Indus Valley Civilization 2500 B.C.E. – 1500 B.C.E.
Background Excavated in 1920s Lesser known ancient civilization Sophisticated public works A huge valley
Where: Between the Indus and the Sarwati Rivers
*Location in floodplain made for rich agricultural yield *Flooded reliably 2 times a year
Alluvial Plain Discussion
Major Cities Mohenjo-Daro (lower) Agricultural city Granaries Public baths
Major Cities Harappa (upper) Public works Domesticated animals Cultivation of wheat and rice
Notable Indicators of an Advanced Society: *Written language *Evidence of trade *Evidence of city planning *(sewers!) *Domesticated animals *Made cotton cloth
Religious Element of Indus Valley Civilization Little evidence Polytheistic Mother Goddess Bathing as a means of purification (Great Bath of Mohenjo-Daro)
E. Artistic/Intellectual Element of Indus Valley Civilization Seals Figurines, Jewelry, Pottery Mathematics Pictograph Writing
What was not found: Evidence Weapons or warfare No accepted reason why they left, only theories Horses Still much to be uncovered Much is literally blowing away due to salinization and lack of funding
V. Decline of Indus Valley Civilization Changing Rivers/Environmental Disaster? Invasion by the Aryans or people from the Caucasus Earthquake? Something Else? What we do know is that by the 1500s the society was in such a state of decline that it was relatively easy for nomadic cattle-herding peoples to settle in the region and eventually take up farming. We can also be fairly sure that the vast majority of the IVC peoples did not remain in the region.
Images Great Bath
Images Drain System
Images Toilets
Images Houses
Further Questions? Why did the civilization not spread further? What happened to them? What was the importance of the baths? What was their governmental structure such that it allowed for little-to-no violence?
Sources http://www.crystalinks.com/induscivilization.html (Illustration of Harappa) http://www.archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/aryan- harappan-myth.html (Sarwati River Map)