Early Indus Archaeologists

The major early archaeologists involved in the discovery of ancient Indus civilization sites are profiled here. Unlike most Bronze Age civilizations in Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt and the Mediterranean, it was primarily Indians with the Archaeological Survey of India who led the excavations at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro in the 1920s and 1930s, and very little is known or has been published about them.

Daya Ram Sahni

Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni (1879-1939) was a pivotal figure in the discovery of Harappa, familiar with the mysterious seals and earlier archaeologist and scholar's visits to the site. It was Sahni who, after a three-day visit in February 1917 began the process that led to his first excavations there in January 1921.

John Marshall

John Hubert Marshall (1876-1958) was born in Chester and educated at Dulwich College and King's College, Cambridge. After gaining experience at excavations in Knossos and various other sites on Crete between 1898 and 1901, he was appointed Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India in 1902.