farm | food | videos | price | information | history

130117View
5m 23sLenght
334Rating

About 80 years ago, archaeologists discovered the Harappan cities which were developed about 4700 years ago. According to them, the Harappan cities were one of the oldest cities. They had similar buildings and the city was divided into two parts. Citadel, also known as lower town was the eastern part which was large but lower. Baked bricks were laid in interlocking position to make strong walls around each part of the city. In Mohenjo-Daro, the Great Bath was built on the citadel. This was an underground water tank which was used by important people to take a dip. This city also had elaborate store houses. It cities like Kalibangan and Lothal, there were fire altars to perform sacrifices. The well planned city The Harappan cities were planned systematically. There were one or two storied houses with a separate bathing area. The people also took take of the hygiene; they had small drains connected to their houses which then lead to bigger drains. The drains were covered and inspection holes were made to clean them. The life of the Harappan people While the rulers planned the construction of the city, common men went in search of precious stones and metal. People who used to write were called scribes and they made seals. There were also many craftsmen who made terracotta toys for the children and many other decorative objects in their workshops. Archaeologists found many ornaments made out of gold, silver and beads. Tools and vessels made of copper and bronze were also found. Other finds include rectangular seals with carvings of animals on top. In Mohenjo-Daro, pieces of cloth and spindle whorls were also discovered. The harappans travelled to distant lands in search of raw materials like gold, silver, precious stones and beads to make ornaments. They went to many places in search of metals like copper and tin to make tools and vessels. Farmers grew various kinds of crops like wheat, rice, pulses and peas. We know that they used a plough for farming as plough toys were discovered in these cities. Animals like goat, sheep and cattle were reared by the herdsmen. Both the farmers and herdsmen provided food to the people. Harappan towns in Gujarat Dholavira located on Khadir Beyt in Gujarat, was the only city which was divided into three parts. Huge stone walls surrounded these parts and open areas were also present for the people to perform ceremonies. Archaeologists were also able to find letters written in harappan script. The city of Lothal served as an important port. The city also had a storehouse for storing the shipped objects which were made of metal, stones, shells and beads. The dockyard in this city is where ships came in and transported goods from one place to the other. The end of the harappan civilization Many changes that began around 3900 years ago in these cities brought about the decline of the civilization. People stopped travelling to distant lands for raw materials and also stopped writing. Big houses were built no more, in these areas, and the drains were also never properly maintained. There is still no definite answer as to why such a beautiful civilization came to an end. It is assumed that this could have happened because of the cities being flooded by the river waters. Some believe drought and deforestation could be one of the reasons. The reasons may not be clear but the truth remains the same. A progressive and a well developed civilization reached its end.