Location and physical features
 The Indus Valley civilization was in the north-west of india
 It was also next to the Indus river and Himalayas
 The absolute location is 28(degrees) 35’N and 77(degrees) 12’E
 The Indus valley had the Indus river going thought it. It also had
the Himalayas as well as the Arabian sea on the coast
Summary of Key Events
 The First Indian civilization arose in the Indus valley 4,500 years ago
 People settled throughout the entire subcontinent
 Regions included modern countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal,
Bhutan, and Sri Lanka
 Many people made their living through trade. Indian goods included silks,
cottons, cashmere, ivory, spices and precious gems that could be found in
the far east.
 Aryabhata, an Indian mathematician, computed the value of π.
 Art from the Indus Civilization including artifacts still remain today
 The practice of yoga still remains
Arts
 Arts emerged from the Indus Valley during the second half of
the 3rd millennium B.C
 Civic planning was very advanced (examples including the
cities of Harappa, destroyed in the 19th century, and
Mohenjo- Daro
 Produced many statuettes made of limestone and steatite
 Square steatite seals resembling animals
 Ceramic storage jars with simple stylized designs
 Toys with wheels
 Figurines (which may be mother goddesses)
Arts Continued
 Mural paintings in caves that tell about the artistic style of
early Indian painters
 Distictive styles of Hindu temples
 Square building with heavy walls enclosing a statue of a
god
Specific Example
This picture shows a priest/ king
statue. Nobody is entirely certain
whether it resembles is a king or a
priest. The artifact comes from
Mohenjo-Daro and was probably
created during the late Harappan
period. Today, it is located at the
National Museum of Karachi,
Pakistan.
Laws
 The Harappans were highly disciplined people
 They had a strong understanding of their civic duties
 Citizens kept their cities clean
 Residents would make sure that the underground drains
were not choked from solid waste from the private baths’
drains
 The Harappans cooperated completely when it came to
planning the towns and rebuilding public areas such as
docks, warehouses, fortification walls, and platforms
 The Harappan administration worked to standardize
Language
 The Harappan created a written language but no one has
been able to decipher because linguist have not found any
inscriptions that are bilingual so no one has fond part of
the language transferred into another language.