Brief historical reference. Culture of haratpian civilization

The name of the "Ind" river was the basis of the name of the country - "India", under which in antiquity they understood the space east of Indus, where Pakistan states are currently located, India, Nepal, Bangladesh. Until relatively recently (a few more than a hundred years ago), aliens-aria were considered the first creators of civilization on Indian subcontinint. It was generally an opinion that in written texts did not preserve information about the Great Previous Culture. Now we can say that they are still recognized, although with difficulty. In particular, in the "geography" of Strabo, with reference to the Greek, Aristobul refers to the extensive, abandoned by residents due to changes in the Indeed country. Such information is single, and sources characterizing the Harapp culture, or the civilization of the Indus Valley, mined and continue to be produced during archaeological excavations.

Study history

Alexander Cunningham. 1814-1893 The first head of the Indian archaeological oversight.

Civilization of harapps, unlike most other ancient civilizations, began to be investigated relatively recently. The first of its signs found in the 60s years XIX. In., when near Harappa - in Punjab, samples were found so characteristic of this civilization of seals-stamps. They are found in the construction of road mounds, for what purpose the huge masses of the ancient cultural layer were used. The officer drew attention to the seal engineering troops A. Cunningham, subsequently the first head of the Archaeological Service of India. He is considered one of the founders of Indian archeology.

However, only in 1921 an employee of the Archaeological Service of the RD Borers in the study of the Buddhist monument in Mohenjo Daro ("The Hill of the Dead") found traces here much more ancient culturewhich he defined as a doari. At the same time, R.B. Sakhney began excaving the harapps. Soon the head of the archaeological service of J. Marshall in Mohenjo-Doro, systematic excavations were launched, the results of which made an equally stunning impression that the excavations of the town of Schliman in Three and Mainland Greece: in the early years, monumental structures from burnt bricks and works of art were found ( Including the well-known sculpture of "Tsar Zhetsz"). The relative age of civilization, the traces of which began to meet in various regions of the north of the peninsula, was determined thanks to the finds of characteristic seals in the cities of Mesopotamia, first in Chiche and Lagas, then in others. In the early 1930s of the XX century. The date of the existence of civilization, the existence of which was not recognized in the ancient written texts of its neighbors, was defined as 2500-1800. BC. It is noteworthy that, despite new dating methods, including radiocarbon, dating harapp city civilization The heyday period is currently not much different from the proposed more than 70 years ago, although calibrated dates suggest its greater antiquity.

The lively debate caused the problem of the origin of this civilization, propagating, as soon as it became clear, in the extensive territory. Based on the information that existed then, it was natural to suggest that impulses or direct impacts that contributed to its occurrence were from Western, from the region of Iran and Mesopotamia. In this regard, special attention was paid to the District of Indo-Iranian Bordershop - Beloohistan. The first finds were made here in the 20s of the 20th century. MA Stein, but large-scale studies were taken after World War II and the acquisition of independence by the states of the subcontinent.

Before the occurrence of independent states, the archaeological studies of the Harapp culture were limited mainly by the Central Region of the "Large Valley of Indus" (the term proposed by M.R. Mughal), where the largest cities are located - Mohenjo Daro and Harapp. Then, in India, intensive studies were conducted in Gujarat (large excavations - lotch and Surkotada), Rajastan (Kalibangan excavations), Punjab, are especially important here. Large-scale work in the second half of the XX century. held where R. Hakra Ghaggar. It found about 400 settlements with nocturing from Doharappa to postharappian cultures.

In the 50s and 1960s, data on the eneolytic (chalcolitic) cultures were obtained, whose ceramics had similarities with finds known in the territory of Iran, Afghanistan, the south of Turkmenistan. The assumptions about the impact of these regions, which caused the cause of first pre -harapp cultures, and then the Harapp itself, were further adjusted. What seemed evidence of migration was perceived as a result of interactions, influences that had beneficial, since the local population had the ability to not just perceive them, but also transform, based on their own traditions. A special role in the understanding of the processes of the civilization of the Indus valley was played by excavations in Pakistan, in particular the settlements of Neolithic - Bronze Age Mehrgarha on the river. Bolan, conducted by French researchers.

To preserve and future studies of the monuments of the Harapp, civilization are important to UNESCO in the 60s of the XX century. Attempts to save from soil waters and salinization of one of the most important cities - Mohenjo Daro. As a result, new data were obtained, clarified and additionary already known.

Territory and Natural Terms of Indus Valley

The Indus Valley lies in the north-western corner of the extensive subcontinent, currently its main part is located in Pakistan. It enters the cultural integration zone, limited from the north of Amrades, in the south - Oman, stretches for 2000 km north of the tropic of cancer. The climate in the whole area of \u200b\u200bcontinental, rivers have internal stock.
From the north, the subcontinent is limited to the highest mountain system of Himalayas and Karakorum, where they originate the largest rivers Peninsula. Himalayas play an important role, meeting the summer monsoon, redistributing his move, condensing excess moisture in glaciers. It is important that the mountains are rich in trees, including valuable breeds. From the south-west and southeast of the peninsula is washed by the Arabian Sea and the Bengal Bay. Indo-Ganga lowland forms a crescent of 250-350 km wide, its length from the Arabian Sea to the Bengal Gulf - 3000 km. Five tributaries Indea irrigate the plain Pendjab-Pyrendreach is a Jelame, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutland. The western part of the Ganges Valley and the area between Gangom and Jamny (DEAB) is the place of formation of the classical culture of India, Ariavart (country of Arya). In the region of Karachi, Inde deposits form a shelf with a length of 200 km. Now Indea Valley is naked lowland with river river beds and sand dunes, although during mogules it covered dense forests aburred by a child.

South of the plain is the elevation and mountains of Windhyya, south - arid decan plograms, framed from the West and East by mountain chains - Western and oriental gates. Most of the plane oil rivers flow from west to the east, the exception is only two of the significant - Nammad and Taptith. Geographical continuation of the peninsula - Ceylon Island. The coastal part is narrow, with few good ports. The total length of the subcontinent from Kashmir to Cape Komorin is about 3200 km.

In the North-West, the Mountains and Valley of Beloohistan are held in the North-West. This is an area that has played an important role in the addition of the civilization of the Indian valley.

Sources used in antiquity of minerals were located both outside (as specially will be discussed below) the subcontinent and on it itself. Probably copper came, in particular, from deposits between Kabul and Kurrarat, from Belukhistan and Rajasthan (Ganesh-Var-Khyetri deposit). One of the sources of tin could be the field in Bengal, it is possible that it went from Afghanistan. Gold and silver could come from Afghanistan and from the south of the dean. Semi-precious and diverse minerals were delivered from Horasan (turquoise), from the Pamirs, from East Turkestan, from Tibeta, from Northern Burma (lagish, jade). The locations of the diverse stones, from which the beads loved so much were on the subcontinent.

The climate, in general, the tropical monsoon, differs at the same time a variety. In the Indo-Iranian border region, it is a semi-derision with predominantly summer sediments. In East Sinde, 7 mm of precipitation falls per year. In the north, in the Himalayas, winter winter, they are soft on the plains, and the summer is roast, temperature up + 43 ° C. On the decan plate, the temperature fluctuations in different seasons are less sharp.

The geographical position of the Indian subcontinent determines the specifics of its climate, and therefore the features of the economy. From October to May rain rains, with the exception of the regions of the Western coast and individual regions of Ceylon. The peak of the heat falls for April, by the end of which the grass burns out and leaves the trees. In June, the season of monsoon rains comes, lasting about two months. At this time, activity outside the dwellings is difficult, nevertheless, it is perceived by Indians as Europeans - Spring, the time of revitalizing nature. Now, as partly in antiquity, two types of crops are practiced - Rabi, using artificial irrigation, in which the harvest was collected at the beginning of summer, and a harrif in which the crop was collected in autumn. Formerly, soil fertility was regularly restored by Indus spills and the conditions of farming were favorable for farming, breeding livestock, fisheries, hunting.

