The Indus Valley Civilisation (The Masters of the River)

Tolaha

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Japanese researchers help unravel mystery of the Indus civilization- Nikkei Asian Review

TOKYO -- A five-year study by a Japanese research team could change the accepted view of the ancient Indus Valley civilization.


Pendantlike artifacts unearthed at the Kanmer ruins dig. Unicorns can be seen on the artifacts, which researchers think may have served as a type of passport. Courtesy of Toshiki Osada
The study found that thousands of years ago, several cities in the Indus Valley, in what is today Pakistan and India, created a trade network that became a multicultural, multilingual civilization, and not a society founded on centralized authoritarian rule as previously believed. Many characteristics of this ancient civilization can be seen today in societies of southern Asia, and these links between the ancient and the modern are arousing researchers' interest.

The fresh image of the Indus civilization is being painted by a team of researchers led by Professor Emeritus Toshiki Osada of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, which is based in Kyoto. The results of five years of research, known as the Indus Project, were published in October by the Kyoto University Press as "Indus: Exploring the Fundamental World of South Asia" and "The Riddle of the Indus Civilization," both compiled by Osada.

The Japanese-led research team consisted of around 40 researchers from various countries. Two Indus civilization sites in India were excavated for the first time by a Japanese expedition. The team focused on changes to the ancient environment. Osada's conclusion from the research has been that "different regional communities created a loose network through trade."

Desert came first?

Two of the more well-known ruins of the Indus civilization are Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, both in Pakistan. Currently, most researchers focus on the ruins of five major urban centers: the two famous sites; Pakistan's Ganeriwala, which is in a desert; India's Dholavira, which is on an island in a marsh; and Rakhigarhi, also in India.

The common view is that the desert sites used to have rivers other than the Indus flowing nearby. Researchers, led by Hideaki Maemoku, a physical geography expert and professor at Japan's Hosei University, examined the area around the desert ruins with a dating method based on mineral crystals. They learned that sand dunes in the area were shaped by a great river long before the Indus civilization existed. The conclusion is that the cities were built on these dunes only after the river was long gone.

At Dholavira, artifacts have been found that suggest thriving maritime trade. The most likely candidates for this trade are the ancient societies in Mesopotamia, which could have been reached via the Arabian Sea. The Indus Project used computers to plot changes to the coastline over the centuries to figure out where ancient shorelines would have been. Geological features were also studied and changes in terrain were estimated. All of this found that sea levels were around 2 meters higher and the coastline was much deeper inland. This suggests that many of the ruins in the area were along the ancient shoreline and that this part of the Indus civilization was dependent on the ocean.

Ancient passports

Excavations were also made at the Kanmer ruins not far from Dholavira. The most notable find was of three round pendants of baked clay. Each has a hole in its center and the impression of an animal resembling a unicorn. The reverse sides have different Indus script on them. Because the same animal seal was pressed into each of them, Osada speculates that "they may have served as a passport for those traveling between different regions."

The research has also tried to find out when and why the Indus civilization declined. When changes in the distribution of ruins are traced using what is called a geographic information system, ruins start to concentrate in northern India at the decline of the civilization. Tezukayama University professor Takao Uno, an expert in archaeological geographical information systems, points out: "Perhaps they abandoned cities and migrated in order to avoid changes in the environment. As a result, the role of various elements of the cities that supported their network may have waned, leading to the decline of cities."

Other researchers are taking note of the Indus Project. "These results were produced using the latest technology in the natural sciences," said Yoshihiro Nishiaki, a professor at the University of Tokyo's University Museum and an expert in West Asian archaeology. "It is very interesting that the Indus civilization could have links to present-day South Asian societies. This will shape how we see this civilization."

European and U.S. researchers are also eager to learn more about the Indus civilization. Indus script has yet to be deciphered, which means there is much more to learn.
 

TrueSpirit1

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@Virendra @pmaitra

This part might interest you...

The common view is that the desert sites used to have rivers other than the Indus flowing nearby. Researchers, led by Hideaki Maemoku, a physical geography expert and professor at Japan's Hosei University, examined the area around the desert ruins with a dating method based on mineral crystals. They learned that sand dunes in the area were shaped by a great river long before the Indus civilization existed. The conclusion is that the cities were built on these dunes only after the river was long gone.
 
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Virendra

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@Virendra @pmaitra

This part might interest you...
Clift et al have in their paper shown that Sutlej moved away from Ghaggar-Hakra 8,000 BCE or before and went to Indus.
At the same time Beas river stopped draining directly to Ghaggar-Hakra at Tilwalla and started dropping quite early into Sutlej who was going to Indus now.

Before 3,000 BC Ghaggar-Hakra got another jolt when a tributary near Fort Abbas coming from Indus side was lost.
Sarasvati's health in late Harappan phase has lead to a hot debate between Clift and Valdiya.

Call it healthy Monsoons or whatever, around 4000 BCE the sea levels in Sindh, Kachha and Saurashtra were way higher (offshoreward). Among other things, this is corroborated also by the existence of port cities that are as far back as 26 kms inland today.
That is something which even this Japanese study agrees to.

There is also another paper which states that Ghaggar-Hakra aka Sarasvati was fed by Glacial waters only till terminal Pleistocene. Afterwards it was sustained by strong Monsoons. Although that theory is contested as well.

I think we cannot and should not perceive a linear gradual pattern of change in sea levels and river health for Indian sub-continent.
There are waves and there are ups and downs.

As far as the point of seals being passports is concerned, it is now echoed by Archeologists like Kenoyer as well.

Regards,
Virendra
 
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TrueSpirit1

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There is also another paper which states that Ghaggar-Hakra aka Sarasvati was fed by Glacial waters only till terminal Pleistocene. Afterwards it was sustained by strong Monsoons. Although that theory is contested as well.
Sorry, what is exact date for terminal Pleistocene after which Saraswati became a non-perennial river ?

IMHO, after this era, the civilization wouldn't have flourished, as much. Or, the inter-societal trade continued to sustain their lifestyles for many centuries ? How important was agricultural in this era & region ? I expect it was lesser important in the region than it was in the Fertile Crescent regions so trade should have somehow sustained them.
 

TrueSpirit1

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Pleistocene ends roughly at 10,000 BCE.
So, a large % of populace depended on a seasonal river throughout..!!

Like, what we have in Maharashtra...either flash floods or dry river-beds. Obviously, agriculture could not have formed their sole means of sustenance. This makes it appear that the civilization could have flourished since much earlier than the dates popularly believed today. Wonder, what would have been there before 12000 YBP.

It is only obvious that this theory is widely contested.
 

Virendra

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So, a large % of populace depended on a seasonal river throughout..!!
Neither the population was so large nor there was just one river, but many instead. Moreover Monsoons were pretty strong in early Holocene.

Like, what we have in Maharashtra...either flash floods or dry river-beds. Obviously, agriculture could not have formed their sole means of sustenance. This makes it appear that the civilization could have flourished since much earlier than the dates popularly believed today. Wonder, what would have been there before 12000 YBP.
Hard for me to tell but yes Acheulean tools are found all over India. Till now it has all been Paleolithic beyond 12000 YBP. Are you praying for an ancient advanced civilization? ;)
 

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