Indus Valley Civilization

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The Indus Valley civilization of ancient India was one of the earliest civilizations in world history. It was located in the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent, and its rise and fall form the first great chapter in the history of ancient India. The Indus Valley is contemporary with the civilizations of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. The civilization is famous for its large and well planned cities. Over 1,052 cities and settlements have been found. Most of these are small, but amongst them are some of the largest cities of their time, especially Harappa and Mohenjo daro. After c. 1900 BCE, all the major Indus Valley cities were abandoned. They were replaced by fewer and smaller settlements, without planning, monumental buildings or writing. This important book is a historical sketch of Indus Valley Civilization. Students and readers will find it useful in their study.

Kalyani Apte is Lecturer, Department of History, V.K.S. University, Arrah. Her several research papers have been published in reputed journals. She has also attended many national seminars.

The Indus Valley civilization of ancient India was one of the earliest civilizations in world history. It was located in the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent, and its rise and fall form the first great chapter in the history of ancient India. The Indus Valley is contemporary with the civilizations of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. The civilization is famous for its large and well planned cities. Over 1,052 cities and settlements have been found. Most of these are small, but amongst them are some of the largest cities of their time, especially Harappa and Mohenjo-daro. The Indus Valley civilization covered most of what is today Pakistan and the Indian states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab Settlements which were closely related to the core civilization- and may have been colonies of it-have been found in Afghanistan and central Asia. The huge Indus river system waters a rich agricultural landscape. The Indus plain is surrounded by high mountains, desert and ocean, and at that time there were dense forests and swamps to the east. Prior to 6500 BCE, the Indian sub-continent was home to hunter-gatherers (as in the rest of the world, bas some regions in the Middle East, where farming had been spreading since 8000 BCE). In any event, small farming and pastoral villages spread across the northwest of the subcontinent. The earliest of these had no pottery (to use the jargon, theirs was an aceramic culture); but by c. 5000 BCE they made pottery, as well as shell and stone artefacts, There is evidence of trade links with peoples to north, south and west. By the start of the 4th millennium farming communities dotted the flood plain of the river Indus; and from the mid-4th millennium, proto-urban settlements had appeared which shared traits which would later appear in Indus Valley cities: rigid city planning, massive brick walls and bull motifs in their art. Trade networks expanded, particularly with the west. Craft manufacture became more specialized and sophisticated. Wheel-thrown ceramics appeared from c. 3300 BCE, a sure sign of mass production, and hence of increased wealth. Finally, around 2600 BCE, the mature, fully urban phase of Indus civilization appeared.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages