EARLY YEARS:
A Bronze Age civilization flourished between 3300 and 1300 BC in the
Indus Valley. Early cities were well planned,
including elaborate drainage systems. Upwards of five million people may have lived in the region. An
early city was at Mehrgarh.
HARRAPA: Harappa was a major center in the north with a population
of over 23,000 at its height (2600-1900 BC). People used a chariot and driver
method of transportation and warfare. Homes generally were flat-roofed brick structures and the
city plan was dissimilar to Mohenjo-Daro.
MOHENJO-DARO AND LOTHAL: Mohenjo-Daro ("Mound of the Dead") was a major
center in the south that began circa 2600 BC. Actual name was Kukkutarma, "City of the Cockerel."
Cock fighting probably was part of the city's religious
rituals. Mohenjo-Daro also was one of the world's first large
urban settlements, and was the most
extensive city of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. The city boasted two large assembly halls, an
extensive building to house 5,000 people, and
public baths to support a peak population of 40,000. They actively traded with ancient
Sumer. People abandoned the city in the 19th century BC.
Lothal was a southern port city (circa 2400 BC) on the
Sabarmati River. It also was a center that traded beads, gems and
metallurgic ornaments with Africa and West Asia. A flood circa 2350 BC caused residents to rebuild the village
as a larger planned city, with drainage canals. A
massive flood in 1900 BC destroyed the town and region. Survivors moved inland along the
Saraswasti River.