Early Indus

Emergence of Civilizations / Anthro 341: Lecture 17

The emergence of civilization in the Indus valley: Early Indus period

ã Copyright Bruce Owen 1999

The Indus valley: setting (highly recommended: Allchin and Allchin reading)

A huge area, compared to Mesopotamia, Egypt, etc: 1.3 million square km.

(Kenoyer says 650,000 square km.)
naturally, the whole region is not all the same; the following description is a broad average...

hot, dry, not enough rainfall for dry (non-irrigated) agriculture away from the rivers

must have river floodwater to farm

mostly alluvial soils without mineral resources, like Mesopotamia

although some places have outcrops of stone useful for tools

highly unstable Indus river and its tributaries, shift course frequently

many sites are located along now-dry river beds
rivers are mostly navigable -- encouraging communication, exchange

Pakistan floodplain

combines the best features of Sumer and the Nile

topographically similar to Sumer

rivers flood and form natural levees
making irrigation easy with little need for large-scale canal systems

but the floods come at a convenient time, like the Nile

Floods June to September
brings both water and rich silt

allows two different crops per year, without much investment in canals or other works

When flood starts or during it, plant cotton or sesame

keep water in with low banks
harvest as waters recede

after the flood, plant wheat or barley

enough water remains in soil to support the plants without major additional irrigation
harvest in March to April, a few months before the next flood

this is how people traditionally farmed in the region in recent times, apparently similar to practices starting in the Neolithic

zones of resources roughly parallel to the rivers

forest along river banks
cultivation further away
grassland still further away, for pasturage and hunting
beyond that, large expanses of desert

crossed by nomadic herders and traders probably since Neolithic times

alluviation has raised the level of the plain up to 10 m (33 feet) in some areas since Harappan times

small sites must be deeply buried
big (tell) sites are partly buried, with lower parts below the water table
evidence of irrigation, roads, rural sites in many places must be meters below the surface

so forget finding them except by lucky coincidence

as in digging for canals, drainage systems, roads; natural river cuts, etc.

BUT this problem is not so bad along the dry bed of the Ghaggar river (area of Kalibangan)
recent survey has found lots of sites there

Relationship with surrounding areas, and with Mesopotamia

look at the map
mountains to the west (Baluchistan) contain minerals, metals, are good for pasturing herds; occupied by nomadic herders and settled farmers
desert to east limits contact with rest of Asia
Himalayas to north also enclose the region
trade contact by land through mountains of Baluchistan
sea routes to head of Persian gulf
did significant contact with Mesopotamia actually occur? when?
if yes, did it affect society in the Indus very much?

Subsistence: a regional variant of the familiar Southwest Asian pattern

animals domesticated in the mountainous margins both northwest and southeast of the region, as early as 4000 - 4500 BC (Baluchistan) (according to Wenke, by 7000 BC)

sheep, goats (maybe introduced from elsewhere)
species domesticated locally: humped cattle, buffalo, pig
evidence in pollen cores of frequent large burning starts around 8000 BC, may indicate burning grass to improve pasture (by analogy to modern practices)

plants; earliest dates unknown (but well before the Harappan civilization)

"dwarf" wheat, club wheat, barley
rice possible, especially in the east, but apparently not very important
peas, lentils
also cotton

General chronology

Periods are long, chronological detail is poor except within certain sites

but improving rapidly

Neolithic 7000 - 3500 BC (3500 years)

Mehrgarh I-II 7000 -4500 BC (2500 years)
Mehrgarh III 4500-3800 BC (700 years)

Early Indus Period 3500 - 2600 BC (900 years)

Mehrgarh IV-VII

Mature Harappan Period 2600 - 2050 BC (550 years; this cutoff is somewhat arbitrary)
Late Harappan Period 2050 - 1700 BC (350 years)
comment: Several of your readings (Whitehouse and Wilkins; Wenke) repeat a frequent claim by calling Harappan civilization "short-lived"

but Mature Harappan is 550 years long (compare to USA at 200 years long)
and both Early Indus and Late Harappan should be at least partially included as "Harappan civilization", for a total of up to 1800 years...
consider the Egyptian Early Dynastic Period at just over 400 years long; the Egyptian Old Kingdom at 436 years long; the Middle, and Late Uruk periods totaling 500 years long
i.e. Harappan civilization is in the same ballpark as the others in terms of duration

the difference is that Harappan civilization apparently did not lead to later, clearly derivative cultures
while the early Sumerian civilization did in Mesopotamia, and the Archaic and Old Kingdom did in Egypt

Neolithic Period: 7000 - 3500 BC

dates and location of initial domestication or adoption of agriculture and domestic animals is unknown
not surprisingly, cultures were highly variable from one small region to the next, and at individual sites over time (as at Mehrgarh)
cultures in Baluchistan

extreme climate, from very hot summers to two months of snow in winter in higher parts

mostly less than 250mm (10 inches) of rain annually, mostly in the winter: moderately dry

earliest occupations were apparently temporary, of mobile people
Wenke suggests wheat and sheep in Baluchistan by 7000 BC

also goats, oxen (cattle and donkeys at some sites)

mud-brick architecture appears shortly after 4500 BC
by maybe 4300 or 4200 BC, copper appears (rare needles, blades), along with wheel-made pottery

