Shell Industries at Moenjodaro, Pakistan
By determining the ancient source areas for shells, we can gain a new perspective on the trade networks and the exploitations of marine resources by protohistoric coastal populations.
354 peer-reviewed articles from leading journals about the latest discoveries about the ancient Indus civilization, its antecedents and contemporaries in the Persian Gulf and Mesopotamia, during the Bronze Age 3500-1700 BCE by the world's ancient Indus archaeologists and scholars.
An Upper Paleolithic Shrine in India?
Although some have their doubts about religious interpretations for what they call "esoteric archaeological finds,' nevertheless it is stated in this article that there is a very strong probability that the structure and the stone represent a shrine to the goddess, or female principle, 'Shakti,' which was built by the group of final upper palaeolithic hunter/gatherers who were living at the site of Baghor I.
Shell Working at Ancient Balakot, Pakistan
Balakot is one of four known ancient coastal sites in Pakistan dating to the period of South Asia's earliest civilization -- the Harappan (or Indus) -- that flourished in the centuries just before and after 2000 B.C.
A New Look at Stone Drills of the Indus Valley Tradition
This paper summarizes the state of drilling research and defines two categories of drills that were used in antiquity: tapered cylindrical drills and constricted cylindrical drills. Directions for future research on the relationship between drilling and other contemporaneous technologies are also discussed.
Ancient Textiles of the Indus Valley Region
A brief overview of the major cultural traditions of the Indus region is presented along with a discussion of the current state of research on the most ancient textiles used by ancient peoples of this region.
Wheeled Vehicles of the Indus Valley Civilization
The early use and gradual development of wheeled vehicles at the site of Harappa, Pakistan to better understand the role of carts in the process of urban development.
Excavations at Harappa 2000-2001: New Insights on Chronology and City Organization
Through a comparative study of the artifacts, pottery, architecture, faunal, and botanical remains of Harappa, an increasingly sophisticated view is obtained of the complex and dynamic political, ideological, and economic processes that were an integral part of Harappan urban society.
The Archaeological Sites of Gadani and Phuari Headlands (Las Bela, Balochistan, Pakistan)
Ras Gadani and Phuari were surveyed in the 2000s by the Italian Archaeological Mission in Las Bela and Lower Sindh. The discovery of a few sites on the two headlands has shown the importance of the Las Bela coast for the archaeology of the northern Arabian Sea.
Cultures and Societies of the Indus Tradition
A refutation of some of the so-called "factoids" about the ancient Indus Civilization, from an Aryan invasion to the violent overrunning of Mohenjo-daro in an essay that describes the various cultural and societal systems that underlie this Bronze Age culture.
Bead Technologies at Harappa 3300-1900 BC: A Comparative Study
The author discusses how study of bead manufacture and the changing styles of beaded ornaments are important methods for investigating the social and economic development of Harappan society.
Indus Script: A Study of its Sign Design
A recent essay on the structural design of signs in the Indus script by experts at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.
Reconstructing the History of Harappan Civilization
A detailed analysis of the evolution of Indus Civilization based on a compilation of the latest scientific data by experts.
The Indus Fish Swam in the Great Bath
Iravatham Mahadevan considers this late 2011 paper to be "one of the most important papers I have written."
Changing the Prehistory of Sindh and Las Bela Coast: Twenty-five Years of Italian Contribution
The prehistory of Sindh and Las Bela coast (Balochistan) before and after partition, and the role played by Italian archaeologists since the 1980s.
Shell Middens of the Coast of Balochistan
Surveys conducted along the southeastern coast of Las Bela in the following years have shown that shell middens with different characteristics and variable chronology exist in many places among which are Gadani and Phuari Headlands and the shores of Lake Siranda. Shell middens are places where the debris from eating shellfish and other food has accumulated over time.
Ancient Indus Silver Isotope Analysis
The results of the analysis of silver beads from Mohenjo-daro and Alladino and the possible origins of the silver in them.
The Prehistoric Flint Mines at Jhimpir in Lower Sindh
New finds from 2010 at one of the earliest flint mines in South Asia.
Moving Mountains: The Trade and Transport of Rocks and Minerals with the Greater Indus Valley Region
Harappa’s rock and mineral assemblage from the perspective of the greater Indus Valley’s complex geology, the distance one would have to travel to acquire certain materials and a discussion of the differing motivations behind the acquisition and transport of rock and minerals in the greater Indus Valley region.
A Technique for Determing the Provenance of Harappan Banded Limestone "Ringstones" Using ICP-AES
The author's propose a method to analyze some of the largest artifacts recovered at Indus Civilization (ca. 2600 to 1700 BC) cities in Pakistan and northwestern India, the limestone “ringstones.” This later led to the determination that Harappa's ringstones came from near Dholavira.
Late Upper Paleolithic Sites at Jhimpir in Lower Sindh (Thatta, Pakistan)
Results from the 2010 surveys of Paleolithic (before 10,000 BCE) assemblages among the limestone terraces of Jhimpir.
A Diachronic Examination of Lithic Exchange Networks During the Urban Transformation of Harappa
The origins of manufacturing debris recovered from different periods of occupation between 3300 BCE and 1700 BCE at Harappa can now be identified with a high degree of certainty thanks to geologic source provenance studies.
Regional Interaction in the Prehistoric Indus Valley
The exchange and communication systems that connected distant parts of the Indus Civilization (c. 2600 to 1900 BC) and beyond had roots beginning in the early Neolithic period.
Black Chert Source Identified at Nammal Gorge, Salt Range
In November 2000 the authors conducted collaborative fieldwork to identify salt and mineral resources from the Salt Range in the Punjab, Pakistan used by the prehistoric site of Harappa over 200 kilometers away.
Potential Steatite Sources for the Indus Civilization
Steatite (soapstone) artifacts have been found at nearly every excavated Harappan period (2600-1900 BC) site and were the primary element used to make seals.
Probabilistic Analysis of an Ancient Undeciphered Script
First published by the IEEE Computer Society in 2010, this paper by a University of Washington Professor analyzes the count of signs and combinations in the Indus script.
Inscribed Objects from Harappa Excavations 1987-2007
Two leading ancient Indus archaeologists on the inscribed objects discovered over the past 20 years at the ancient site of Harappa in Punjab, Pakistan.
The Bronze Age Indus Quarries of the Rohri Hills and Ongar
A report on the largest archaeological site in South Asia, an industrial-scale enterprise that goes back hundreds of thousands of years: flint mining.
How did the ‘great god’ get a ‘blue neck’?
A remarkable bilingual clue to the Indus script is examined.
A Dravidian solution to the Indus script problem
A Dravidian solution to the Indus script problem was presented as the Katalgnar M. Karunanidhi Classical Tamil Research Endowment Lecture on June 25, 2010 in Coimbatore.
Excavations at Shikarpur, Gujarat 2008-2009
Continuing work by the archaeologists at MSU University in Baroda including new seals and classical Harappan pottery finds.