The nature of the subcontinent is distinguished by a kind of severity - people suffered and suffer from heat and floods, epidemic diseases, characteristic of hot and humid climates. At the same time, nature served as a powerful stimulus of the addition of bright and original culture.

Characteristic of the Harapp City Civilization

Chronology and cultural community

The chronology of Harappa civilization is based on the testimony of its contacts mainly with Mesopotamia and radiocarbon dates. The time of its existence is divided into three stages:

• 2900-2200. BC. - Early
• 2200-1800 BC. - Developed (mature)
• 1800-1300 BC. - Late

Calibrated dates led to the beginning of its existence, referring it to 3200 BC. A number of researchers note that the calibrated dates come into conflict with Mesopotamian dating. Some researchers (in particular, K.N. Dixitis) believe that the late period of the existence of a harapps civilization continued to 800 BC, i.e. The appearance time here is iron. Now we can consider the generally accepted opinion that the completion of the existence of civilization was not simultaneous and in certain areas it existed to the middle of the II thousand BC. And further.

"Dancing girl." Found in 1926 in Moxho-Daro. Copper, height 14 cm. OK. 2500-1600 BC.

For a long time, there was an idea of \u200b\u200bthe Harapp of Civilization as a uniform and little changed over the centuries. This presentation is the result of a lack of information and adaptation by archaeologists at a certain stage of research of facts, indicating the peculiarities of the relationship between the economic activities of people and the natural environment, the characteristics of economic activities and culture in the broadest sense of the word. In recent decades, archaeologists allocated several zones characterized by specific signs of material culture -

• east
• north
• central
• south,
• western
• southeast.

Nevertheless, the proximity of the material elements of civilization, at least during its heyday, implies the existence of culture, the carriers of which in different areas maintained close contacts among themselves. How were their communities organized? Why was such an extensive community? Why, as believed (although new data may refute this), relatively quickly arise big cities? What role in civilization did trade played? Judging by how the ideas about this culture change under the influence of new discoveries, its image is still very far from clarity.

Geography of the proliferation of culture and their features

The main areas of distribution of the Harapp Civilization - the Indus Valley in Cinda with adjacent lowlands, the average course of Indea, Punjab and the adjacent areas, Gujarat, Belukhistan. At the peak of the development of Harapp, it took an unusually extensive territory for early civilization - about 800,000 square meters. km, significantly superior to the territory of the early states of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Probably, not all territories were settled at the same time and mastered with the same intensity. It can be assumed that the development of the Indus valley occurred from the territory of Beloohistan, it was the inhabitants of this region that could lay the foundations of the Harapp of civilization. At the same time, more and more materials appear, testifying to the existence of the Doharappa inhabitants in the Indus Valley. Gujarat acquires importance only at a later stage, then Macroman is mastered (its coast is convenient for shipping), signs of harappian civilization indicate the gradual distribution of its carriers to the south (in particular, along with the local ceramics, Harappskaya) and East appear. In climatic terms, these zones vary:

• On the plain of Pakistan, the influence of summer monsoons.
• On the coast of Macran Climate Mediterranean.
• In Beloohistan, small oasises are located in the valleys of rivers with permanent or seasonal watercourses, on the slopes of the mountains.
• In some areas (Cvette Valley), where the precipitation level is relatively high (more than 250 mm per year), in a limited scale, is possible for a long-term agriculture. In the area there are deposits of various minerals, copper; Recently, lazuli has been discovered in the Chagyan mountains, but the question of using this field in antiquity still remains open.

Belukhistan is important as a relatively well-studied region, where the dynamics of the distribution of settlements can be traced from the Neolithic era (Mehrharch). At the beginning of the III thousand BC. The population in the north and in the central part becomes rare and only in the south continues to exist Culley Culley. It is possible that the reason is in violation of the old economic relations of the population of the mountain zones and valleys. At the same time, the population of the Indus valley increases, although the relative launch of Beloohistan does not mean that only from this region was the influx of the population, moreover, people and from other neighboring regions came in a variety of and still obscure reasons in the field of harappian civilization. It is noteworthy that the Harappie settlements were located on the edge of the Indus Valley, on the ways leading to Iran and Afghanistan.

