Main Info
The ruins of Mohen Jo Daro site lies about 510 KM away from Karachi in Larkana District, Pakistan. It consists of a group of mounds of light red tint, contrasting pleasantly with the blue of the sky and yellow-grey of the surrounding plain. Mohenjo Daro was first reported by an archaeologist, D.R Bhandarkar in 1912. Later in 1922 -23 excavations were started on what was thought to be one of Buddhist stupa site. At first attempt this assumption was defensible in exposing a monastery with a stupa which could be dated into 2nd century AD conform from coins of Kushana & Vasudeva 1, found from cells. Digging deeper, excavators found hitherto unknown artifacts, especially small square seal with an unknown script. At the same time alike seals reported from Harappa, 600 km north in Punjab. This discovery was the re-birth of the Indus civilization. Up to now 100,000 square meters (10%) area of ancient remains at Mohenjo Daro have been uncovered. Actually the ruins which locally known as mound of dead is even bigger then visible on ground today, confirmed by salvage excavation in 1987-88 at the bank of the Indus river. This attestation makes Mohenjo Daro the largest known Bronze Age city of ancient world covering more than 3 million square meter area.
The entire inhabited area has been laid out into four main oblong blocks. These have been subdivided into twelve smaller sections. This presents a beautiful chess board plan. Streets cutting each other at right angles, the drains along the walls and running through the streets, the dust bins and cesspits attached to almost every house, all indicate not only a controlled and well thought town planning but also a perfect, disciplined way of life lived during such a remote period of human history. Mohen Jo Daro had a mixed population of the rich and poor the privilege class residing in spacious houses, huge – structures whereas working class being content on small two-roomed quarters with narrows courtyards attached to them. For the ethnological evidence one has to rely mainly on the skeletal remains unearthed from the “Mound of the Dead”. The scholars maintain that nearly half of the skulls discovered for here belong to a homogeneous group. This group is classed as the Mediterranean type. They are medium to tall in height with a complexion varying from dark to light olive brown, a long head and face, narrow and pronounced nose, black hair, colour of the eye ranging from black brown and characteristically large and the body slenderly built. Few skulls, however, belong to proto-Australoid group, a more primitive and possibly the aboriginal inhabitants, who were of smaller stature with dark skin, wavy black hair, long head, broad and flat nose and flashily protracting lips.
Numerous clay figurines often fantastic in appearance excavated from Mohen Jo Daro suggest that the people worshiped the Mother Goddess. Moreover the evidence of some form of phallic worship with representation of male and female generative organs exists mostly worked on stone. Indication of tree worship are also available, all this suggests how much Hinduism is indebted to the religion of Mohen Jo Daro people.
At Mohen Jo Daro a number of skeletons have been found, of assorted ages, sexes and anthropological types. Fractional burial or fragmentary human bones often found associated with pottery vessels and other house hold utensils although do not afford us enough evidence with regard to the burial system prevalent among the Mohen Jo Daro inhabitants yet at present stage of our knowledge it provides some clues to the rites of the disposal of the dead.
One most important problem which arrests our attention is the dating of Mohenjo Daro civilization. The chronology of this ancient culture has been linked up with that of ancient Sumerian culture. Objects of the Indus origin have been discovered from a number of Mesopotamian town and vice versa. This has given a very positive clue of the trade between these two regions and also has helped in ascertaining the date of the Indus valley civilization. It is on this basis that this Indus culture is believed to have flourished round about 2500 B.C of little earlier.
The major excavations were carried out between 1924 and 1931. A smaller excavation at Moneer site was carried out in 1936, while Sir Mortimer Wheeler excavated in 1950 the so called Great Bath & granary. The George F Dales carried out excavation in 1965 for one season and German Archaeological mission did the systematic research to analyze the extremely large structures of the settlement.
The prominent features of exposed ancient remains are consisting on citadel and lower city. The first feature to be seen at Mohenjo Daro, rising an enormous platform of about 20m high from the surrounding ground, it must have been even more prominent 4500 years ago. Ascending the hill to the left is a Buddhist monastery with the stupa in the centre of courtyard dated 2nd century AD. The Great Bath at the foot of the stupa is one of the largest structures of the city measuring 25 x 70m. Its centre consist of a courtyard surrounded by a cloister with big square pillars and large basin in the middle, where entered through two flight of steps in north and south. A corbelled arch drains to the west, which cuts a corner of the granary. In north side of the Great Bath, a series of drained bath rooms, according to scholars these were “priest baths” while in south of the citadel L – area, with a row of square pillars belonging to assembly hall.
The ruins of lower city stretch east of the citadel area, measuring 1000m long and in southern side 800m wide, it transverses in north – south direction by “ First street” . The lower city like the citadel was also planned; all houses are more or less oriented towards the cardinal direction (N-S, E-W). Most houses have their own wells indicating not only high water consumption but also a high skill of engineering. In almost every street drains running along one of the sides.
The exposed remains in different areas have been named after pioneer excavators, such as DK-G area, VS area, HR area, Moneer area, DK-B,C area and L area etc. The DK-G area is the northern most area of the lower city excavated between 1927 -31 by Ernest H Mackay. The prominent buildings like chief’s house which cover more than 800 square meters. In this area three major building phases of the city are clearly visible with entrances and drain outlets, some time at a considerable height.
Following the “First street” to the south approximately at a distance of 400m the area named after Vats, the excavator of 1925 -26 season field operation. Here close to the main street to the left a house with paved floor, interpreted by scholars as dyer’s shop, as there were several depressions in the floor for keeping large jars with pointed bottom is a prominent feature in VS area.
The HR area named after Herald Hargreaves, the excavator of 1924 -25, is one of the prominent and southern most quarters of the city. “First street” diverts the area into two before it ends at the end of the hill. Coming from north, a large house passing through a small lane to the north where several skeletons were found further south along First Street on the right side where a large courtyard of one of the largest house of lower city. In this house ring stone were found which might be astronomical tools. The famous dancing girl was discovered in one of the smaller houses at the southern edge of the excavated area.
The Moneer area was excavated in 1934 -35, belong to the late urban phase and shows a good deal of residential houses with bathing platforms. The quality of the construction work is quite poor and the bricks have been reused.
In a remote area at the easternmost fringe of the city, the DK B area in 1925 the famous “Priest King” was found.
From the evidences it can be deduced that it was during the days of degeneration and decay that the people of Mohen Jo Daro were force to abandon their houses at the hands of the Aryan invaders. Thus came death to Mohenjo Daro, but the traditions nourished by its inhabitants during the long course of its life are still living all around the Dead City. Potters in the adjoining villagers of Mohenjo-Daro today are making the same type of pottery as made by the potters of Prehistoric Mohenjo Daro. The boat women in the neighborhood of Mohenjo-Daro are wearing ornaments very much like their ancient counterparts. Heavily loaded bullock carts still in vogue throughout Sindh present astonishing reliance to those made in terracotta by the Mohen Jo Daro artists. Fairies rowing in the Indus at present are nearly similar to those found depicted on the seals recovered from Mohenjo-Daro.
The three volume excavation report published by Sir John Marshal is full of exciting stories about the discoveries of registered objects amongst them seals, terracotta figurines, household objects, bronze, figurines and jewelry.
District: Larkana
Visit hours:Summer: 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Winter: 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
