The Indus Valley Civilization

Geography of India

Indus Valley Civilization Question #1 & #2 Indus Valley Civilization Lasted from 3300 BCE - 1300 BCE About 2,000 years

Indus Valley Civilization Question #3 & #4 Indus Valley Civilization Located in modern-day Pakistan and India along the Indus River Today, Pakistan has over 200 million people (very crowded)

Indus Valley Civilization Question #5 At its peak, the civilization had a population of around 5 million Geographically, the largest ancient civilization in the world (covered the most area)

Cities of the Indus Valley Question #6 Over 1,000 cities and settlements have been discovered Mohenjo-Daro – The most developed and sophisticated city of the Indus River Harrapa – Had about 25,000 people (very large for its time)

Ancient ruins of Harrapa

Agriculture Farming along the Indus River led to a steady food source Question #7 Agriculture Farming along the Indus River led to a steady food source Led to a surplus in agriculture This led to the formation of cities People domesticated crops to grow and farm animals Peas, dates, and cotton

Advancements in Technology Question #8 Cities used advanced engineering systems to create a water supply and sanitation systems Created the world’s first flush toilets and sewer system Created drainage systems to prevent flooding City streets were based on a grid system

Harrapa Archaeologist discovered the city in 1921 in Pakistan Question #9 Harrapa Archaeologist discovered the city in 1921 in Pakistan The town grew because of the harvesting of grains A granary is a large building used for storing grain. One was located in the center of Harrapa The granary was protected by a citadel, a large protective wall

Mohenjo-Daro Large city with advanced technology Question #10 Large city with advanced technology City divided into two parts: Administrative (Downtown) : Government and Religious Buildings Lower City (Residential): Houses where the people lived Also had a granary and was protected by a citadel

Question #11 Mohenjo-Daro Evidence suggests that Mohenjo-Daro suffered damage from major floods, caused by the Indus River Created dams and drainage systems to prevent floods They developed irrigation systems to get water to crops

Decline By 1900 BCE, the civilization began to decline Question #12 By 1900 BCE, the civilization began to decline Deforestation caused the fertile soil to turn to desert Not enough food could be produced for the population, so people began to abandon the cities In 1500 BCE, Mohenjo-Daro was raided and destroyed

Marking Property Question #13 Seals were used to mark property, evidence of a written language The people of the Indus Valley created their own seals to put on their property Today we still use seals on important documents State seal of North Carolina. Esse Quam Videri: “To be rather than seem”

Make Your Own Seal On the back of your interactive notes, create your own seal which you would use to mark your possessions Include symbols that are important to you This could be an animal, letters, logos and anything else that is special to you