INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

• The Indus Valley Civilization is named after

the Indus river systems in present day Pakistan and
India
• The sites of the civilization were discovered from
1880 to 1920 AD.

• It began nearly 5,000 years ago but many studies

suggests it predates Egypt and Mesopotamia.

• It is therefore considered one of

the oldest civilizations in the world roughly 8000
years old.

• There is less knowledge of this civilization because

its writing system is not understood yet !!

• The Indus Valley civilization unlike other ancient

civilizations that existed at the same time did not
build massive monuments.

• They did not create fancy tombs for the rich. There
were no mummies, no emperors, and no violent
wars. The citizens were tradesmen and happy.

• It is known for its well-planned cities and

impressive crafts.
• There were more than 1,400 towns and
cities in the Indus Valley.

• Around 80,000 people lived in these cities.

• The Indus River Valley Civilization,,

developed the first accurate system of
standardized weights and measures, some
as accurate as to 1.6 mm.

• What other knowledge they possessed

largely remains unknown

• They created sculpture, seals, pottery, and

jewelry from materials, such as terracotta,
metal, and stone.
The important feature of Indus Valley
civilization is personal cleanliness.

People had finest bath facilities, drainage

system, and the knowledge of personal
hygiene.

The contribution of Indus Valley civilization to

the world is in form of :

1. Town planning

2. Construction of burnt-brick
structures

3. Manufacturing and trading of

household items
 1. TOWN PLANNING

• The town planning and the civic organizations of the an indus valley city was highly
developed.

• No division of the society is done in the layout of the city.

• Large public buildings, market areas, large and small houses as well as craft workshops all
have been found in the same neighborhood.

• The cities had defensive outer walls surrounded by artificial ponds or canals from rivers

• Most of these settlements were built of burnt clay bricks.

• The houses were built on plinths that rose above the street level with stairs recessed at the
wall at the front door.

• The doors of the houses opened in the lanes and not on the roads.
CITADEL

• The citadel was by a tall mud-brick parapet enclosed town

hall that had rectangular rooms placed at frequent intervals.

•Important buildings such as the Great Bath, granary,

assembly halls and workshops were built in this part of the
city.
 WELLS

• Large public wells and public bathing

platforms were found during excavation
• These public bathing areas were been used
for washing clothes
• Private wells were built in each house
GREAT BATH
• The "great bath" is the earliest public water tank built in any civilization.
• The tank measures approximately 12 meters north-south and 7 meters wide, with a maximum depth of 2.4
meters.
• Two staircases lead down into the tank from the north and south and small sockets at the edges of the stairs
are thought to have held wooden planks or treads.
• Brick edging that extends the entire width of the pool and gypsum floor was used to hold water
 Streets and alleyways are off of the major streets,
leading into more private neighborhoods.
HOUSES

• Basic house plans ranged from single room tenements, houses with courtyards ,
houses with dozen rooms and several courtyards.

• Many of the brick houses were two stories high, with thick walls and high ceilings to
keep the rooms cool in the hot summer months.

• The ceilings were made with wooden truss or frame on which mud and brick flooring
was done.

• This courtyard served the multiple functions of lighting the rooms, acting as a heat
absorber in summer and radiator in winter, as well as providing an open space
inside for community activities..

• Nearly all houses had private wells , toilets and baths

HOUSES
DRAINAGE

• The Indus Valley towns had very good drainage and sanitary system. Bathrooms in every house with
shafts leading to drainage channels.

• Drains started from the bathrooms of the houses and joined the main sewer in the street. In order to
check the maintenance, inspection holes were provided.

• The drains were covered with large stone slabs and connected to the bigger sewerage outlets, which
ensured the channel of dirt out of the city.
GRANARIES

It is a brick structure that was built on a high brick foundation

over 45 meters north-south and 45 meters east-west.

Two rows of six rooms are arranged along a central passageway

that is about 7 meters wide and partly paved with baked bricks.

Each room measures 15.2 by 6.1 meters and has partition walls
with doors in between them.

Agriculture as primary profession is evident from the availability

of the granary during excavation.
Assignment – Maximum 10 Slides talk about the location , area , history ,
importance and other findings of these ancient Indus Valley Civilization sites

GROUP NAME OF ANCIENT INDUS VALLEY SITES

1 MOHANJODARO

2 KALIBANGAN

3 CHANHUDARU

4 HARAPPA

5 LOTHAL

6 DHOLAVIRA

7 SURKOTADA

8 RAKHIGAHRI