Chapter 3 Notes
In the Earliest Cities
Class 6 – Social Science
| Class | Class 6 |
| Subject | Social Science |
| Chapter Name | In the Earliest Cities |
| Chapter No. | Chapter 3 |
| Category | Class 6 History Notes |
Question 1 How was Harappa city discovered?
Question 2 Name the two parts of Harappan cities.
Question 3 What kind of bricks were used to make Harappan cities.
Question 4 Write a short note on Great Bath?
Question 5 Name a few Harappan cities.
Question 6 Name the evidences found by archeologists in the Harappan cities.
Question 7 Explain the drainage system in Harappan cities.
Question 8 Name the people who comprises the societal structure of the city.
Question 9 Name the things that have been found by archaeologists during the excavation of Harappan cities.
Question 10 What work does a specialist do?
Question 11 What is raw material? From where do Harappan people get raw materials?
Question 12 Write a short note on food of Harappan people.
Question 13 How was Dholavira different from most Indus cities?
Question 14 Write a short note on Lothal city.
Question 15 What may have happened for the civilisation to end?
Contents
Harappa
Harappa was one of the oldest cities in the subcontinent, which archaeologists found. Harappa was a modern city located in what is now Pakistan.
In 1856, the famous East India Company accidentally discovered Harappa while building a railway. At first, the workers thought it was the ruins of an ordinary broken city and began to use bricks for construction projects. About eighty years ago, the archaeologists realized that it was not one of the ordinary ruins and started to explore the remains.
All other cities where buildings similar to Harappa were found, were described as Harappan.
These cities were divided into 2 or more parts.
(1) Citadel: The part to the west, which was smaller but higher was called the citadel.
(2) Lower town: The part to the east was larger but lower was called the lower town.
Baked bricks were used to build houses. These bricks were strong and could last for more than a thousand years. They were placed in an interlocking pattern. This kind of strong building was constructed in the upper town known as the citadel.
One of the famous baths named Great Bath was discovered by an archaeologist in Mohenjodaro. This bath was located in the citadel. This was lined with bricks, coated with plaster, and made watertight with a layer of natural tar. There were steps leading down to it from two sides, while there were rooms on all sides. Water was probably brought in from a well, and drained out after use. Perhaps important people took a dip in this tank on special occasions.
Kalibangan and Lothal had fire altars, where sacrifices may have been performed.
Archaeologists have found a set of unique objects in almost all these cities: red pottery painted with designs in black, stone weights, seals, special beads, copper tools, and paralleled-sided long stone blades.
Houses, Streets, and Drains
(a) Houses were either one or two storeys high, with rooms built around a courtyard.
(b) Most houses had a separate bathing area, and some had wells to supply water.
Many of these cities had covered drains. These were laid out, in straight lines. Although you cannot see it, each drain had a gentle slope so that water could flow through it. Very often, drains in houses were connected to those on the streets and smaller drains led into bigger ones. As the drains were covered, inspection holes were provided at intervals to clean them. All three — houses, drains and streets — were probably planned and built at the same time.
Life in Harappa
(1) Rulers : There were people who planned the construction of special buildings in the city. It is likely that the rulers sent people to distant lands to get metal, precious stones, and other things that they wanted. They may have kept the most valuable objects, such as ornaments of gold and silver, or beautiful beads, for themselves.
(2) Scribes: People who knew how to write, who helped prepare the seals, and perhaps wrote on other materials that have not survived.
(3) There were men and women, craftspersons, making all kinds of things — either in their own homes, or in special workshops.
(4) People were travelling to distant lands or returning with raw materials and stories. Many terracotta toys have been found and children must have played with these.
Crafts in the city
Most of the things that have been found by archaeologists are made of stone, shell and metal, including copper, bronze, gold and silver.
(a) Copper and bronze were used to make tools, weapons, ornaments and vessels.
(b) Gold and silver were used to make ornaments and vessels.
(c) They also found beads, weights, and blades. The Harappans also made seals out of stone. These are generally rectangular and usually have an animal carved on them.
(d) The Harappans also made pots with beautiful black designs.
Cotton was probably grown at Mehrgarh from about 7000 years ago. Actual pieces of cloth were found attached to the lid of a silver vase and some copper objects at Mohenjodaro.
(e) Archaeologists have also found spindle whorls, made of terracotta and faience. These were used to spin thread.
(f) Many of the things that were produced were probably the work of specialists. A specialist is a person who is trained to do only one kind of work, for example, cutting stone, or polishing beads, or carving seals.
Raw materials
Raw materials are substances that are either found naturally (such as wood, or ores of metals) or produced by farmers or herders. These are then processed to produce finished goods.
For example: Cotton, produced by farmers, is a raw material that may be processed to make cloth.
While some of the raw materials that the Harappans used were available locally, many items such as copper, tin, gold, silver and precious stones had to be brought from distant places.
(a) The Harappans probably got copper from present-day Rajasthan, and even from Oman in West Asia.
(b) Tin, which was mixed with copper to produce bronze, may have been brought from present-day Afghanistan and Iran.
(c) Gold could have come all the way from present-day Karnataka, and precious stones from present-day Gujarat, Iran and Afghanistan.
Food for people in the cities
People living in the countryside grew crops and reared animals. These farmers and herders supplied food to craftspersons, scribes and rulers in the cities. The Harappans grew wheat, barley, pulses, peas, rice, sesame, linseed and mustard.
A new tool, the plough, was used to dig the earth for turning the soil and planting seeds.
As this region does not receive heavy rainfall, water was stored and supplied to the fields when the plants were growing.
The Harappans reared cattle, sheep, goat and buffalo. Water and pastures were available around settlements.
However, in the dry summer months, large herds of animals were probably taken to greater distances in search of grass and water. They also collected fruits like ber, caught fish and hunted wild animals like the antelope.
A closer look – Harappan Towns in Gujarat
Dholavira
(1) The city of Dholavira was located on Khadir Beyt in the Rann of Kutch, where there was fresh water and fertile soil. It has been one of the largest urban settlements of the Harappan Civilisation as well as the Indus Valley Civilization.
(2) Dholavira was divided into three parts, and each part was surrounded by massive stone walls, with entrances through gateways.
(3) There was also a large open area in the settlement, where public ceremonies could be held.
(4) Other finds include large letters of the Harappan script that were carved out of white stone and perhaps inlaid in wood. This is a unique find as generally Harappan writing has been found on small objects such as seals.
Lothal
(1) The city of Lothal stood beside a tributary of the Sabarmati, in Gujarat, close to the Gulf of Khambat.
(2) It was situated near areas where raw materials such as semi-precious stones were easily available.
(3) This was an important centre for making objects out of stone, shell and metal.
(4) There was also a storehouse in the city. Many seals and sealings (the impression of seals on clay) were found in this storehouse.
The Mystery Behind the End of the Harappan Civilization
(1) About 3900 years ago, a major change was discovered, which brought a change in civilization. People were afraid in many cities.
(2) Writings, weights, and seals were not used anymore. Raw materials in the place started to finish, and they were not brought anymore.
(3) Garbage was found piled up on the street, impressive buildings were no longer built, the drainage system began to collapse, and the people of Harappa began to lead boring lives.
Many scholars came up with different reasons for the breakdown. Some scholars suggest that the rivers dried up. Others suggest that there was deforestation. In some areas there were floods. It appears as if the rulers lost control. Sites in Sind and west Punjab (present-day Pakistan) were abandoned, while many people moved into newer, smaller settlements to the east and the south.
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