However, his excavation method had some limitations as he ignored the stratigraphy of the site and grouped together artefacts recovered from the same unit, even if they were recovered at different stratigraphic layers, resulting in the loss of useful information about the context of these finds.

Q. What is the current state of research on the Harappan civilization?

Answer: Since the 1980s, international interest in Harappan archaeology has been increasing. Specialists from many countries have been jointly working at both Harappa and Mohenjodaro. They are using modern techniques of research, including surface exploration, to recover traces of clay, stone, metal, plant and animal remains, as well as to minutely analyze every scrap of every available evidence, in the hope of yielding good results in the future.

Q. What are some cities that show traces of the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: The traces of the Indus valley civilization are found in the ruins of Mohenjodaro, Amri (on the right bank of Indus in Sindh), Kot Diji (on the left), and way up in the plains of the Punjab near the city of Montgomery (now called Sahiwal), the remains of Harappa.

Q. What is the significance of the site of Harappa?

Answer: The site of Harappa is one of the largest and most important cities of the Indus Valley Civilisation. It is one of the sites where an entire sequence has been recovered that spans the history for Indus cities.

Q. How does the architecture of Harappa compare to that of Mohenjodaro?

Answer: Unlike Mohenjodaro, where baked brick buildings provide an impressive site of urban architecture, drains and wells, the ancient mounds of Harappa are characterised by imposing erosion gullies, piles of brick rubble and fragmentary walls.

Q. Who conducted excavations at the site of Harappa in the 1920s and 1930s?

Answer: Sir John Marshall, R.D. Banerji and Daya Ram Sahni conducted excavations at the site of Harappa in the 1920s and 1930s.

Q. How many major periods of development have been defined at the site of Harappa?

Answer: At least five major periods of development have been defined at the site of Harappa.

Q. What are the five major periods of development defined at the site of Harappa?

Answer: The five major periods of development defined at the site of Harappa are as follows:

• Period-I (3300 BC to 2800 BC) and Period-II (2800-2600 BC): Ravi or Hakra Phase and Kot Diji (Early Harappan) Phase
• Period-III (2600-1900 BC): Mature Harappan Phase
• Period-IV and V (1900-1300 BC): Late Harappa Phases

Q. What is the Kot Diji Phase?

Answer: The Kot Diji Phase is the early Harappan phase (2800-2600 BC) at the site of Harappa, which represents the growth and expansion of the small community during the initial occupation of the site.

Q. When did the settlement at Harappa become a major urban centre?

Answer: The settlement at Harappa became a major urban centre during Period-III (2600-1900 BC).

Q. What was the use of inscribed seals and various forms of writing associated with during Period-III at Harappa?

Answer: The use of inscribed seals, along with various forms of writing on a wide range of artefacts, appears to be directly associated with the need to communicate social or ritual status and for economic control.

Q. What have recent excavations at Harappa focused on understanding?

Answer: Recent excavations at Harappa have focused on understanding the details of social, economic, and political developments during Period-III (2600-1900 BC).

Q. What is the nature of the later Harappan subsistence, according to recent excavations?

Answer: According to recent excavations, the later Harappan subsistence was thriving at the centre of important cultural, economic, and ideological transformation, in contrast to earlier interpretations of decline and abandonment.

Q. How many settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization were discovered at the time of partition of India in August 1947?

Answer: Only 40 settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization were discovered at the time of partition of India in August 1947.

Q. How many settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization are known now?

Answer: About 1,400 settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization are known now.

Q. How are the 1,400 settlements of the Harappan civilization distributed geographically?

Answer: The 1,400 settlements of the Harappan civilization are distributed over a wide geographical area, covering an area of almost 1,600 km east-west and 1,400 km north-south.

Q. Which river was the focus of the Harappan civilization according to the distribution pattern of settlements?

Answer: According to the distribution pattern of settlements, the focus of the Harappan civilization was not Indus but Saraswati river and its distributaries which flowed between Indus and the Ganges.

Q. How do archaeologists try to understand the ancient Harappan civilization?

Answer: Archaeologists try to understand the ancient Harappan civilization with the help of findings by classifying artefacts, identifying their function, investigating the context in which they were found, and taking recourse to indirect evidence, including figures engraved on sculptures.

