Class 12 History Notes Chapter 1 (Bricks; beads and bones: the harappan civilisation) – Themes in Indian History-I Book

Alright class, let's delve into one of the most fascinating and foundational chapters of Indian history – the Harappan Civilization, also known as the Indus Valley Civilization. This chapter, 'Bricks, Beads and Bones', lays the groundwork for understanding ancient urban life in the subcontinent. For your government exam preparation, focus on the key features, sites, artifacts, and the eventual decline. Pay close attention to the details archaeologists use to reconstruct this past.

Chapter 1: Bricks, Beads and Bones: The Harappan Civilisation - Detailed Notes

1. Introduction & Naming:

• Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC): Initially named so because many early sites were found in the Indus river valley.
• Harappan Civilisation: Preferred name now, as Harappa was the first site discovered (by Dayaram Sahni in 1921). This follows the archaeological convention of naming a culture after the first site where it was identified. Mohenjo-daro was discovered next (by R.D. Banerji in 1922).
• Time Frame: Broadly c. 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE (Mature Harappan Phase). There were also Early Harappan (c. 3300-2600 BCE) and Late Harappan (c. 1900-1300 BCE) phases, showing development and eventual decline/transformation.
• Geographical Extent: Vast area covering present-day Pakistan, and parts of India (Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, UP), and even Afghanistan (Shortughai). Significantly larger than contemporary Mesopotamian or Egyptian civilizations.

2. Key Features of the Harappan Civilisation:

• Urban Planning: This is a defining characteristic.

  • Settlement Layout: Cities often divided into two parts:
    • Citadel: Smaller, higher, western part. Often walled. Contained structures for special public purposes (e.g., Great Bath, Granaries at Mohenjo-daro). Possibly housed rulers or was used for public/ritual functions.
    • Lower Town: Larger, lower, eastern part. Also often walled. Residential area for the general population.
  • Streets & Drainage: Well-planned grid pattern streets intersecting at right angles. Advanced drainage system – houses had drains connected to street drains, which were covered. Inspection holes/manholes existed. Shows emphasis on sanitation and civic planning.
  • Bricks: Use of standardized baked bricks (remarkable uniformity across sites) and sun-dried bricks. Common ratio was 1:2:4 (Height:Width:Length).

• Subsistence Strategies:

  • Agriculture: Primary occupation. Grew wheat, barley, lentils, chickpeas, sesame, millets (found in Gujarat). Evidence of rice is relatively rare (found at Lothal, Rangpur).
    • Tools: Terracotta models of ploughs found (Cholistan, Banawali). Evidence of a ploughed field found at Kalibangan (Rajasthan), showing criss-cross furrow marks, suggesting two crops grown together.
    • Irrigation: Probably used irrigation. Traces of canals found at Shortughai (Afghanistan), but not definitively in Punjab or Sind. Water might have been drawn from wells or river flooding managed.
  • Animal Husbandry: Domesticated cattle (humped bull frequently depicted on seals), sheep, goat, buffalo, pig. Bones found provide evidence. Used bullocks for ploughing and transport.
  • Hunting & Gathering: Hunted wild animals (bones of boar, deer, gharial found) and gathered plant produce. Fishing was also practiced.

• Craft Production: Highly skilled artisans.

  • Materials Used: Stone (carnelian, jasper, crystal, quartz, steatite), Metals (copper, bronze, gold, silver), Shell (from coastal areas), Faience (a synthetic material), Terracotta (baked clay).
  • Major Crafts:
    • Bead-making: Diverse shapes, sizes, materials. Steatite micro-beads were a specialty. Techniques included grinding, polishing, drilling. Chanhudaro and Lothal were major centers. Red colour of carnelian obtained by firing yellowish raw material.
    • Seal-making: Mostly square, made of steatite. Usually depict animals (unicorn most common) and signs from the undeciphered script. Used for trade, identity marking.
    • Weight-making: Precise system of cubical weights, usually made of chert. Lower denominations were binary (1, 2, 4, 8, 16... up to 12,800), higher followed decimal system. Shows regulation in trade.
    • Pottery: Distinctive red pottery, often painted with black designs (geometric patterns, trees, animals).
    • Metalwork: Used copper and bronze (alloy of copper and tin) for tools, weapons, vessels, ornaments. Gold and silver used for ornaments. Aware of lost-wax technique (e.g., dancing girl bronze statue).
    • Terracotta Figurines: Mother goddesses, toy carts, animals.

