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CHAPTER 1 Pre History and Indus Valley Civilisation PRE HISTORY The Stone Ages The Prehistoric age refers to that period of the past for which we do not have the written records therefore the knowledge of this period is based upon the materials found in the archaeological excavations. The man living during this period made the tools of stones found in his surroundings and he uses these tools to hunt and gather food in order to satisfy his hunger. Since the man uses the tool of stones in this period thus this phase of human development is known as the Stone Age. On the basis of the different techniques and tools the stages of the human development is divided into Paleolithic or Old Stone Age, Mesolithic or the Middle Stone Age and Neolithic or New Stone Age. The first human being who is believed to live is known as the Peking Man Paleolithic Age/ Old Stone Age (5, 00,000 B.C- 10,000 B.C) The Paleolithic Age according to the archaeologist has developed in the Pleistocene period or the Ice Age. The people of the this age were hunters and gatherers and they belongs to the Negroid race During this period the man uses the materials of the stones and lived in caves and shelters. The man during this period has no idea of agriculture, fire etc. The man basically uses hand axes, choppers, cleavers, blades and burin which was made up of the hard rock s known as quartzite thus the Paleolithic man is also known as the Quartzite Men The Paleolithic Age is divided into three parts early or lower Paleolithic, Middle Paleolithic and Upper Paleolithic. In the Early Paleolithic Age the climate was very cold and it was basically known as the Ice Age. In this the tools used were hand axes, cleavers and choppers which are found in the Soan and Sohan valley (now in Pakistan). In the Middle Paleolithic Age the use of stone tools was most dominant such as scrapers, borers and blade like sharp tools which are found in the Soan, Narmada and Tungbhadra valleys. In the Upper Paleolithic Age the climate became warm and the use of burins and scrapers was there which was found in the Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Chota Nagpur Plateau etc. Mesolithic/Middle Stone Age (10,000B.C- 6000 B.C) In this age due to the change of the climate and the natural vegetation it made easy for the people to move to the new areas. The tools in the Mesolithic Age the tools become more pointed but they were made up of stones only. In this age also the people were hunter and gatherers but in the later stage of the Mesolithic Age people also domesticated animals. In the last phase of the Mesolithic Age people also started cultivation The Rock painting found at Bhimbetka near Bhopal belonging to the Mesolithic age indicates the artistic taste of the people. The Mesolithic phase was found in the Chatonagpur region, Central India and also in the south of the Krishna River. Neolithic/ New Stone Age (6000 B.C- 1000 B.C) In the Neolithic Age the people uses the stone tools only but now they were made up of materials other than the quartzite which were more lethal, pointed and polished. In the Neolithic Age people started growing fruits and corn like ragi and horse gram. In the Neolithic Age people started the use of fire making the potteries. They uses the fire to make food and also for their safety from the wild animals at night by lighting the fire outside their caves. In the Neolithic Age people also started weaving the clothes of cotton and wool and started wearing them. 2
In the later part of the Neolithic Age people started living more settled life and started living in the circular and the rectangular houses. Neolithic sites were found at Burzahom and Gulfkral in Jammu and Kashmir, Maski, Brahamgiri, Piklihal and Tekkalakota in Karnataka, Paiyampatti in Tamil Nadu, Garo hills of Meghalaya etc. CHALCOLITHIC AGE After the Neolithic Age comes the new phase of human development known as the Chalcolithic Age in which the people started using the metals out which the first metal to be used by the humans was copper. In this phase people started making the tools made up of copper as well as stone. The major discoveries of the Chalcolithic Age include bronze rhinoceros, elephant, two wheeled chariot with a rider and a buffalo. The people of the Chalcolithic Age practice Subsistence agriculture and the main crops of this period includes rice, barley, wheat, gram, jowar, coarse grain, pea, lentils etc The important Chalcolithic sites in India are spread in Rajasthan, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh etc. INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION The Indus Valley Civilization is one of the oldest civilization of the world along with the Mesopotamia Civilization in Iraq and Ancient Egypt Civilization. The Indus Valley Civilization is also known as the Harappan Civilization as Harappa was the first and the most important site if the Indus Valley Civilization. The Indus Valley Civilization was spread in 12, 60,000 sq.kms which includes whole Pakistan some parts of India, Afghanistan and Iran (Persia). The materials which were found during the excavations and on the basis of the radio-carbon dating it is believed that Indus Valley Civilization was spread from the year 2500-1750 B.C. The first site which was discovered was Harappa which discovered by Dr. D.R. Sahani in the year 1921 on the banks of the river Ravi and Mohanjodaro in the year 1922 by R.D. Banerjee on the banks of the river Indus. Sir John Marshall played important role in both the excavations. Indus Valley Civilization forms the part of the Proto History of India and belongs to the Bronze Age. The population of the Indus Valley Civilization consists of the Mediterranean, Proto-Australoid, and Mongoloids. The use of Gold, Silver, Copper and Bronze was there but the use of Iron was completely unknown. Important Sites of Indus Valley Civilization Harappa- Daya Ram Sahani 1921 Mohanjodaro- R.D. Banerjee-1922 Amri- M.G. Majumdar-1929 Chanhudaro- M.G.Majumdar-1931 Kalibanga- Amlanand Ghosh-1953 Lothal- S.R. Rao-1957 Banwali- R.S. Bisht-1973 Surkotada- Jagat Pal Joshi-1964 Dholavira- Jagat Pal Joshi- 1967 Ropar- Y.D.Sharma- 1953 Rangpur- M.S. Vats- 1931 Important Sites of Indus Valley Civilization Harappa 3
