Lothal in Gujarat, excavated between 1955 and 1962, is noted for its large basin, interpreted as a dockyard, and a significant collection of sealings, an unparalleled discovery compared to other Harappan sites.

Dr. Shereen Ratnagar writes with a crystalline, no-nonsense intelligence about Lothal and its famous "dockyard" in a way that both uplifts and contextualizes this strange feature of a small Harappan site. She turns to a similar site of sorts in Ur, Mesopotamia from the same period to bring in some clear facts about how trade would have conducted between these two civilizations in the third millennium, and then turns to the 70 or more sealings [clay seal impressions] found in an a warehouse that had experienced a fire hardening them, an amazing find that lets us further think about trade, its depth and organization. The narrative touches on the trade relationships between Harappan civilization and Mesopotamia, evidenced by cuneiform texts and the assortment of goods exchanged, including wood, copper, gold dust, and semi-precious stones. Despite the presence of these trade goods, Lothal is portrayed as lacking in resources and not situated on a major trade route, raising questions about its significance in Harappan overseas trade even as it emphasizes the importance of considering global sailing routes and the strategic significance of the Gulf of Kutch and the Oman Peninsula in understanding Harappan trade networks. These insights suggest a broader and more complex network of trade and cultural exchange than previously understood.

She expertly discusses the water storage possibility that we see brilliantly implemented elsewhere in Gujarat like Dholavira – she was among the very first to draw attention to this. Water storage is one of the best other options to the dockyard hypothesis, and Dr. Ratnagar shows where it too comes up short.

There is an interesting point about the"anchor stones" discovered at Lothal and many other ancient Indus sites. Shadufs, according to Britannica are "hand-operated device for lifting water, invented in ancient times and still used in India, Egypt, and some other countries to irrigate land. Typically it consists of a long, tapering, nearly horizontal pole mounted like a seesaw. A skin or bucket is hung on a rope from the long end, and a counterweight is hung on the short end." Ratnagar writes: "Originally, Leshnik said, ships came in at high tide from the Gulf of Khambhat, probably up a creek to the east of the basin. They would have made a right-angled turn to do so. He thinks Rao was pressurized to think ships entered through the northern wall. This was all in Stage I. Then some natural disaster occurred. In Stage II, entry was from the east, but the gap was still too shallow and narrow. The level in the east embankment was too high. [In 1979, Rao’s response was that the Stage II inlet in the eastern wall was 23 feet wide. The figures in different chapters of the publications do not match.]

[Lawrence] Leshnik says [1968], like Shah, that the gradient south of the tank was towards the basin. Then he begins to read more convincingly, alleging that the so-called “ anchor stones” –rough pieces of perforated limestone or sandstone, five of which were found on the floor of the basin— were really used as counter-weights for shadufs, at one end of a horizontal beam opposite the water container that lifts water," (pp. 16-17).

Ratnagar does not so much take a position as lay out the evidence and question assumptions, something she also does around "The Matter of the Sealings": "In order to change out frame of reference and study Lothal in all its aspects, we focus now on its unique character—not its huge basin—which means the dozens of small sealings found mainly in its warehouse," (p. 20). She carefully goes through the explanations of them, by experts like Asko Parpola and Dennys Frenez. She is especially indebted to the work of Serge Cleuziou and Maurizio Tosi, whose 2007 beautifully illustrated volume In the Shadow of the Ancestors (Muscat: Ministry of Heritage and Culture, Oman, 2007) was an important contribution; indeed, this whole piece points to the importance of Oman then and continuing research in the area now. Nonetheless, while placing her points in the wider context of trade with the Arabian Gulf, she does not hesitate to call some of the claims around this "far-fetched," (p. 25).

Ratnagar has the last word in this highly readable, succinct piece: "The question of Lothal’s place in the economy is still open. I end with the observation of one of the reviewers of this paper, that it was only in modern times that Indian ports came to be directly situated on the sea. It was only then that modern harbour engineering became known. Traditional ports took shelter near small river mouths further inland and would not require a dockyard. However, the seals and sealings indicate that the site may have functioned as a port," (p. 25).

Images: 1. Lothal Dockyard [Wikimedia Commons]
2. Lothal dockyard as envisaged by The Archaeological Survey of India