Q. What was the first principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites?

Answer: The first principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites was in terms of material, such as stone, clay, bone, ivory, etc.

Q. What was the second principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites?

Answer: The second principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites was to decide whether an artefact is a tool or an armament, or both or something for performing some rites or ceremonies.

Q. What was the third principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites?

Answer: The third principle of classification used by archaeologists to classify artefacts found in Harappan sites was to identify the function of an artefact by investigating the context in which it was found-was it found in a drain, in a grave, in a kiln or in house.

Q. How did archaeologists develop “frames of reference” to understand the Harappan civilization?

Answer: Archaeologists developed “frames of reference” to understand the Harappan civilization by comparing the first Harappan seal that was discovered with the seals found in Mesopotamia to find their cultural sequence.

Q. Where is Harappa located and how does it compare to Mohenjodaro?

Answer: Harappa is a ruined city in Sahiwal district, Pakistan, located on the banks of river Ravi. It is believed to have been larger than Mohenjodaro. The houses found at Harappa are smaller in size, but the remains of the city are similar to those at Mohenjodaro.

Q. Where is Mohenjodaro located and what does its name mean?

Answer: Mohenjodaro is located in Larkana district, Sindh (now in Pakistan) on the banks of river Indus. Its name means “place of the dead” due to the discovery of many skeletons in the area.

Q. What was the significance of Mohenjodaro during pre-Aryan times?

Answer: Mohenjodaro was the chief centre of social activities of the Indus valley people during pre-Aryan times.

Q. What is the size of Mohenjodaro and what is buried beneath its outskirts?

Answer: Mohenjodaro covers an area of nearly one square mile. Its outskirts are believed to be buried beneath the silt deposited by the river.

Q. What is the layout of the streets in Mohenjodaro and how were they designed?

Answer: The streets in Mohenjodaro were laid out in a regular plan like modern cities. The main road was 33 ft wide and other streets were around 13 feet wide, all aligned from east to west or south to north and intersecting at right angles. They were designed so that prevailing winds could work as suction pumps, automatically cleaning the atmosphere.

Q. What was the drainage system like in Mohenjodaro?

Answer: The drainage system in Mohenjodaro was well-planned, with drains made of mortar, lime and gypsum, and covered with big bricks and stones that could be lifted easily to clean the drains. Smaller drains from houses on both sides of the streets joined a main brick-laid channel, while bigger drains clearing rainwater were 2.5 to 5 feet in circumference. Pits were provided at either side of the street for sewage from the houses.

Q. How did the Indus valley people maintain the cleanliness of their cities?

Answer: The Indus valley people took great care to keep their cities neat and clean. They enforced building regulations strictly and ensured that no buildings encroached upon the streets. The well-planned drainage system and provision of pits for sewage from houses on both sides of the streets also helped maintain cleanliness.

Q. What are the three categories of buildings classified by Dr. Pusalkar in Mohenjodaro?

Answer: Dr. Pusalkar classified the buildings in Mohenjodaro into three categories: (a) dwelling houses or residential buildings; (b) large buildings; and (c) public baths.

Q. What were some materials used to make beads in the Indus Valley?

Answer: In the Indus Valley, a variety of materials were used to make beads such as stones like camelian, jasper, crystal quartz and metals like copper, bronze and gold, shells, and terracotta or burnt clay.

Q. How were steatite micro-beads made?

Answer: The archaeologists have not yet discovered how steatite micro-beads were made.

Q. What were some centres of production in the Indus Valley?

Answer: The centres of production in the Indus Valley included bead-making, shell cutting, metal working, seal making, and weight making.

Q. How did the Harappans procure materials for craft production?

Answer: The Harappans procured materials for craft production in various ways such as establishing settlements in areas where materials were available, sending expeditions to secure raw materials, and using riverine and coastal routes for transportation.

Q. What were some materials procured from other places?

Answer: The Harappans procured materials such as stone, timber, and metal from other places.

Q. What were the two main types of querns discovered?

Answer: The two main types of querns discovered were the first type, which had another smaller stone to push or roll to and fro, and the other type, which had an additional stone used for pounding spices and herbs, also called “curry stones.”

Q. How did the Harappans identify centres of production?

Answer: The Harappans identified centres of production by craft production activities such as bead-making, shell cutting, metal working, seal making, and weight making.