Mehrgarh, on the edge of the Indus river system

Mehrgarh I-II (of I-VII) 7000 - 4500 BC

transition from the Iranian uplands of Baluchistan to the Indus plain
mudbrick houses from the beginning
agriculture

wheat (a local variety, apparently not imported)
barley, dates
blades set in handles with bitumen (sickles) suggest grain harvesting
as do grinding stones

animals

cattle, water buffalo
sheep and goat (wild?)
proportion of cattle increased over time

pottery by 6000 BC
rare copper (one bead) and lead (a perforated pendant[!])
in Period II (5500-4500 BC)

cotton
"box-buildings": possibly grain storage?

6 x 6.5 m (20 x 21 feet) typical
if so, this would be very early evidence of storing surplus
although hard to say if it was centralized or not
box buildings are often not aligned with adjacent ones, as if they weren't part of a single plan or operation

that is, not a single, centralized, controlled storage place?

might also be foundations for buildings with wooden plank floors
in any case, they are different from anything in Sumer or Egypt

they are not obviously associated with anything special like a temple

so not ritual?
or small-scale, non-centralized ritual?

clearly not mortuary
whatever they are, economic complexity apparently started in a different context from Sumer and Upper Egypt

a few burials

some have personal ornaments, like beaded headbands, earrings, etc.
including ornaments buried with infants

so there may already have been some family-related status...
although it is not much

long-distance trade already

indicated by turquoise beads in burials
conch shells from the Arabian sea
lapis seals

lapis comes only from Afghanistan, far to the north, so it implies long-distance exchange
the seals themselves may indicate that people were keeping track of goods

Mehrgarh III, 4500 - 3800 BC

box buildings continued to be used
trade in turquoise, lapis, conch, other stones increased
use of copper increased
greater variety of crops used
Mehrgarh up to this time is generally considered to be representative of the roots of the societies that developed out on the Indus plain

Further out onto the Indus plain...

people probably first settled out on the plain around the time of Mehrgarh III (say 4500 BC), but this still poorly known
Wenke cites earlier dates (which I suspect are in error)

he has settlements on the Indus plain by 6000 BC, already showing variable sizes suggesting some complexity
he says that by 5000 BC, some sites had large structures possibly for communal activities
and that by 4000 BC, fortified, planned communities were trading, suggesting competing political groups

This sounds to me like an earlier dating of the Early Indus period
or possibly a confusion with Baluchistan sites

East of the Indus system

The Ganges river area
foragers started farming fairly early in this region

their agriculture was based on monsoon rainfall, rather than depending on river flooding
evidence in pollen cores suggests that frequent large burning started around 8000 BC, may indicate burning grass to improve pasture (a modern practice)
cereal grain pollen was increasing by 7000 BC
debated early evidence of rice (6000 BC???), definitely by Early Indus period
note that rice was not a major crop in the Indus drainage itself

this area remained peripheral to the Indus system and did not develop significant complexity until later

Conclusions about the Neolithic

Still tentative, but...
Agriculture seems to have started on the western margins, in Baluchistan and the transitional zone, by at least 7000 BC

a similar situation to the "hilly flanks" of Mesopotamia (the "fertile crescent")

already used mudbrick architecture
maybe stored surplus, maybe some redistribution
made pottery by 6000 BC
trade already flourishing from the beginning of the Neolithic
settlement moved out onto the plain maybe 4500 BC (Wenke says before 6000 BC)

again, similar to Mesopotamia, where the alluvium was only settled after people had developed irrigation agriculture in more promising areas nearby

to the north and the east, foraging groups may have persisted longer

and once farming picked up, these areas still remained culturally distinct and independent from the Indus system
we won't deal with them any more here...

Early Indus Period 3500 - 2600 BC (900 years long)

a long period (900 years) that presumably includes a wide range of societies
contemporary with

Middle and Late Uruk, Jemdet Nasr, and the first half of the Sumerian Early Dynastic Period
Naqada II through Egyptian Early Dynastic
overall, in the same rough time frame, but the appearance of complex society probably lagged a little behind Sumer and Egypt

the Indus plain began to be more densely settled by farmers

although some sites had already been occupied in the neolithic
there was presumably a long-term rise in population, but the evidence is scanty
increasing uniformity of cultures, although nowhere near as uniform as they would get in the next period
Subsistence

wheat (several kinds) and barley
lentils and peas
cattle, sheep, goats, water buffalo
many stone blades with sickle gloss, indicating a lot of grain harvesting (and probably also cutting grasses for other things, like thatch and fuel)

Agricultural towns

located near rivers, often right on the riverbank, near land that would have been well watered by annual floods
some large

