Discovery of Indus Valley Civilization In India Study Materials

2018-12-06

Discovery of Indus Valley Civilization In India Study Materials

Discovery of Indus Valley Civilization

The famous cities of the mature Indus Valley Civilization were discovered accidentally in the mid-nineteenth century during the construction of a railroad by British engineers John and William Brunton. Although it was correctly surmised at the time that antiquities from Harappa predated the historical period, true archaeological excavations did not begin until the 1920s. Nothing was known about the Indus Valley Civilization till 1922—1923. When the Archaeological Department of India carried out excavations at Mohenjodaro on the banks of the River Indus (Larkana district of Sindh in Pakistan), Harappa (Montgomery district of Punjab on the banks of the River Ravi, also in Pakistan) and Lothal (near Ahmedahad) in India.

Download Indus Valley Civilization of India Study Material PDF

During that decade, the so-called twin capitals of the Indus Civilization, Mohenjodaro and Harappa, were excavated under the direction of Sir John Hubert Marshall; other important settlements were surveyed by Sir Aurcl Stein and N. G. Majumdar. These excavations revealed that some 5,000 years ago, before the emergence of the Aryans in India, the Indus Valley was the cradle of a highly developed civilization that flourished during the same period as the ancient civilizations of Egypt. Babylonia and Assyria. The existence of a great civilization roughly contemporaneous with that of Sumer and of ancient Egypt was soon confirmed. Hundreds of smaller settlements have since been discovered. Recent archaeological investigation has concentrated on documenting the beginnings of urban life in the area, and a variety of different types of sites have been excavated, including fishing villages, trading outposts and what may have been a port.

Download Ancient History Study Materials PDF

If is mentioned in chapter XXVII, section 5, ‘Indra destroyed the seed of Varasikha. At Hariyupiyah, he smote the vanguard of the Vrcivans, and the rear fled frightened. The question rise if thy Hariyupiyah mentioned in this hymn from the Rig Veda is in fact, the Harappa of the Indus Valley. The oldest recorded, history ok the Indian subcontinent is traced in (he Vedas. It is traditionally estimated that the gap between the decline of Harappa and Vedic history has been around 1,000 years. However, some fresh researches suggest that the Vedas could have been written much earlier. We cannot say with conviction that Hariyupiyah refers to Harappa. There has been no mention of the place in the Vedas again. Some historian’s feet that it may be the name of some river. There is also no mention of Varasikha and the Vrcivans again. However, we get much relevant information about the Indus Valley from the Rig Veda which helps us in our understanding of the region. Many other ancient texts from Mesopotamia, China and Greece also provide information about what happened to the Harappans.