Indus Civilization

Ancient India

Indus Valley Civilization

Cultural Timeline and Elements of Indus Valley Civilization

The Oldest Village, Mehgarh 6,000 BC

Mehgarh is located 125 miles west of the Indus valley, and provides the earliest evidence of village level within the Indus Valley. The initial site is quite small and exhibits evidence of crop farming, with produce such as Asiatic wheat. The site also shows use of domestic goats and extensive trade with the west. Traded goods included turquoise, copper, and cotton from as far away as Arabia. By 5,000 BC the dwellings of the Mehgarh went from simple semi-permanent housing to mud brick, and then large permanent housing. The economy was largely dependent upon trade. Such trends, specifically emphasizing trade, continued well into 4,000 BC when the culture clearly identified as Harappan became evident.

The Early Harappan 4,000 BC to 3,000 BC

From the humble, but rapidly advancing beginning of the Mehgarh, came the eventual arrival of the early Harappan. The early Harappan evidenced very densely packed villages and village centers, all with extensive irrigation systems, and much the same subsistence pattern as the Mehgarh. The early Harappan people planted a wide variety of crops, including barley, and wheat, and did so according to the predictable cycles of the Indus River. The farmers of the Indus would plant their crops as the floods receded between June and September, and by early Spring harvested them. The result of the Harappan civilizations emphasis on agriculture and irrigation lead to a plethora of irrigation systems around which human settlements were built. The settlements along the river were susceptible to periods of violent flooding. In such cases, stone walls were erected as flood barriers. Ironically,these flood barriers eventually became the city walls of some settlements.

The Harappan 2,500 BC. to 2,050 BC

From the Early Harappan arose such settlements as Mohenjo-daro and Harappa, as well as numerous other settlements which spanned roughly 1,000,000 miles of the Indus Valley. The culture of the classical Harappan era surrounded the rivers of the Indus valley and was greatly dependent upon the valley and trade for its subsistence. Indicative of all Harappan sites are the fire mud brick houses and the net-like city plans that took generations to evolve.

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