Q. What did recent archaeological discoveries show about the Harappans?

Answer: Recent archaeological discoveries showed that the Harappans had trade relations with many countries and exchanged goods such as copper, carnelian, lapis lazuli, gold, and wood.

Q. How did the Harappans trade with other regions?

Answer: The Harappans traded with other regions, possibly by sea, as indicated by the discovery of ships and boats on Harappan seals, and Mesopotamian texts referring to the Melukhas as sea-farers.

Q. What do archaeologists generally look for in the places of craft production?

Answer: Archaeologists generally look for raw material for making artefacts such as stones, nodules, whole shells, copper ore, etc., and tools, unfinished objects, rejects and waste material at the places of production.

Q. Which cities were known for craft production during the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: Apart from some specialized centers of craft production, this work was undertaken in large cities like Harappa and Mohenjodaro.

Q. What kind of figurines were found during excavations of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: A large number of figurines of both males and females made of bronze and clay were found in the excavations.

Q. What does the study of these figurines reveal about the people of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: The study of these figurines reveals that the Indus Valley people were skilled in the art of sculpture and fashioned these figures artistically.

Q. What are some examples of stone sculptures found during excavations of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: One of the remarkable finds is the male torso of polished red stone from Harappa. Another stone figurine of the bust portrait of a nobleman or a priest was discovered at Mohenjodaro.

Q. What is the most beautiful of all the sculptures found during excavations of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: The most beautiful of all the sculptures is a bronze figure of a dancing girl with a slim body, lanky legs, big eye, and beautifully bunched curly hair.

Q. What does the discovery of a metal figure of a buffalo suggest about the sculptors of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: The discovery of a metal figure of a buffalo suggests that the sculptors had made an extensive and detailed study of the subject.

Q. What is the significance of the terracotta figure of a woman named as the “Mother Goddess” unearthed at Mohenjodaro?

Answer: The terracotta figure of a woman named as the “Mother Goddess” unearthed at Mohenjodaro is an exquisite piece of art, with remarkable punched nose, a band round her loins and ornamentation fully laid on the body and pressed on the figure.

Q. What is special about the pottery of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: The Harappans were capable of making pottery of a very high standard and is “the earliest example of its kind in the ancient world”.

Q. What kind of figures were artistically depicted on the domestic vessels discovered during the excavations of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: Quite a large number of domestic vessels such as bowls, dishes, cups, saucers, vases, and basins have figures of birds, animals, and human beings artistically depicted on them.

Q. Can you provide an example of the paintings on the pottery discovered during the excavations of the Indus Valley Civilization?

Answer: One of the pottery discovered at Lothal portrays a bird perched on a tree holding a fish in its beak while a fox-like animal is sitting before it.

Q. What are the seals found in the Indus valley and what are they made of?

Answer: The seals found in the Indus valley are little pieces of soft stones, ivory, and clay. More than 200 seals of various sizes and shapes have been found in the excavations, generally rectangular in shape, with engraved figures of men, animals, and birds. They also bear a brief inscription in the pictographic script.

Q. What is the function of the knobs on the back of the seals?

Answer: The function of the knobs on the back of the seals is not clearly known, but it seems that they were used by different guilds or merchants or traders for stamping purposes. It is also believed that they were worn round the neck or on the arm like an amulet.

Q. What is the Pashupati seal and what does it show?

Answer: The Pashupati seal is one of the seals found in the Indus valley that shows the figure of a male god wearing a horned head dress and three faces. He is sitting cross-legged on a throne and is surrounded by animals such as a rhino, a buffalo, an elephant, and a tiger. There are two deer shown under the throne. Marshall is of the view that it was the figure of Lord Siva. This seal throws much light on the religion of the Indus people.

Q. What is the Bull seal and what does it show?

Answer: The Bull seal shows a stout humped Brahami bull. The modelling of its fleshy limbs is remarkable for its artistic beauty. The engraver had a keen study of the foll.

Q. What do the Unicorn seals show and what do they represent?

Answer: The Unicorn seals most frequently show an ox-like beast seemingly with a single horn. These seals take us back to a very early age when human imagination had produced several creations of fantasy in the shape of an animal or bird motifs.