The emergence of such an extensive civilization is the result of economic and cultural integration, in which regional peculiarities continued. The continuity of development with neighboring districts and with the Doharappian cultures of the Indus valley can be traced in many terms. In the end, a completely peculiar culture was formed. The most important features -

• wide development of large river valleys,
• the emergence of large cities (evidence of the existence of a complex-structural society or societies),
• exchange for distant distances,
• development of crafts and highly artistic arts,
• the emergence of writing
• the existence of complex religious representations, calendar, etc.

It is unlikely that it is hard to productively believe that the "idea of \u200b\u200bcivilization" was brought to the Valley of Indeight, from Mesopotamia or Iran. On the contrary, all existing data speaks of its deep local roots, although it is impossible not to take into account the role of contacts with other cultural formations, the measure of the intended impact of which, however, remains unclear. So, A. Dani believed that in neighboring Iran, three district played an extremely important role in the formation of harapps - this is the southeast (Bumpec, Tepe-Yahya and the coast), the region of Gilmena, an intermediary in the transfer of the north and southeastrant cultural elements, and the Damgan district in the northeast. Communication from there was distributed through Afghanistan and Belukhistan. Next will still have to say, what role in the history of the charapps were played by remote relations.

The central part of the Haratpian civilization was located in the Indus Valley, a huge river with a variable river, depth and width of which in summer as a result of melting of snow and monsoon rainfall. His water brings fertile deposits, but the impermanence of the river created and continues to create great difficulties for the development of land. In Syde, where one of the largest cities of the Harapp civilization, Mohenjo Daro, in coastal areas were dominated by violent thickets of cane and moisthed plants, further extended forests, in whom the reptiles, rhinos and elephants, tigers, wild boars, antelopes, deer were inhabited. Until relatively recently, as mentioned above, these places were abounded by a child. Many representatives of the local fauna and flora are carriers of Harappa culture portrayed on their products.

Another major territory of civilization was Punjab, where the city, which gave the name of the whole culture, is Harappa. The natural situation is close to the one that exists in Cinda, the flora and fauna differ little from the Sindian. In the Islamabad area, rain farming is possible. On the hills and in the mountains, framing Punjab and surrounding areas, forests are common. There is reason to assume that in antiquity in Punjab, in particular in neighboring Rajastan, moving forms of cattle breeding played a considerable role.

George's geographical conditions are close typical of South Synd. Recently, there were signs of existence here of the Doharappa settlements.

Population regions

These anthropology, in the opinion of some researchers, speak of the heterogeneity of the anthropological type of carriers of the haratpian civilization. Among them were representatives of the Mediterranean and Alpine types, according to some researchers from the West, the Mongoloids of mountainous regions and protovaloides, the estimated autochthonous population. At the same time, V.P. Alekseev believed that the main type of long-headed narrow-headed European views, dark-haired and dark-eyed people, the population of the Mediterranean, the Caucasus, the Four Asia. It is possible that the polyethnics of carriers of the Harapp culture says the diversity of the funeral rites of Harappa herself, Mohenjo-Doro, Kalibangan, Rupara, Lotkala, Belukhistan. It is noteworthy the appearance in the late haratippe of troves in the urns (simultaneous burials in the match).

Household in Harapps Civilization

The farm in connection with the diversity of environmental conditions dominated the two of its forms - agriculture and animal husbandry and rolling cattle breeding, the gathering and hunting, the use of resources of the rivers and the sea, also played their role. According to B. Subbarao, in the early history of India, three stages can be allocated, with which the prevailing forms of management are related -

• doharappsky - in the north-west there were cultures of settlement farmers and pastorals, on the rest of the territory - hunters and collectors.
• harappsky - existed urban civilization, communities of archaic farmers and cattle breeders and gatherer hunters.
• and postharappsky - agricultural crops were widely spread, the area of \u200b\u200bwhich included Central Industance, which has fallen a strong influence of the Harapp of Civilization.