It was founded in the year 1921 by Mr. Dayaram Sahani. It is situated near the Sahiwal district of Pakistan on the banks of the river Ravi. The Great Granary was found here measuring 169 feet X 35 feet. A naked sandstone torso was found which also gives the traces of the Jainism. Stone symbols of female genitals Single room barrack Mohenjo-Daro It was founded in the year 1922 by Mr. R.D. Banerjee. It is situated in the Larkana district of Pakistan on the banks of river Indus. It is derived from the Sindhi word which means the Mound of the Dead The Great Bath was found here. Multi pillared assembly hall A piece of woven cloth Stamp/Seal with the image of the Pashupati Mahadev Statue of the bearded man Evidence of direct trade relations with the Mesopotamia Civilization Mohenjodaro was the most advanced city of the Indus Valley Civilization the roads were wide and straight and were 33 feet wide. The roads run in the North- South direction and the other roads run in the East- West direction and they both cut each other at right angles. Kalibanga It was founded in the year 1953 by Mr. Amlanana Ghosh It was situated near the Hanumangarh district of Rajasthan on the banks of the river Ghaggar. The word Kalibanga means the Black Bangles The ploughed field at Kalibanga is the most important discovery of that time. Wooden wheel was found here which also gives the proof that the people of Kalibanga use the bullock carts Bones of camels are found here The tiled floor was found here which has the design of intersecting of circles Human head with long oval eyes and thick lower lips Two types of burial was found here Burials in the circular grave Burials in the rectangular grave Chanhu-Daro It was founded in the year 1931 by M.G.Majumdar Chahudaro was situated on the eastern side of river Indus in the Sindh province of Pakistan Chanudharo has three different cultural layers Indus Culture, Jhukar Culture and Jhangar Culture. It was the only site in the Indus Valley Civilization without the Citadel. During the excavations a small pot, bullock carts and ekkas, foot prints of the elephant and the dog chasing the cat. Lothal It was founded in the year 1957 by S.R. Rao It is situated near the Gulf of Khambatt in Gujarat. An artificial dockyard was found here. It was the most important port city of the Indus Valley Civilization Boat made up of Terracotta was found here which gives the traces that they have the trade relations with the other civilizations of the world. Evidence of rice was found here as the rice granary was found at Rangpur near Ahemadabad in Gujarat A terracotta statue of horse was found here Seal which has the design of the ship A printed jar which resembles the story of the cunning fox which is also mentioned in the Panchtnatra A compass like measuring instrument was found which can measure the angles of 180 0, 90 0 and 45 0 Evidence of double burial was found i.e. male and female were found in the single grave which also gives the traces of Sati practice. Evidence of chess like game 4
Ropar Founded in the year 1953 by Y.D.Sharma It is situated in the state of Punjab in India The excavations at the Ropar includes pottery, ornaments, copper axes, seal etc A strange burial was found here i.e. the dead body of dog was found along with the dead body of the human being Banwali Founded in the year 1973 by R.S. Bisht It is situated near the Hissar district of Haryana Huge quantity of Barley and Mustard was found here A terracotta plough was also found here which the most remarkable discovery Surkotada Founded in the year 1964 by Jagat Pal Joshi It is situated in the Kutch district of Gujarat During the excavations the first remains of the horse bones was found here. Economic Life of the Indus Valley Civilization Agriculture The Indus plains were made fertile by the annual inundation of the river Indus. This river carried far more alluvial soil than many other contemporary rivers like the Nile in Egypt. The farmers sowed their seeds in November when the flood waters receded and reaped their harvests in April before the next floods. They must have produced enough to provide for the people in villages and cities. They produced wheat, barley, rice, sesamum, mustard etc. They also produced significant quantities of cotton. Technology, arts & crafts The people of the Indus Valley Civilization well know the technique of mining the best example of this can be seen from the nearby mines of Khetri in Rajasthan which is famous for its copper. Tin was probably brought from mines in Bihar or from Afghanistan. The amount of artifacts left behind by the Indus Valley Civilization suggests that there were a large group of bronze smiths who not only made utensils but also made various kinds of tools as well. There is evidence which suggests that they may also have practiced weaving, possibly using spindle whorls. Whatever buildings have been excavated seems to have been made of brick which indicates that brick-laying must also have been an important occupation. Besides the above, people of the Indus Valley Civilization must also have followed the occupations of seal-making, goldsmiths, pottery, bead making etc. Trade The discovery of the artificial brick dockyard at Lothal and the seals having the pictures of the boat gives the traces that the people of the Indus Valley Civilization has the trade relation with the other civilizations of the world such as the Mesopotamia civilization. There was also the internal trading as they used the bullock carts for the transportation. The unit of measurement was 16 (16, 64, and 160,320) Religious Life & Culture The main gods of worship for the people of Indus Valley Civilization was Puhupati Mahadev( Lord Shiva) The people of the Indus Valley Civilization also worship the Phallus (lingam) and yoni Animal worshipped- Unicorn and Bull Tree worshipped- Pipal Bird worshipped- Dove & Pigeon When any person dies in the Indus Valley Civilization they lay them in North- South direction with the head in North and the legs in South direction. There was the practice of burying the dead body in the rectangular or the oval pits. 5
, www.gradeup.co Script and Language The script of the Indus Valley Civilization is pictographic in nature which has around 600 pictographs. The writing style of the of the Indus Valley Civilization is known as Boustrophedon i.e. they write the first line from right to left and the second line from left to right. The language of the Indus Valley Civilization is still unknown. Causes of Decline The definite cause of decline for the Indus Valley Civilization is still elusive since there are no written records of the period and there are various speculations from the historians. There are four main reasons behind the decline of Indus Valley Civilization as concluded by the historians 1. Due to decrease of the soil fertility 2. Due to increase of salinity in the water from the neighboring deserts 3. Due to natural calamity such as Earthquake, Flood, Famine etc 4. Aryans when they came to India they destroyed the Indus Valley Civilization 6
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