Rahman Dheri, in second half of Early Indus (say 3000 BC, Jemdet Nasr/Egyptian Early Dynastic), got to 22 ha
over 4 times the size of the SSU main quad
same ballpark of size as large Early Uruk centers, but 500 to 1000 years later

rectangular mudbrick houses in somewhat orderly rectangular street plans

not strictly planned, but far more so that the random, chaotic jumble of Mesopotamian towns
some had a main street running north-south, with secondary streets perpendicular and parallel to it

example: Rahman Dheri

some towns had a raised "citadel"

large rectangular artificial platform of mud brick
located to one side of the residential part of town
maybe analogous to the later Harappan "citadels"

which had non-residential buildings on top
possibly grain storage warehouses, buildings for public ceremonies, administration, or...?
possibly raised to protect them from periodic flooding
the name is misleading; these were not necessarily mainly for defense, although access was limited

example: Rahman Dheri

many early Indus town were walled

like Rahman Dheri, Kot Diji, Kalibangan, Harappa, etc.

these towns are thought to have been relatively independent, self-sufficient, not united with others

each subregion within the Indus system had a different style of pottery

but at least one site was economically specialized

that is, it produced goods for exchange with people from other towns

meaning that some towns were already partially interdependent

Lewan Dar Dariz (contemporary with Rahman Dheri)

10 ha
specialized groundstone producing site

axes
donut stones (clubs? clod breakers? or...?)
grinding stones for grain processing

also had a massive mudbrick city wall

Kot Diji

one of the better known settlements of the Early Indus period (3500-2600 BC)
33 km (20 miles) from the Indus river today, but when occupied, the river flowed right by it

the river has shifted course since then

massive defensive wall, lower part built of stone from the outcrop the site is on, upper part of mud brick; preserved to 4-5 m high (13-16 feet)

defense, animal protection, or flood control?

around 2900 BC, a pottery style developed that is also found at other sites far from Kot Diji

this style was first identified and named here ("Kot Dijian")
but this particular site is not necessarily the center from which the style spread
or it may not even have been a "spread" as much as an increasing similarity across a large area due to increasing interaction of some kind

Mehrgarh IV, V, VI, VII

continued to be occupied through the Early Indus period
pottery became more similar to that of Kot Diji (or vice versa!)

supports the impression of a new, widespread style throughout much of the Indus system

specialized craft production in particular mudbrick buildings
lots of terracotta figurines made

hundreds found
male and female, but female far more common

seals continued to be used
wheat, barley, lots of grape seeds
hints of some social stratification emerging

one cemetery with a somewhat richer burial

several copper or bronze artifacts
several carved stones claimed to be divining pieces

a cache of ceramic vessels in a Mehrgarh VII (2700 BC) structure

hints at a wealthier individual or family
maybe storage for trade, or specialized manufacturing?
or something else?

Harappa

better known as one of the largest cities in the following Mature Harappan Period
One deep trench found "Kot Dijian" style ceramics near the base of the city wall
suggests that there was already a walled city at Harappa in the Early Indus period, but little more is known of it

Kalibangan

roughly rectangular mudbrick walled city or large town
about 30 meters from the river at the time; now by a dry channel
standardized brick size, but different from later Harappan standard (it was 3:2:1, vs. Harappan 4:2:1)
some pottery similar to "Kot Dijian", but much is different
field surface with perpendicular furrows, the same odd pattern as used in modern times!

this is more than a curiosity
it means that we are justified in projecting some of the recent agricultural practices this far back; so probably much of the rest can also be legitimately claimed for Early Indus times
that is, floodwater irrigation, double cropping, little to no use of canals, etc.

Meanwhile, to the west of the Indus system, in Baluchistan: Mundigak

two mounds with large buildings on top: excavator called the larger a "palace", the smaller a "temple"

"palace" had a colonnaded hall

presumed to be in trading contact with Mehrgarh and other Indus sites
burials with no goods or a single pot
stone seals became common
late in the Early Indus period, added massive walls with square bastions
this is one example of the complex societies that arose in between Mesopotamia and the Indus system

a big issue that we aren't going to touch here...

economic changes in the Early Indus period

pottery made on "foot wheel" (essentially the same as the "fast wheel" we have seen elsewhere)

allows greater production, presumably for exchange

copperwork became more common (although still rare)

often appeared together with "Kot Dijian" ceramics
so it may be part of the spreading shared cultural complex

continued evidence of trade

internal: specialized producers of groundstone artifacts, possibly others
external: in jewelry stones

with Baluchistan, Afghanistan

but evidence for trade to places as far away as Mesopotamia is still pretty hypothetical

even though it is often claimed that trade contact with Mesopotamia is what somehow brought about Indus civilization

trends and generalizations about the Early Indus Period (3500 - 2600 BC)

very minor social stratification in burials, housing, etc.
rise of large towns or cities

with grid plans (although not terribly regular)
massive town walls, maybe defensive or flood control
some have raised "citadels"

early on, cultures were local, different from place to place
then they grew more uniform

sharing a pottery style and a copperworking tradition
Allchin and Allchin call this "Kot Dijian" style or shared culture
although there were still regional differences between western, central, and eastern parts of the Indus system
Kot Dijian style apparently derived from Baluchistan roots
a result of increased communication and/or trade?
or increasing trade with Early Dynastic Mesopotamia?

do Early Indus settlements qualify as "civilized"?

Next time we will see how the towns of the Early Indus period were transformed in the Mature Harappan period into what no one can deny was a civilization