Rainy agriculture was practiced on the lands, sufficiently moistened with monsoon rains. In the foothill and mountain areas, stone mounds were built for the retention of water, and for the device of sowing areas - terraces. In the valleys of rivers in antiquity, although there are no unconditional data on this score, flood water accumulated by creating dams and dams. There is no information about the channels of information, which is understandable due to powerful sediment layers. The main agricultural crops were wheat and barley, lentils and peas of several species, Len, as well as such an important culture as cotton. The main harvest is believed to be up to the middle of the III milk. BC. Collected in summer (slave). Later in some areas began to practice and harvest a habit, at which sowing was made in the summer, and the harvest - in the fall. At this late period, millet, brought from the West, and its varieties are distributed. They begin to cultivate rice - prints are found in Rangpur and the lotchale, it is possible to breed in Caliban. In the west, Uttar Pradesh is identified intermediate from wild to cultural form. The opinion was expressed about the start of breeding here rice in V thousand BC, a little earlier than in China. It is believed that at the beginning of the II thousand BC. This important culture is increasingly spreading in South Asia, although its origin continues to be not completely clear.

New forms of agriculture allowed to move away from the practitioners of the cultivation of winter cereals characteristic of the Harappa, so that new zones were introduced in the old territories in the old territories, and the land in the East was introduced. By the end of the IV - the beginning of the III thousand BC. The livestock base becomes more diverse than before. Wider the resources of sea coasts and rivers are exploited, in some settlements, fish and mollusks used more than another animal food (example - balacot).

As already mentioned, the animal husbandry was engaged in the neolithic inhabitants of territories, one way or another covered by a later civilization of Harappa. In different places, various types of livestock prevailed, a major cattle dominated on well-floated alluvial lands, although it was diluted with small. Outside alluvia painting was back. In alluvial valleys, primarily in the valley of Indus, the number of major livestock was very significant - places up to 75% of all animals used (Jalipur near Harapp).

Important changes occur at the beginning of the II thousand BC: in the settlement of Pyrac in the northern part of the Kachi Valley, not far from Mehrgar, found not only the bones of the camel and the donkey, but also the most ancient evidence of breeding in South Asia Horses.

For the processing of the Earth, a primitive wooden plow was used, which was injected by bulls, but it is obvious that small sections of particularly soft soils were treated with a hoe, a tool type of stick-digging and harrow. In Caliban, traces of cross-plowing were found - another evidence of highly developed agriculture. The use of crop rotation is not excluded. Obviously existence in different ways management; There is reason to assume that they played a complementary role. At the same time, there is no data on how the relationship between, for example, by the advantage of fishermen and farmers or animal officers.

Settlements of the Harapp Civilization

The study of the dynamics of the distribution of the Harapp culture is difficult due to the low availability of early surplus. The systems of interrelated settlements of various sizes and functions are also detected with difficulty due to the hiddenness of many settlements, primarily small, under the layers of the nanos. Despite the difficulties of studying the dynamics of settlement, certain successes are achieved in this area. So, it is believed that more than a third of settlements of Culture of the AMRI type in Sinda in the Harapp had been abandoned, but the rest continued to exist in the south-western part.

Most of the settlements are small, from 0.5 to several hectares, these are rural settlements. The population was mostly rustic. Currently, more than 1,000 settlements have been found. Four large settlements are known (besides two known, harapps and Mohenjo-Daro, Ganberivala and Racha Garha in Punjab), the area of \u200b\u200bwhich he has many dozens of hectares, although it is difficult to determine exactly the territory. So, rushing in Mohenjo Daro Hill DK has an area of \u200b\u200b26 hectares, while total area Determine in 80 and even in 260 hectares, the hill E in Haratpe - 15 hectares, although there are other communities here.

