Introduction to the Indus Valley Civilization

You've heard of Mesopotamia as the cradle of civilization, but did you know there was another cradle in the Indus Valley on the Indian subcontinent? Hello and welcome to Ancient History Encyclopedia. My name is Kelly and today we're going to explore the ancient Indus Valley and the mysterious culture that flourished there. Don't forget, if you enjoy our videos, chuck this one a like and subscribe so you don't miss out on any new uploads. The Indus Valley Civilization, named after the Indus River Basin which supported it, was located in what is modern day Pakistan and northwest India. The civilization is often compared to Egypt and Mesopotamia as being one of the oldest and most significant in the world. It is also known as the Harappan Civilization, after the first city which was discovered in the modern day, Harappa, and as the Indus-Saraswati Civilization, named after the Saraswati River which flowed adjacent to the Indus. Archaeological evidence suggests farming settlements along the Indus floodplain were established prior to 7000 BCE. The earliest signs of urbanization in the Indus Valley didn't occur for another thousand years and by around 2800 BCE, the region had expanded with towns and cities in all directions. In circa 2600 BCE, major developments and transformations occurred in the Indus floodplain which led to highly organized and well-built cities. The Indus Valley Civilization is thought to have been literate, with their pictorial script developed from decorations on pottery. Their text has been identified carved on stamp seals, weights, amulets, and copper tablets, which is thought to have been an early form of coinage. However, every attempt to decipher their language has failed, which makes them far more of a mystery than the other civilizations they are so often compared to, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. Evidence of the Indus Valley Civilization first came to light in 1829 CE, when the British explorer Charles Masson discovered the city of Harappa. Masson was a deserter of the British army in India. He took notes on the site and afterwards he traveled through India, excavating various sites on his own and amassing a huge collection of coins and artifacts, before returning to Britain and publishing a book on his adventures in India. Masson's work and other expeditions caught the attention of the British authorities and in the 1860s the famous historical preservationist Alexander Cunningham began excavations after founding the organization the Archaeological Survey of India or the ASI. In 1904 he was replaced as the head of the ASI by John Marshall, who would oversee excavations of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro and would give a name to the Indus Valley Civilization. The highly organized cities were well planned with roads, mud brick buildings, baths, a citadel, sewerage systems, and wells for fresh water. The largest of the Indus Valley cities included Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro, Kalibangan, Dholavira, and Ganwari Wala. Harappa was the first Indus Valley city to be discovered and its ruins provide evidence of a sophisticated and well-planned city partially built on platforms to avoid flooding. At its height the city of Harappa would have been home to around 35,000 people in houses which varied in shape and size. The buildings were uniformly built out of mud brick and the streets followed a grid-like formation. Every city in the region seems to have followed the same basic planning as Harappa which suggests a high level of urban planning and a central government which was able to plan, fund, and build such sites. Mohenjo-Daro was built upon platforms so as to avoid the Indus River flood level just like Harappa and the city had a citadel which housed the Great Bath, a large public swimming pool, and associated buildings. On another platform was the Lower Town which had houses, small lanes, and large streets. One of the most baffling discoveries or lack thereof is the absence of any building which resembles a temple or a palace in any of the cities. The cities seem to have been built with a focus on the lives of the common people. Homes were built with wind catchers known as a Persian invention which is a structure on top of houses which catches the cool breeze and draws it into the interior which is an ancient form of air conditioning. Many houses had ceramic floored bathrooms and flushing toilets which were connected to a sewerage system made out of a network of brick drains running along the streets and covered by stone slabs to carry waste from the bathrooms of the city houses. Archaeologists have found a number of artifacts left behind by the Indus Valley people and one of the most interesting types of artifacts are the seal stones. Seal stones were used for identification in trade and these seals were decorated with animals both real and fantastical as well as some human figures and symbols which have been interpreted as their script. Other discoveries include bronze vessels, gold jewelry and many figurines of animals such as dogs, monkeys and cows and human figures. The human figurines of stone, terracotta and bronze often depict women dancing or posing which has prompted the theory of a belief in a mother goddess who was the counterpart to an equally powerful god. Because we're lacking in any written history it's impossible to know the meaning of these images. Among the most intriguing of these images is what seems to be a unicorn which appears on the majority of the seals. The Indus people traded with other cultures from Mesopotamia and the Near East and because we can read their script we know what the Indus people traded with them but we don't know what they got in return. One of the materials the Indus people seem to have been able to monopolize was lapis lazuli, a blue semi-precious stone which was highly sought after due to its rich coloring. The Indus people did not seem to use it much themselves but traded with Mesopotamia where it was in great demand and highly prized as well as Egypt where it was also greatly valued. We know from Mesopotamian texts that the Indus people traded lapis lazuli along with gold, tin and copper which was sourced from modern-day Afghanistan as well as semi-precious stones such as agate and carnelian which were commonly used for beads. The Indus valley was known by the Mesopotamians as the Meluhates who came from the land of the Meluha and did you know that the famous Cleopatra VII wore lapis lazuli eyeshadow from Meluha? The Indus cities had highly skilled artisans and the craft production appears to have been fairly well organized. The craftsmen worked near the source of the raw material and then circulated the goods around the Indus plain. There is also evidence for the use of imported materials such as faience and terracotta as well as high quality pottery. The Indus valley civilization flourished from around 7000 BCE up until it began its decline in circa 1900 BCE. By 1800 BCE many cities had been abandoned, the standardized weights and writing had gone out of use and many of their trade links had been severed which may have been caused by political unrest in Mesopotamian regions and in Egypt which were their two main trading partners. A number of reasons may have caused the decline of the Indus culture including diseases such as malaria and cholera and climate change. The drying up of the Saraswati river which was their main source for irrigation and crops began in around 1900 BCE and would have had a negative effect on their irrigation and arable land. The decline in trade with Egypt and Mesopotamia may have been a cause but another main reason for the decline of the Indus peoples has been suggested as the arrival of the nomadic peoples from central Asia known as the Aryans. Although the Aryan influence is initially believed to have been an invasion, the arrival of the nomadic people is now believed to be more of a migration and merging of the two cultures. The language of the Aryans eventually gained popularity over the Indus valley language and they gave up their nomadic ways and established permanent settlements in the region. No matter what the cause of the decline was, the urban development ceased but small regional cultures flourished in the wake of the great cities and the Indus valley civilization continued to influence the later history of the Indian subcontinent. Lapis lazuli from the Indus valley culture was widely used by the Mesopotamians and Egyptians. What products do you use daily that's come from another culture? Let us know down in the comments below. Don't forget if you enjoyed this video give it a like and subscribe to our channel for more history videos. This video was brought to you by Ancient History Encyclopedia. For more great articles and interactive content head to our website via the link below. Ancient History Encyclopedia is a not-for-profit organization. If you'd like to support our work hit the support link down below or on the card up on the screen. Thank you all so much for watching and we'll see you soon.