• Trade and Exchange:

  • Internal: Extensive trade within the Harappan zone. Standardized weights and seals facilitated this. Overland (bullock carts) and riverine routes used.
  • External: Evidence of trade with Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), Oman, possibly Bahrain (Dilmun).
    • Mesopotamian Texts: Mention trade with "Meluhha", widely believed to be the Harappan region. Mention products like carnelian, lapis lazuli, copper, gold, woods.
    • Archaeological Evidence: Harappan seals found in Mesopotamia. Mesopotamian cylinder seal found in Mohenjo-daro. Omani copper has traces of nickel, also found in some Harappan artifacts. A large Harappan jar coated with black clay found at Omani sites. Possible dockyard found at Lothal (Gujarat), suggesting maritime trade.

• Seals, Script, and Weights:

  • Seals: Used possibly to stamp clay on goods (authenticity/sender identity), or as amulets. Conveyed identity without literacy.
  • Script: Undeciphered till date. Written generally from right to left. Not alphabetical, too many signs (around 375-400). Found on seals, copper tools, pottery rims, jewellery, signboard (Dholavira). Short inscriptions are the norm. Lack of bilingual inscriptions hampers decipherment.
  • Weights: Show remarkable precision and standardization, indicating regulated trade and exchange.

• Social and Political Organisation:

  • Complexity: Evidence of complex decisions being taken and implemented (e.g., city planning, brick standardization, weights).
  • Rulers?: Difficult to ascertain the exact nature of political power.
    • Possibilities: A single state? Several competing centers/kingdoms (e.g., Mohenjo-daro, Harappa as twin capitals)? No rulers, governed by community consensus?
    • Evidence: Uniformity suggests central authority. Large public buildings (Great Bath, Granary) hint at organization. The "Priest-King" steatite statue from Mohenjo-daro is often cited, but its interpretation is uncertain. Palaces are conspicuously absent.
  • Social Stratification: Differences in burial goods, house sizes suggest social differences, but not extreme disparities like in Mesopotamia or Egypt.

• Religious Beliefs:

  • Difficult to Reconstruct: No definite temples found. Interpretation relies heavily on artifacts.
  • Possible Practices:
    • Ritual Bathing: Suggested by the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro.
    • Fertility Cults: Terracotta figurines of heavily jeweled women often identified as "mother goddesses".
    • Proto-Shiva?: A seal depicting a figure seated in a yogic posture, surrounded by animals (Pashupati Seal) is sometimes interpreted as an early form of Shiva.
    • Nature Worship: Depiction of animals (unicorn, bull), trees (pipal) on seals suggests reverence for nature. Possible worship of trees and animals.
    • Fire Altars: Structures identified as fire altars found at Kalibangan and Lothal.
    • Burial Practices: Generally buried dead in pits, in north-south orientation. Grave goods (pottery, ornaments) placed with the body. Differences in quantity/quality of goods suggest social hierarchy.

3. Important Harappan Sites & Key Findings:

• Harappa (Punjab, Pakistan): First site discovered. Granaries (outside citadel), workmen's quarters, cemeteries (R37, Cemetery H).
• Mohenjo-daro (Sindh, Pakistan): Largest known site. Great Bath, Great Granary (inside citadel), bronze dancing girl, steatite "Priest-King" statue, Pashupati seal, evidence of woven cotton. Planned city.
• Lothal (Gujarat, India): Port town? Dockyard structure (interpretation debated), bead-making factory, rice husks evidence, fire altars, double burial (male & female).
• Kalibangan (Rajasthan, India): Ploughed field surface, fire altars, camel bones, less developed drainage compared to Mohenjo-daro, unique pottery in early levels.
• Dholavira (Gujarat, India): Unique water harvesting system (reservoirs), three-part city division (Citadel, Middle Town, Lower Town), large inscription ('signboard') with Harappan script characters. UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Chanhudaro (Sindh, Pakistan): Major center for craft production (beads, seals, weights, metalwork). No citadel found here.
• Banawali (Haryana, India): Terracotta plough model, evidence of barley, streets not always in grid pattern (radial).
• Shortughai (Afghanistan): Outpost for sourcing lapis lazuli. Evidence of canals.
• Nageshwar & Balakot (Coastal areas): Specialized centers for shell-working.

