Homes

Was this an ancient Mohenjo-daro restaurant? Sir Mortimer Wheeler writes "Of another kind is a building fronting upon one of the main streets, 'First Street', in VR Area [Mohenjo-daro]. Its outside dimensions are 87 by 64.5 feet, but within that considerable framework are included not only residential quarters around the courtyard but also, towards the street, industrial or commercial premises of some note: in particular, three rooms neatly paved with bricks on edge, one room with five conical pits or holes sunk in the floor and lined with wedge-shaped bricks, apparently to hold the pointed b… >

"The bathroom itself was usually a small square or rectangular room with a carefully-laid brick pavement sloping towards one corner. In this corner was the outlet for the water, which, in some cases also ran through the latrine." >

The pre-Indus civilization or so-called Ravi phase around 3000 BCE at Harappa yielded hand-formed mudbricks. Here, we can see the bricks very obviously lack uniformity in size and shape. There is a remarkable difference between these bricks and those from later periods such as those seen in the Mohenjo-daro Well and Platform. Other artifacts from this period include Ravi Phase Jewelry and the Pedestal Vessel. >

From the southern steps of the Great Bath showing recesses for wooden treads and stairways to platforms of some among the 700 wells in Mohenjo-daro, glimpses of where the ancient Indus people trod every day. "A curious feature of the two stairways leading down into the bath is the presence of a channel 9.25 inches wide and 3.25 inches deep, running parallel with and at the based of the lowest step of each. This channel penetrates into the two sides of each stairway for a distance of 3.5 inches. At either end of each tread there is a recess of the same width as the tread and 3.25 inches… >

"Late III Phase. Average level: – 9.9 ft. – A few walls only remained of House I, and it will be noticed that Fore Lane had been closed in by continuing the east wall of House I right across it to the northern wall of Block I on the opposite side. >

The great bath at Mohenjo-daro at dawn and in context. Surrounded by a brick colonnade, it measures approximately 12 meters north-south and 7 meters wide, with a maximum depth of 2.4 meters. In the background is a massive brick structure with narrow passages that was first identified as a hammam or hot-air bath, and later as the state "granary," but this is not certain. See also The Great Bath of Mohanjo-daro B. >

HR Area, Lane 2, looking east with Block 2 on the left (late 1920's). The streets and alleyways wind through the neighborhood and are usually oriented along a strict grid plan, one of the most remarkable features of this four and half thousand year old city. See also The Silent Lanes of Mohenjo-daro. >

Mohenjo-daro has been called the "city of wells." Mark Kenoyer writes: "On the basis of the number of wells found in the excavated areas, Michael Jansen has calculated that the city may have had over 700 wells. In contrast Harappa may have had as few as 30, since only 8 wells have been discovered in the areas excavated so far. The difference between these two cities may be that Mohenjo-daro had less winter rain and may have been situated far away from the Indus river. At Harappa a large depression in the center of the city may represent a large tank or reservoir accessible to the inhabitants … >

From the school of careful excavations: a Kot Diji phase (2800-2600 BCE) coiled basketry impression unearthed at Harappa in 2000. See also Kot Diji Phase Kiln >

Ringstones are among the most fascinating of ancient Indus objects, particularly after recent research has shown some of those at Harappa to have originally been manufactured near Dholavira and then transported some 1,000 kilometers north. We think they might have been used to support wooden pillars. Here a newly re-discovered ringstone from Harappa is being transported to the Harappa Museum. >