Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India encyclopedia

ARCHAEOLOGY

one skull of a child has marks of trephination and the wound has healed. The inhumation burial was the order of the day, but there are also earthen jars containing post- cremation remains. Surkotada (23° 37'N; 70° 50'E) Surkotada was discovered by J.P. Joshi and excavated by him from 1970-1972. He has identified a three-fold cultural sequence of periods I A, IB, and IC. Period IA marks the mature Harappa culture are with a citadel and residential annexe built of mud bricks. The ceramic wares characteristic of mature Harappa culture are found in abundance but an outstanding feature is the presence of pot shards painted with Harappan alphabets. The occur- rence of bones of equus corroborates the evidence from Lothal and Rangpur about the presence of horse in the Indus Civilisation. The Reserved Slip Ware of West Asian origin which occurs in Lothal is also present in pe- riod IA at Surkotada. Period IB is noted for heavy copper celts marked with Indus signs and numerals. The inhabi- tants had to take anti-flood measures to save the city by providing burnt brick rivetment to mud brick fortifications. Period IC is of the Late Harappa culture when coarse red ware and black and red ware of Saurashtra occur simultaneously. A centrally placed gateway complex in the southern arm of the fortification is an important fea- ture. The residential annexe has a rampart wall enclosing it with bastions and a gateway in the south. The houses within the annexe are neatly arranged on either side of lanes and bylanes. The Late Harappan culture of Period-IC is dated 1800-1750 B.C. The impor- tance of Surkotada, though a small town, lies in the fact that after the destruction of major Indus cities the Late Harappans neither sank into illiteracy nor forgot town planning as often made out. Dholavira (Kotada) (23° 53'N; 70° 13'E) The ancient mound of Dholavira situated in Khadira, a large island in the Rann of Kutch was located by J.P. Joshi. It is perhaps the largest Harappan settlement in India. It is noted for two major

brick fortification wall have been identified in this period. Within the fortification there are traces of drains built of kiln-fired bricks. Four ceramic wares labelled A through D have been recognized. Fabric B is rusticated while fabric C has a smooth surface. Fabric D is noted for heavy jars. Outside the fortification there is a ploughed field with a grid of rows indicating a double cropping pat- tern. Five structural phases are recognized in Period I (2450-2300 B.C.) which is said to have ended with a seismic catastrophe. The pre-Harappan tool kit consisted of small-sized blades of chalced- ony, copper celts, bone points and beads and bangles of copper, shell and terracotta. During Period II the Harappan dichotomy of dividing the town into citadel (240 X 120m) and lower city (240 X 360m) was intro- duced. The citadel was laid on the earlier abandoned mound on the west and the lower city on the natural soil; leaving a broad space of 40m between the two,, and both were fortified. Within the citadel houses were built on mud brick platforms connected by a network of roads. Four arterial thoroughfares running north to south and three

from east to west have been traced. A few drains and wells built of baked bricks are ex- posed. The pottery of the pre-Harappan period continued to be in use for some time along with the Harappan pottery of Period II. In the Indus seals of steatite and terracotta, cubical stone weights, beads of semi-precious stones, fa- ience and steatite, and copper/bronze celts were in use during Period II dated 2300-1750 B.C. Among the more noteworthy objects of artistic value, mention may be made of a bronze figure of a bull and a terracotta human head. The citadel of Kalibangan seems to be a centre of religious ceremonies as indicated by the construction of altars for fire worship and animal sacrifice. B. B. Lai has interpreted a paved path as the processional path of priests who participiated in the religious ceremonies. Among the few human skeletal remains,

Fig : 17 -- Surkotada - Harappan town