4. The Decline of the Harappan Civilisation (Post c. 1900 BCE):

• Evidence of Decline: Abandonment of mature Harappan sites, disappearance of distinctive artifacts (weights, seals, script, special beads), decline in urban planning, shift towards rural settlements (Late Harappan phase/successor cultures like Ochre Coloured Pottery culture).
• Theories (Likely a combination of factors):
  • Climate Change: Increased aridity, drying up of rivers (like the Ghaggar-Hakra).
  • Floods: Excessive flooding in Indus plains.
  • Deforestation: Over-exploitation of wood for baking bricks, smelting metals.
  • Tectonic Activity/River Course Changes: Shifting river courses impacting agriculture and trade routes.
  • Aryan Invasion/Migration: (Proposed by Wheeler, linking destruction layers at Mohenjo-daro with Rigvedic descriptions of Indra destroying forts). Largely discredited now due to lack of strong corroborative evidence and chronological gaps. Migration might have played a role in cultural transformation later.
  • Epidemic/Disease: Possible outbreak impacting dense urban populations.
  • Breakdown of Trade: Decline in long-distance trade (especially with Mesopotamia).

5. Discovering the Harappan Civilisation:

• Early Discoveries: Cunningham (first Director-General of ASI) noted Harappan seals but couldn't place them in the correct time frame.
• Major Recognition: John Marshall (DG, ASI in 1920s) announced the discovery of a new civilization in 1924, based on finds at Harappa (Sahni) and Mohenjo-daro (Banerji).
• Excavation Techniques: Marshall excavated horizontally, ignoring stratigraphy, leading to loss of contextual information. R.E.M. Wheeler later emphasized following the stratigraphy (layers) of the mound.
• Challenges: Undeciphered script, perishable materials (cloth, leather, wood) mostly lost, interpreting function and religious beliefs from material remains.

Conclusion:

The Harappan Civilization represents a remarkable phase of early urbanism in South Asia, characterized by sophisticated planning, extensive trade networks, unique crafts, and a mysterious script. Its decline was likely complex, and its legacy can be debated, but its discovery fundamentally changed our understanding of India's ancient past.

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs):

1. Which of the following Harappan sites is known for its unique water harvesting system and a large inscription often called a 'signboard'?
   A) Lothal
   B) Kalibangan
   C) Dholavira
   D) Mohenjo-daro

2. The distinctive red colour of Carnelian beads, a popular Harappan craft item, was obtained by:
   A) Polishing the stone intensely
   B) Soaking the stone in red dye
   C) Firing the yellowish raw material and beads at various stages
   D) Mixing red pigment with steatite powder

3. Mesopotamian texts mention trade with a region called 'Meluhha', which archaeologists generally identify with:
   A) Egypt
   B) Oman
   C) The Harappan region
   D) Central Asia

4. Which site yielded evidence of a ploughed field, suggesting sophisticated agricultural practices in the Early Harappan period?
   A) Harappa
   B) Banawali
   C) Lothal
   D) Kalibangan

5. The standard Harappan seals were typically made of which material?
   A) Terracotta
   B) Copper
   C) Steatite
   D) Faience

6. The Harappan system of weights was generally cubical and made of chert. The lower denominations followed which system?
   A) Decimal (multiples of 10)
   B) Binary (1, 2, 4, 8, 16...)
   C) Hexadecimal (base 16)
   D) Duodecimal (base 12)

7. Which of the following is NOT considered a major theory for the decline of the Harappan Civilization?
   A) Climate Change and Drought
   B) Widespread Internal Rebellion
   C) Shifting River Courses
   D) Decline in Long-Distance Trade

8. The famous bronze statue of the 'Dancing Girl' was discovered at which Harappan site?
   A) Harappa
   B) Chanhudaro
   C) Mohenjo-daro
   D) Lothal

9. Which Harappan site is particularly noted as a specialized center for craft production, including bead-making, shell-cutting, and metal-working, and notably lacked a Citadel?
   A) Dholavira
   B) Mohenjo-daro
   C) Kalibangan
   D) Chanhudaro

10. The 'Great Bath', a large rectangular tank suggesting ritual bathing, is a prominent structure found within the Citadel area of:
    A) Harappa
    B) Lothal
    C) Mohenjo-daro
    D) Dholavira

Answer Key:

1. C
2. C
3. C
4. D
5. C
6. B
7. B
8. C
9. D
10. C

Make sure you revise these points thoroughly. Understanding the evidence and how archaeologists interpret it is crucial. Good luck with your preparation!