Basic Issues in Harappan Archaeology: Some Thoughts

Abstract

The identification of the Harappan Civilization in the early twentieth century was considered to be the most significant archaeological discovery in the Indian Subcontinent as it pushed the beginning of settled life by 2000 years. Contemporary to the Mesopotamian and Egyptian Civilizations it was unique in its town planning. Spread over major parts of the western and north-western subcontinent, its influence is seen to the Tajikistan border in the north and the Gulf region in the west with over two thousand sites found till date. The past eight decades of research have brought to light many important details of the culture including the cultural process involving its origin, maturity and decline but certain aspects such as the terminology, climatic influence, regional variations, script etc are still very flimsy. To gain more information the focus of research will have to shift from Mega Site Archaeology to Small Site Archaeology with large multidisciplinary research projects to acquire a more holistic picture of the Harappan culture.

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