The Indus River Valley Civilization
Located in north-western India, the Indus river valley civilization was a collection
of villages located along the Indus River that lasted from about 2500 to 1800 BC. The
largest known city was Mohenjo-daro and will be used to represent the other cities in this
report. Not much is known about the Indus people except for the way they built their
towns with more organization than any other civilization at the time. Other then that, no
written records of this civilization exists, and the only proof of their language is the
hundreds of seals that were found in the ruins.
Mohenjo-daro, as well as the rest of the cities, was well built and organized. The
city was constructed with a grid system similar to those found in major cities today. The
main area of Mohenjo-daro was the citadel which was protected by walls and contained
the important buildings. It had the government buildings as well as public buildings such
as the Great Bath. This area was a big pool of water surrounded by different rooms and
may have been used for religious ceremonies. Another area of importance was the
granary which was a large wooden structure resting on stone supports. This allowed air to
flow though the grain. The granary also had areas that allowed for carts to drop off and
pick up grain. The citadel overlooked the lower residential part of the city which had
houses placed close together and were fairly large and offered privacy. Mohenjo-daro
also had an extensive drainage system available throughout the city and was considered
advance for its time.
The cities along the Indus River relied heavily on agriculture. In fact, the river its
self helped their economy because if flooded often and left behind a silt, which was good
for growing stuff. The river also caused problems though, because it is believed that the
flooding destroyed the cities several times. Crops such as barley, wheat, rice, and various
fruits and vegetables where grown. It is thought that the farmers paid a large portion of
their crops to the public granaries. Trade with other civilizations was also helpful to the
Indus people. Another city known as Lothol had a dock built with bricks that was used to
ship goods. There were also warehouses close by the docks filled with items both ready
to export and stuff that was imported. Items that were imported included gold, copper,
and jade. The Indus people most likely traded with cultures from Afghanistan, other parts
of India, Iran, and Mesopotamia, which is suggested by the artifacts in both the Indus
area and other parts of the world. Cotton, as well as the other crop they crew where the
exports of the Indus people.
When the city of Mohenjo-daro reached its peak of civilization, the population’s
ethnicity was mixed with other cultures. People from the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean
areas, Mongolians, and Western India where all living with the descendents of the
original Indus. This cultural diffusion was probably brought on by the trading with other
cultures. Judging by the houses that have been excavated, the people that lived in
Mohenjo-daro seemed to enjoy a middle-class life. The houses had no windows on the
street and were very colorless with next too no decorations. The religion of the Indus
people is not entirely known because no worshipping areas of any specific religion have
been discovered. But remains found in some of the cities suggest that they believed in an
early form of Hinduism. Also, the Indus obsession with cleanliness and water might have
meant that the civilization was ruled by a priest king and also goes along with the Hindu
beliefs.
Information on the government of the Indus Valley is scarce but it is believed that
the people were controlled by the priestly class of the population, ruling from the palaces
of the citadels. The priests may have overseen trade routes and production of handicraft
as well as placement of important buildings and defense of the cities. The control and
organization that was necessary to plan and carry out the building of these great cities
suggests that the government had a strong hold on things.
Towards the end of the Indus civilizations time, as learned by archeological digs,
the building quality of the cities seemed to deteriorate. This may have been from the
constant rebuilding that had to be done because of the constant flooding of the Indus
River and the people may have lost the motivation to keep building. Or a deteriorating
environment caused by the large amount of farming and animal grazing that was
necessary to support the large cities could have also lead to some form of economic
depression. Either way, by the time the Aryans started their invasion of India, they
probably came across a de-moralized group of people. The invasion by the Aryans is the
main theory as to why the Indus valley civilization fell, but it is not a hundred percent
proven. Experts think the reason why the Indus people completely vanished from history
was because of the Aryans failure to preserve the Indus culture.
The Indus River civilization is a mysterious one. No written records from other
ancient civilizations exist. Their language and accomplishments were completely
forgotten, even by the people who associated with them.
Works Citied
1. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Civilizations
By Arthur Cotterall
Copyright 1980 The Rainbird Publishing Group Limited
Pgs. 176 to 182
2. Lost Worlds
By Alastair Service
Copyright 1981 Marshall Cavendish Limited
Pgs. 74 to 79
3. Economics of the Indus Valley Civilization
By Chad Greenwood
http://www.csuchico.edu/~cheinz/syllabi/asst001/fall97/2chd.htm
Works Citied
1. The Encyclopedia of Ancient Civilizations
By Arthur Cotterall
Copyright 1980 The Rainbird Publishing Group Limited
Pgs. 176 to 182
2. Lost Worlds
By Alastair Service
Copyright 1981 Marshall Cavendish Limited
Pgs. 74 to 79
3. Economics of the Indus Valley Civilization
By Chad Greenwood
http://www.csuchico.edu/~cheinz/syllabi/asst001/fall97/2chd.htm
4. The Indus Valley And The Genesis Of South Asian Civilization
Edited By: R. A. Guisepi
http://history-world.org/indus_valley.htm