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UPPCS Ancient History Gap Sheet: Harappan Sites and Urban Life.
UPPCS has asked 20 of these. 6 have not been asked yet. Lock the first list, then read the second: it holds what UPPCS has not used yet.
First, the concept
Harappan cities combined planned streets, drainage, craft production and exchange. Mature Harappan urbanism is usually dated about 2600–1900 BCE; earlier and later phases must be kept separate.
Match each discovery to its site and river. Archaeology is the main source because the script remains undeciphered; seals cannot yet provide a readable political history.
✅ Already asked (20)
Sites and discoveries
- Harappa on Ravi · Pakistan; excavations begun by Daya Ram Sahni in 1921; cemetery R-37.
- Mohenjo-daro Great Bath · Sindh, Pakistan; also famous for the bronze dancing girl.
- Kalibangan ploughed field · Rajasthan, on the Ghaggar; furrows and fire altars are notable finds.
- Lothal crafts and basin · Gujarat, near the Bhogava; bead making, ivory scale and a basin commonly identified as a dockyard.
- Dholavira water management · Khadir island in Kachchh, Gujarat; reservoirs and a three-part urban layout.
- Rakhigarhi settlement · Haryana; one of the largest Harappan settlements.
- Chanhudaro bead workshops · Sindh; important craft centre excavated by E. J. H. Mackay.
- Banawali settlement · Haryana; early and mature Harappan remains.
- Ropar river location · Punjab; on the Sutlej.
- Manda northern site · Jammu region; on the Chenab.
Economy and interpretation
- Undeciphered Harappan script · Short inscriptions occur on seals and other objects; language is unconfirmed.
- Steatite seals · Most Harappan seals were made of steatite.
- Mesopotamian exchange · Harappans traded with Mesopotamia; Meluhha is commonly linked with the Indus region.
- Bronze Age technology · Copper and bronze were used; iron was not a normal mature Harappan material.
- Lost-wax casting · The bronze dancing girl illustrates metal casting skills.
- Mature Harappan phase · The main urban phase is conventionally dated about 2600–1900 BCE.
- Harappan shell craft · Nageshwar and Balakot were important shell-working centres.
UP Harappan sites
- Alamgirpur eastern site · Meerut district; on the Hindon; an eastern Harappan site.
- Hulas settlement · Saharanpur district; a late Harappan site.
- Mandi Harappan site · Muzaffarnagar district, Uttar Pradesh.
❌ Not asked yet (6)
Sites and discoveries
- Shortugai trade outpost · Afghanistan; Harappan settlement connected with long-distance exchange.
Economy and interpretation
- Standardised weights · Cubical stone weights helped regulate exchange.
- Brick proportions · A common mature Harappan brick ratio was 1:2:4 for thickness, width and length.
- Chert weight material · Harappan cubical weights were commonly made of chert.
- Carnelian bead craft · Heat treatment and drilling helped produce carnelian beads.
- Harappan settlement decline · Urban decline involved regional shifts; it was not the sudden disappearance of all communities.
⚠️ Dholavira is in Gujarat, Kalibangan in Rajasthan and Rakhigarhi in Haryana. A dockyard interpretation at Lothal is conventional but debated.
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