For a number of large settlements, a three-part structure was revealed - parts received the conventional names "Citadel", "Middle City" and "Lower city". The fourth building area was also found in Dholvir. Both large, and some relatively small settlements had bypass walls surrounding the territory of the rugged shape. They were built from burnt bricks and raws (in Haratpe, Mohenjo Daro and some other settlements), stone and other available materials. It is assumed that the main purpose of the bypass walls is not defensive, they should have served as a means of protection against floods. Perhaps their structure was the consequence of the desire to limit the territory of the habitat of certain social organisms. So, in Banawali, Surkotad and Calibangan, the territory was divided by the wall into two parts. There is an opinion that the actual fortification was necessary only on the outskirts of the Harapp territory, on the advancements created on other people's lands. Regular development of the Harappa settlements sharply distinguishes them from the chaotic layout of the cities of other civilizations of the Ancient East and can contribute to the reconstruction of features social organizationstill remaining distant from clarity.

In favorable for study, it is possible to establish that the settlements were located in groups - "clusters". Causes surprise the few settlements in the vicinity of Harappa. The accumulation of settlements was discovered 200 km south of Harappa, Fort Abbas. Ranneharappa settlement of Gomanwal had an area of \u200b\u200b27.3 hectares, perhaps almost the same as the modern Harapp. Another accumulation was found above for the flow of Ghaggar in Rajastane - this is Kalibangan, sisal, banqual, etc.; Doharappian layers are opened here (Complex Honey-Calibane, having similarity from Côte Diges). With the beginning of the harapps in the Hakra-Ghaggar system, significant changes occur: the number of settlements increases four times and reaches 174. In the cluster, Fort Deravara was the largest ganberivala (81.5 hectares), located 300 km from Mohenjo Daro and Harappa.

320 km from Harappa, on Drashdvati there is a settlement of Rakhigarhi, the area of \u200b\u200bwhich is suggested in 80 hectares, although the excavations were not produced. In Gujarat, the haratpian settlements are small. In the late Harapp, there were more than 150 settlements here, there are many small and seasonal among them. The Primorsky Lotch has been allocated - the alleged port, which carried out the trading of copper, carnelian, steatitis, shells, who supported ties with the hunting and collective communities and, perhaps, those who were engaged in specialized cattle breeding.

IN lately It was suggested that there were 7 or 8 large settlements in the territory of the Harapp of Civilization from the previous period - "Capitals", surrounded by town and villages. In a strict sense, these were not central settlements, as they could also be in the outskirts of the territories, carrying out contacts between different in environmental and economic relations.

Mohenjo Daro settlement

Features of large settlements it is advisable to consider on the example of the long-studied Mohenjo-Doro. The exact dimensions are unknown due to accumulated deposits, but it is significant that the traces of buildings were found 2 km from the estimated border of the city. During the heyday, the maximum number of residents are determined by 35-40 thousand people. The power of the cultural layer is very significant, fragments of clay vessels were found at a depth of 16 to 20 m from the level of the modern surface, while the mainland was not achieved. And now it is clearly an ancient division of the city into two parts - "Citadel" and "Nizhny City", separated by an unconcernly. Building material served burned and raw brick, tree. In all likelihood, the burned brick was used because of its ability to counteract the destructive effects of moisture.

The buildings "Citadel" were on a five-meter brick platform. Here, two large structures are excavated for not quite clear destination, which, most likely, were intended for assembly (the assumption that one of them could be a residence of a high-ranking person, unlikely). One of them is 70 × 22 m. With thick walls had the lobby, another - a hall with an area of \u200b\u200babout 900 square meters. m. - It was divided into four parts by rows of columns.

The foundation of the structure was found here, the upper part of which was wooden. In common opinion, it was extensive, with an area of \u200b\u200b1350 square meters. m., Public granaries, at the base of which deep ventilation channels have been done. Such a grain was found in Haratpe at the foot of the "Citadel"; Here its area is 800 square meters. m.

Finally, the "Citadel" was located "Big Pool", constructed later than other buildings. Its area is 11.70 × 6.90 m., The depth is 2.40 m. From narrow sides, wooden, staircase-shaped bitumen. For waterproof, a limestone and bitumen coating was made. The pool was filled from the well-spanned well, and empty with the help of a gutter in one of the walls. He was surrounded by the Gallery, from which poles were preserved. It is assumed that he could serve for ritual ablutions, which were given great importance. Certificate of this is the existence in the residential buildings "Bathrooms".

