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Bricks, Beads And Bones
Question
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Examine the possible reasons for the end of the Harappan civilisation.

Answer

There are many reasons put forth by the scholars regarding end of the Harappan civilization:

(i) Climatic change,  Deforestation,  Excessive Flood, Drying up of rivers,  Earthquake, Landslide etc. These reasons could explain end of one or two settlements. Hoever it cannot explain the end of whole civilization.

(ii) some scholars believes that it was the invasion of Aryan that lead to the end of Harappan civilization. As there are mentions in Rigveda how Lord Indra also known as Puramdar or the 'destroyer of fort'has destroyed forts. R E M Wheeler believes that it is not possible such civilization could just vanish unless it was destoyed and was taken over by a new one. There also was evidence of large number of skeleton to prove the point. However this argument has been refuted and no longer holds true.

(iii) Other scholars believe that it was due to the end of one unifying element, it could be state or a ruler. Because after 1800 BCE we find that there are sudden disappearance of seals, weights and other uniform productions. Which scholars believe could be possible if there was an unifying element because such uniformity in size, weights etc could not coincident.

However the mentioned points are all hypothesis and we are still not sure of what could have brought such civilization to an end.

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Some More Questions From Bricks, Beads And Bones Chapter

How do archaeologists trace socio-economic differences in Harappan society? What are the differences that they notice?

Or

Describe how artefacts help in identifying social differences during the Harappan period.

Would you agree that the drainage system in Harappan cities indicates town planning? Give reasons for your answer.

List the material used to make beads in the Harappan Civilisation. Describe the process by which one kind of bead was made.

Look at following fig. and describe what you see. How is the body placed? What are the objects placed near it? Are there any artefacts on the body? Do these indicate the sex of the skeleton?

Fig. A Harappan Burial

Describe some of the distinctive features of Mohenjodaro.

List the raw materials required for craft production in the Harappan Civilisation and discuss how these might have been obtained.

Discuss how archaeologists reconstruct the past.

Discuss the functions that may have been performed by rulers in Harappan society.

On given map, use a pencil to circle sites where evidence of agriculture has been recovered. Mark an X against sites where there is evidence of craft production and R against sites where raw materials were found.

Find out if there are any museums in your town. Visit one of them and write a report on any ten items, describing how old they are, where they were found and why you think they are on display.