Q. What is the importance of the seals found in the Indus valley?

Answer: The seals are a valuable source of information about the Indus valley people, providing information about agriculture, animals, birds, dress, ornaments, hair styles, and the Indus script. Secondly, some seals of the Indus valley have been found in the cities of Mesopotamia, and one of the between two Mesopotamian seals has been unearthed at Harappa. The seals, thus, help us to prove the contact between the Indus Valley and the Mesopotamian civilisations. Thirdly, the seals are the only source from which we know the Indus script. It is known as pictographic script having about 270 distinctive signs. In some cases, the direction of the writing was from left to right while in some other cases it was right to left. The Indus people certainly had a language of their own.

Q. What can archaeologists learn about social and economic differences within a culture by studying burials?

Answer: Archaeologists can learn about social and economic differences within a culture by studying burials, including:

• The types of burial pits used
• The presence or absence of pottery and ornaments in the graves
• The types of jewelry and other objects buried with the dead
• The use of valuable materials in the burials

Q. What were some of the burial practices of the Harappan civilization?

Answer: Some of the burial practices of the Harappan civilization included:

• Placing dead bodies in pits of different forms
• Lining the pits with bricks in some cases
• Placing pottery and ornaments with the dead body
• Burying the dead with jewelry and copper mirrors in some cases

Q. How did the Harappans view the practice of burying precious things with the dead?

Answer: Based on the findings of archaeologists, it is presumed that the Harappans did not believe in burying precious things with the dead.

Q. How do archaeologists distinguish between utilitarian and luxury goods?

Answer: Archaeologists distinguish between utilitarian and luxury goods based on the material and method of manufacture of the objects. Objects made from ordinary material such as stone or clay and of daily use are considered utilitarian, while objects made from costly and non-local material or by a complicated method are considered luxury goods.

Q. Where are rare objects made of valuable materials typically found?

Answer: Rare objects made of valuable materials are generally found in larger settlements like Mohenjodaro and Harappa, but they are rarely found in smaller settlements.

Q. How was gold jewelry found at the Harappa site typically recovered?

Answer: Gold jewelry found at the Harappa site was typically recovered from hoards, which are objects that people kept carefully inside containers such as pots.

Q. What kind of plant products did the Harappan people eat?

Answer: They ate a wide range of plant products such as wheat, barley, lentils, chickpea, and sesame. In Gujarat, millets were found at many sites.

Q. What animals were domesticated and consumed by the Harappan people?

Answer: The animal bones found at Harappan sites include those of cattle, sheep, goats, buffalo, and pig. Bones of fish and fowl have also been found. The studies of the zoo-archaeologists indicate that the people domesticated these animals. They ate animal products like mutton, beef, fish, and eggs.

Q. What kind of clothes were commonly worn by men and women in the Harappan culture?

Answer: Cotton fabrics as well as woollen clothes were commonly worn by the people. Men generally used a sort of shawl to cover the upper body and wore a band of cloth round their loins. Woman probably wore a skirt which stretched like a fan on the back of her head.

Q. What kind of ornaments did the Harappan people wear?

Answer: Both men and women seem to be fond of ornaments. Necklaces, fillets, armlets, finger-rings, and bangles were worn both by men and women. The women used girdles, nose-studs, earrings, and anklets. Ornaments were of great variety and design and some of them were of singular beauty. The ornaments were made of different metals such as gold, silver, copper, and bronze. They were studded with precious and semiprecious stones like jade, agate, carnelia, and lapis lazuli.

Q. What kind of amusements were popular among the Harappan people?

Answer: Dancing and music were popular amusement. Stringed musical instruments and drums were also known to the Indus people. Dicing and some sort of chess playing were the common pastimes of the people. They were also fond of hunting both for sport and for game. The children played with toys of clay. Different kinds of toys were made for their amusement, the most interesting of them, being carts, whistles, animals, birds, and human beings. People were also fond of birds perhaps for watching their fights.

Q. What kind of household articles were made by the Harappan people?

Answer: The earthenwares and vessels of many varieties were made with potter`s wheel and were either plain or painted with a strip of red ochre. The domestic vessels such as heaters, store jars, offerings stands, etc. were made. Glazed vessels of copper, bronze, silver, and porcelain have also been discovered. Stone not being locally available was not commonly used.