The "lower city" was engaged in residential building. The blocks of houses were divided by straight, located at the right corner of the streets and streets. The significant height of the walls is up to 6 m. - caused a rejected opinion that at home was not one-storey: the height of the walls, as well as the high depth of regularly located wells (one for every three houses), - the result of the rearrangements.

Rooms with flat floors were grouped around the courtyards, the area of \u200b\u200bthe largest block, consisting of two parts connected by indoor transition - 1400 sq. M.; To judge his belonging to a high-ranking person no reason. In general, the area of \u200b\u200bhouses reached 355 square meters. m, and they consisted of 5-9 rooms.

Improvement was unusually developed for antiquity. Bathrooms and toilets are found in homes. Under the pavements, sewer channels lined with buried brick were laid, at a certain distance, sumps were located apart.

The relatively recent flight of Mohenjo Daro allowed to trace changes in the principles of its development. In the period of developed harapp, she was cramped, with axial wide streets. The houses were both small and large, their plans were distinguished by a variety. Traces of handicraft activities were not detected. Later, the number of small buildings increases, the layout becomes more unified. The craft zone is approaching residential. Finally, at the later stage of the housing civilization form isolated groups, traces of handicraft production were found. The sewage system is designed, which indicates the crisis state of the organization of urban life.

Crafts and art

For the traditional culture of antiquity, Kakharappskaya applies, the division on the craft and art is hardly legitimate. Creation of artisans, whether they were intended for everyday life or for rites, often marked with high skill. At the same time, among the things of each category, there is better and worse made, there are also coarse, for the manufacture of which has not been required of great skills. Differences as products indicate the existence of high-class professionals, stone cutters, jewelers, sculptors. In different settlements, workshops were found, where dishes were made, decorations (including from shells) and others. Works of haratpian masters are distinguished by deep peculiarity, and attempts to find analogies to them in other regions, in particular in Mesopotamia, as a rule, are reduced to a small number of probable Imports from Indus Valley and difficult similarities of individual visual motifs.

Tools

So, the production of guns, utensils, building materials was highly developed and specialized. One of the important indicators is the level of metalworking. Related Littleness of weapons of weapons, although there are copper and bronze daggers and knives, arrow tips and copies. The tools of labor is largely related to the treatment of wood (these are axes, chisels, tesla), with household (needles, pounding). From copper and silver, rarely - lead made vessels. There was a known casting in open forms, cold and hot forging; Some products were cast in the technique of lost wax. Used copper alloys with arsenic, lead and tin, and the big percentage is noteworthy - about 30 - tin bronze. Decorations (bracelets and beads) were made of stone, shells, copper, silver, rarely gold. Bracelets, like at a later time, wore a lot; In all likelihood, this custom had a ritual character. In special cases used copper vessels and even gold.

Stone tools did not come from use, and over time, the variety of types decreases, the quality of raw materials and processing technology increases. Of the soft grades, the stone was made by vessels, including curly, had a ritual destination, from various minerals - beads, printing. Materials for both metal and stone products were often delivered from afar.

Ceramics

Another indicator of highly developed craft is ceramic production. The dishes were made on the circle of rapid rotation and burned in bunk mines. Forms are diverse and generally standard - bowls, cups, dishes, brazers, vessels with a pointed bottom and stands, vessels for the manufacture of dairy products. Stayed, although it fades, tradition to paint vessels: painting black in red background, geometric and figurative - images of animals, plants, fish. Although good quality ceramics, heavy vessels and differ from more elegant products of Doharappian time, which happens in ceramic production not only ancient cultures when it becomes mass.

From clay, female figurines were led from clay, less often - men's figures, including characters in horned heads. They are undoubtedly associated with mythological ideas and rituals. These figures are fairly conditional, with garple details that transmit parts of the body and numerous decorations. Of clay and stone, there were very expressive figures of bulls, sometimes imputed in wagons, wild and domestic animals. At least some of them could be toys.

