NCERT 6 HISTORY CHAPTER 3

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 3.IN THE EARLIEST CITIES


   WHAT SPECIAL ABOUT THESE CITIES?
  • Engineers used the high quality Harappan bricks to build railway lines in Punjab
  • These cities were found in the Punjab and Sind in Pakistan, Haryana and Punjab in India, developed about 4700 years ago
  • unique objects - red pottery painted with designs in black, stone weights, seals, special beads, copper tools and paralleled sided long stone blades  
  • divided into citadel (west - smaller but higher) and lower town (east - larger but lower)
  • Strong walls are made with bricks arranged in interlocking pattern
  • Houses(one or two storeys high), drains(with inspection holes for cleaning) and streets were well planned and constructed
  • In Mohenjodaro, citadel had a great bath (special tank made of bricks, coated with plaster, made water- tight with a layer of tar)
  • Kalibangan and Lothal were found with fire altars
  • People - Rulers who planned the construction of special buildings, Scribes (people who knew how to write), craftsperson, men, women and children(have played with terracotta toys) were there
  • Harappan writing - signs on the top of the seal(earliest form of writing in subcontinent)


    NEW CRAFTS IN THE CITY
  • They used copper and bronze to make tools and weapons 
  • Gold and silver - to make ornaments and vessels
  • Stone - to make seals (rectangular, animal carved), pots made with beautiful black designs
  • Mehrgarh - 7000 years ago, cotton was grown  
  • Mohenjodaro - pieces of cloth attached to a lid of silver vase and some copper objects were found
  • spindle whorls(made of terracotta) and faience were used to spin thread 
  • mostly all these were produced by specialists (who is trained to do only one kind of work)
  • they brought precious metals (copper - Rajasthan and Oman, Tin - Afghanistan, Gold - Karnataka and precious stones from Gujarat, Iran and Afghanistan)
    FOOD FOR PEOPLE IN THE CITIES
  • Farmers and herders supplied food for craftspersons, scribes and rulers in cities
  • Harappans grew wheat, barley, pulses, peas, rice, sesame, linseed and mustard
  • they used Plough (real ploughs made of wood not survived, but toy models were found)
  • As Harappa does not receive heavy rainfall, they stored water and supplied to fields
  • They reared cattle, sheep, goat and buffalo, caught fish and hunted animals like antelope
     HARAPPAN TOWNS IN GUJARAT
  • DHOLAVIRA 
  • city on Khadir Beyt in the Rann of Kutch
  • divided into three parts, each part with massive stone walls and large open area (for public ceremonies)
  • unique find - large letters of Harappan script were carved out of white stone and wood
  • LOTHAL 
  • close to the Gulf of Khambat 
  • near to the areas where semi-precious stones were available
  • important centre for making objects
  • buildings were probably workshop for making beads and seals and sealings (used to stamp bags or packets)were found in the storehouse
    THE MYSTERY OF THE END
  • Around 3900 years ago, people left the cities and moved to settlements in the east and in the south
  • Suggested reasons - rivers dried up, deforestation (no fuel for baking bricks and for smelting copper ores), grazing destroyed the green cover and floods. Also rulers lost control 
  • New cities emerged about 1400 years later(i.e 2500 years ago) 
  • Egyptian pyramids - around 5000 years ago, preserved bodies 'mummies', the most elaborate burials known in world history

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