Q. What was the position of women in the Harappan culture?

Answer: The position of the women in the times of Indus valley civilization seems to be pretty good. They were entitled to equal respect with men in the society. The worship of a female deity Mother Goddess shows that the women were respected in the form of mother or Nature Goddess.

Q. What methods were used for the disposal of dead persons in the Harappan culture?

Answer: There were then probably three methods of disposal of the dead persons. First, complete burial of the dead body. Second, burial of the ashes after burning of the dead body. Lastly, the dead bodies were left for the birds and the beasts. According to Marshall, the second method was mostly used. At Mohenjodaro, about a score of human skeletons, some in public streets and others in a room, have been unearthed, but no cemetery or a burial place has been discovered.

Q. What does the discovery of articles of comfort and luxury indicate about the people of the Indus valley?

Answer: The discovery of articles of comfort and luxury in the excavations of the big cities like Mohenjodaro and Harappa clearly indicate that the people of the Indus valley were prosperous and had achieved a high standard of material progress.

Q. What evidence is there for the use of bulls and oxen in agriculture in the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: The figures engraved on the seals and terracotta sculptures indicate that the bull was known. We can presume that oxen were used for ploughing the fields. Terracotta models of ploughs have been found at sites in Cholistan (now in Pakistan) and at Banawali (Hissar district in Haryana).

Q. What evidence is there for the irrigation system used by the Harappans?

Answer: We also do not know much about the irrigation system of the Harappans. It is possible that water was drawn from the wells for irrigation. Besides, water reservoirs found in Dholavira (Gujarat) may have been used to store water for irrigation. Some traces of canals have been found in the Harappan sites of Shortughai in Afghanistan but not in Punjab or Sindh.

Q. What animals were domesticated by the people of the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: The seals discovered show that the people generally domesticated cows, bulls, buffaloes, sheep, goat, camels, etc. But horse was not domesticated. Poultry farming was also practised.

Q. What industries were well-developed in the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: Various objects discovered in the excavations at various places clearly show that the arts of spinning and weaving, carpentry, pottery, ivory working and jewellery were well developed. Cotton textile industry seems to have flourished. Goldsmiths and jewellers made beautiful and intricate ornaments from copper, bronze, gold and silver.

Q. What evidence is there for trade and commerce in the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: We have evidence that the Indus people had brisk trade not only with the rest of India but also with the foreign countries. Textiles were exported to Babylon. Certain articles of the Indus valley civilisation discovered in Persia and Egypt indicate that the Harappan people traded with Middle East. Mohenjodaro appears to have been a great inland port carrying on trade with Ur and Kish probably with Egypt also.

Q. What types of weights and measures were used by the people of the Indus valley civilization?

Answer: The Indus valley people used standard weights and measures. Certain weights and measures were found during the excavations at Mohenjodaro and Harappa. The weights range from large specimens which were lifted by ropes to very small ones which were used by the jewellers. The smallest weights of charts and slate are cubicle whereas the heavier ones are conical in shape. It is said that they were made with great accuracy and consistency than those of Elm and Mesopotamia. The poor used ordinary pebbles as weights. The measure of cubic feet was also known to the Indus valley people.

Q. What do archaeologists know about the political organization and rulers of the Indus Valley civilization?

Answer: Archaeologists have little knowledge about the nature of political organization or the history of the rulers of the Indus valley people. Some scholars opine that the Harappans had a highly centralized administration, and the provinces of Sindh, Punjab, East Baluchistan, and Kathiawar were connected and were under the control of a single administration. However, there is no definite proof.

Q. What weapons of war were discovered in the Indus Valley civilization?

Answer: A large number of fighting implements have been discovered, including axes, spears, daggers, bows, arrows, maces, slings, and swords, generally made of copper or bronze. Shields were probably used for defense purposes.

Q. What do we know about the religion of the Indus Valley people?

Answer: It is difficult to say anything with certainty about the religious beliefs of the Indus Valley people. No temples or any positive religious material have been discovered in Harappa and Mohenjodaro. However, some of the seals, sealings, figurines, and stone images found in the ruins of the cities help in forming some ideas about the religious beliefs and practices of the people.

Q. When was urbanization achieved by the Harappan civilization?

Answer: Urbanization was achieved by the Harappan civilization in the 3rd millennium BC on the Indian subcontinent.

