Harrapan culture

Frontline, India’s national magazine, has a beautiful article with lots of pictures that can be downloaded at www.flonnet.com/stories/20100618271206200.htm on the rise and fall of a Harrapan city – the layout, views of the dig, and views of the finds. The rise and fall of the city over a period of 150 years is portrayed – urban grid, monumental architecture, a stadium with terraced stands, funerary architecture, a sandstone quarry, and an impressive water management system are included. It began in 3000BC but an earthquake struck at  the end of stage 1-2. Stage 3, dated 2850-2500BCE also came to an end as a result of earthquake. Stage 4 began in 2500 when Harrapa was at its peak but its mode of demise is not mentioned and appears to merge into stage 5 that came to an end around 2000BC when there is evidence of stress – drought. The entire settlement was abandoned for serveral decades before stage 6 began – but only on the citadel. The lower town remain unoccupied. The citadel itself was abandoned after around a century or so – and remained unoccupied for several centuries. Stage 7 was a poor settlement that only existed for around 50 year and it too was abandoned in 1500BC. It may be that these dates may require adjusting in order to fit in with dates and earthquake activity in the Near East and Aegean.