CLASS 6 · NCERT HISTORY · CH 4: IN THE EARLIEST CITIES (NCERT CLASS 6 — OUR PASTS I)
When was the Mature Harappan period and how big was it?
Roughly 2600-1900 BCE; spread over 1.5 MILLION sq km — bigger than ancient Egypt or Mesopotamia at the same time. Found in Pakistan (Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan), India (Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat).
When was Harappa first discovered?
Bricks from Harappa's mounds had been used by the British for railway-track ballast in the 1850s. Site was excavated in 1921 by DAYA RAM SAHNI under the ASI; Mohenjo-daro followed in 1922 by RAKHALDAS BANERJEE.
Common features of Harappan cities?
GRID-PATTERN streets at right angles; CITADEL (raised western mound with public buildings) + LOWER TOWN (eastern, residential); STANDARDISED baked brick (1:2:4 ratio); covered DRAINAGE; private wells in most houses; great UNIFORMITY across cities far apart.
What was the Great Bath?
At MOHENJO-DARO citadel — large brick-lined tank (12 m × 7 m × 2.4 m), waterproofed with bitumen; staircase at both ends; surrounded by rooms; probably for RITUAL bathing. One of the earliest known public water structures in the world.
Most distinctive Harappan craft?
BEAD-MAKING — semi-precious stone beads (carnelian, agate, lapis lazuli) drilled with steatite micro-drills. CHANHUDARO and LOTHAL had bead workshops. Beads were exported to MESOPOTAMIA (Sumerian texts call this land "MELUHHA").
The Mature Harappan civilisation flourished during?
2600-1900 BCE
The Harappan civilisation is also called the?
Indus-Saraswati Civilisation
How many large Harappan cities are recognised?
Six — Harappa, Mohenjo-daro, Dholavira, Lothal, Kalibangan, Rakhigarhi
The Harappan civilisation extended over which modern countries?
India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan (Shortugai)
What does "Mohenjo-daro" mean?
In Sindhi, "Mound of the Dead". Site was abandoned and forgotten until 1922.
Famous artefacts from Mohenjo-daro?
"DANCING GIRL" (10.5 cm bronze figurine, ~2500 BCE); "PRIEST KING" stone bust; numerous SEALS with the unicorn motif and undeciphered Indus script; toy carts; weights and measures; the Great Bath; the Granary.
What's the Indus script and is it deciphered?
Harappan script — found on ~5,000+ seals, mostly very SHORT inscriptions (4-6 signs avg.); ~400 distinct signs. NOT YET deciphered (no bilingual "Rosetta Stone" found). One of the great unsolved problems of South Asian archaeology.
This topic is part of the NCERT Class 6 History syllabus, specifically the textbook Our Pasts I, drawn from the chapter Ch 4: In the Earliest Cities (NCERT Class 6 — Our Pasts I). Content is cross-referenced against the latest NCERT textbook editions + standard reference works (Bipan Chandra, R.S. Sharma, Romila Thapar, Satish Chandra for history; G.C. Leong, Savindra Singh for geography; the UPSC Civil Services prelims + mains syllabus).
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