Q. Where are the traces of many flourishing cities dating back four to five thousand years found?

Answer: Traces of many flourishing cities dating back four to five thousand years are found between the southern metropolis of Mohenjodaro and the northern capital of the Indus Valley Harappa.

Q. What is the age of Amn, one of the ancient cities found on the right bank of Indus river?

Answer: According to French archaeologist M. Casal, Amn is 4000 years old.

Q. What did Kot Dip signify in terms of pre-Harappan culture?

Answer: Kot Dip, 40 km east of Mohenjodaro on the left bank of Indus, is one of the earliest known fortified cites with a wall four or five meters high. It was a starting discovery in the late fifties of the twentieth century which gave new evidence of pre-Harappan culture.

Q. What kind of objects were found at Harappa?

Answer: Objects found at Harappa are an unending variety of pottery, jewelry, bone, and animal figurines, stone vessels, copper box and the deck metal objects, beads, yuck mones, and of course, seals.

Q. How can most of the 1400 settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization be classified?

Answer: Most of the 1400 settlements belonging to the Harappan civilization can be classified as small villages which are up to 10 hectares, a few larger and small ones of 10 to 50 hectares.

Q. What are the names of the inland centers located approximately at an equidistance in a zigzag pattern that covers Indus and Saraswan river plain?

Answer: The inland centers located approximately at an equidistance in a zigzag pattern that covers Indus and Saraswan river plain are Moenjodaro, Harappa, Ganwerwala, Rakhigarhi, and Kalibangan.

Q. What do the excavations undertaken at the sites of Moenjodaro, Harappa, Kalibangan, Lothal, and Surkotada depict?

Answer: The excavations undertaken at the sites of Moenjodaro, Harappa, Kalibangan, Lothal, and Surkotada depict various aspects like town planning, economy and technology, magot, etc. of the civilization.

Q. How was the overall layout of the Harappan civilization determined?

Answer: The overall layout of the Harappan civilization is determined by the orientation of streets and buildings, according to the cardinal directions-east, west, north, and south. To the Indus people, the idea of settlement planning did not appear suddenly with the first large cities but was already well established in earlier periods.

Q. What do the excavations reveal about the walled sections or mounds in each city?

Answer: Each city had a series of walled sections or mounds, oriented in different directions. The cities of Mohenjodaro and Harappa and Kalibangan have a high rectangular mound on the west and extensive mound in the north-south and the east. But at cities like Dholavira and Banawali, there was only a single walled mound generally divided into three or four walled sectors.

Q. What did the excavations at the Harappan city sites reveal about the gateways?

Answer: The excavations at the Harappan city sites like Mohenjodaro, Harappa, Kalibangan, and Surkotada reveal that there was a large gateway at every

Q. What is the chronology of the Harappan civilization according to radio-carbon dating?

Answer: The chronology of the Harappan civilization according to radio-carbon dating is as follows:

• Early Harappan Phase: c. 3500 – 2600 BC
• Mature Harappan Phase: c. 2600 – 1900 BC
• Late Harappan Phase: c. 1900 – 1300 BC

Q. How long did the Mature Harappan period last and what changes may have taken place during this period?

Answer: The Mature Harappan period lasted for 700 years, which is a long period of nearly 30 generations. Many changes in social organization, politics, language, and religion must have taken place during this period.

Q. How did the Harappan civilization decline and disappear?

Answer: The decline of the Harappan civilization was gradual and slow, continuing over a period of almost six hundred years from c. 1900-1300 BC. The civilization did not disappear suddenly, but rather regional variations started emerging after about 1900 BC. The exact causes of its decline and disappearance are uncertain, but scholars suggest a combination of factors including floods, famines, earthquakes, changes in the course of the Indus river, the end of the Harappan state, and possibly the invasions of the Aryans.

95. What are the possible causes of the decay and disappearance of the Harappan civilization?

Answer: The possible causes of the decay and disappearance of the Harappan civilization are:

• Floods that submerged vast territories and buried them under thick layers of mud
• Famines that may have resulted from changes in rainfall patterns in Sindh
• Earthquakes that may have destroyed vast areas of the Indus valley
• Changes in the course of the Indus river that may have washed away large areas
• The end of the Harappan state, which may have contributed to the collapse of the entire civilization
• Invasions of the Aryans, which is a theory that is not supported by any convincing archaeological evidence.