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Mālvan—Further Light on the Southern Extension of the Indus Civilization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 March 2011

Extract

In 1947 partition left India without a single site attributable to the Indus civilization. During the past two decades there has been a considerable extension of our knowledge, due mainly to the explorations and excavations of the Archaeological Survey of India. It now appears as though the Harappan culture spread into India in two principal directions: north-eastwards into the eastern Panjāb and across the Indo-Gangetic divide into the plains that lie between the Ganges and Jamunā rivers; and south-eastwards into Kacch and Kāṭhiāwār, and thence perhaps inland towards southern Rājāsthān and into the coastal region of Gujarāt. In the north the principal sites are at Rūpar in the Panjāb, Alamgīrpur in U.P., and Kālibangan in north Rājāsthān. In the south the principal excavated site is at Lothal on the Gulf of Cambay. In particular the extensive excavations at Kālibangan and Lothal have provided a mass of solid data relating to the Harappan settlements and series of well stratified radio-carbon dates. In 1957 S. R. Rao explored southern Gujarāt and in the light of his discoveries at a number of sites there he proposed a sequence of three stages of “Harappan” and “late Harappan” cultures. These he showed might be related to the sequence revealed by his excavations at Lothal and Rangpur in Saurāṣṭra. Rao's exploration suggested a number of interesting questions.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Asiatic Society 1970

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References

1 Rao, S. R., “Excavation at Rangpur and other explorations in Gujarat”, Ancient India (New Delhi), no. 18–19, 1963, pp. 5207.Google Scholar

2 The expenses of the expedition in India were borne jointly by the Archaeological Survey of India and the British participants, who received grants from the British Academy, the University of Cambridge, the Royal Geographical Society, and Smuts Memorial Fund, Cambridge. Transport in the shape of a jeep was provided by the generosity of Sri J. N. Guzder of Bombay. The joint expedition gratefully acknowledges all these.

Since this paper went to press the authors have completed a second season's work at Mālvan, including an excavation. The results provide general confirmation of many of the views formed after the first season, although on a number of points of detail some reassessment will be called for.

3 S. R. Rao, op cit., 189–90.

4 Indian Archaeology1957–58A Review, pp. 14–15.

5 The Excavation Report of Jokhā is still unpublished and the observations are based on a visit to the site and the excavated material kindly shown to us by Dr. R. N. Mehta.

6 S. R. Rao, op. cit, 75, 81, 82, 87, after broad comparisons in pottery types.

7 S. R. Rao, op. cit., 67, 81.