Small stone and metal sculptures of men and women, well-transmitting anthropological type of at least part of the carriers of Harappa civilization, differ in great vitality. The greatest fame is a fragment of a sculptural image of a bearded man in the diadem, in the robe, decorated with embossed shafts. Privacy of his eye resembles the position of the age of the meditating person.

Making seals

These masterpieces were mainly manufactured by the seal-stamps, intended as shown by the fingerprints, to seal the goods, although it is very likely that they were perceived as amulets and talismans. They are flat, square or rectangular, on the back - the protrusion with the hole. Little samples are round; Cylindrical seals, so characteristic of Mesopotamia, Iran and other areas of anterior Asia, are practically no. As in the vessels, they portrayed in the main plants, animals ("tour", the so-called unicorn, humpback bull, tiger, crocodile, snakes, fantastic polymorphic beings). In Mohenjo Daro, there are about 75% of such images. Images are in-depth, made with great skill and understanding of the forms of bodies transmitted close to nature. As a rule, animals are depicted calmly standing near objects that are interpreted as feeders or conditional symbols. In addition, samples and images of anthropomorphic creatures of male and female in various poses are found, including reminiscent yogic. They are represented by participants of rituals. In addition to the image on the seals, a brief inscription could be placed. There are prints with conventional geometric shapes.

Images on the seals are associated with the holidays and rituals - feeding the animal, the treats of the snake, the tree worship, in the branches of which the goddess could be depicted, the wedding of the gods in the anthropomorphic and zoomorphic appearance. Judging by the available materials, the goddess played the most important role in the marriage myths. Images similar to the prints applying are found on the copper plates of unknown destination. There were prismatic stone and clay items whose belonging to the category of seals is questioned, maybe they played the role of amulets. The prints could serve as ownership signs, but there are no doubt that they served and ritual goals were something like amulets, and images on them contain information about mythological ideas and rites. Research U.F. Fogt seals Mohenjo Daro did not give reason to judge social differentiation among the population.

It is on the study of the seals and associated products that work is based on the decrypting of proto-indian writing.

Writing and language

Study of the writing system and the language of the Haratpian texts have not yet been completed; A significant role in research was played by domestic researchers (a group under the direction of Yu.V. Knorozov). The findings to which they came are set out here on the basis of the work of M.F. Albedil "Proto Indian civilization. Essays of culture "(M., 1994). The complexity of the understanding of texts is that they are written by an unknown letter in an unknown language, while there are no bilinguals. It is known about 3000 texts, Lapidaric (most importantly 5-6 characters) and monotonous. The letter was hieroglyphic (about 400 characters), wrote to the right left. It is assumed that the texts were sacred.

It turned out that the early texts were applied to the stone plates, then - on the stone, less often metal seals. Do not exclude the existence of the coggling. In the interpretation of the signs, the pictograms of modern peoples of India were used, primarily Dravidoy-speaking.

Researchers believe that they have deciphered the general meaning of most inscriptions and revealed the formal structure of the grammatical system. Comparison with the structure of languages \u200b\u200bhypothetically existed in the Valley of Indus, led to the exception of all other than Dravidian. At the same time, scientists consider unacceptable mechanical extrapolation of phonetics, grammar and vocabulary of historically recorded languages \u200b\u200bto Proto Indian. The support is done on the study of the texts themselves, and the Devidian elements are used as a "correction coefficient". The translation is based on the meaning interpretation of the sign, which is determined by the method of positional statistics. They also applied to Sanskrit, as a result of which the correspondence of 60 astronomical and calendar items and structural correspondence in the name of the 60-year-old chronological cycle of Jupiter, known only in the Sanskrit variant.

It is assumed that the text block consisted of the name of the print holder in a respectful form, the explanation of the calendar-chronological nature and the instructions for the period of printing. There is an assumption that the prints of officials belonged to them temporarily, a certain period.

Judging by the decryptions of texts, the solar agricultural year began with autumnal equinox. A year was 12 months whose names reflected the phenomena of nature, "microsons" were distinguished. Astronomical year was based on four fixed points - solstice and equinons. Required new moon and full moon. The symbol of the winter solstice, the beginning of the year, as they suggest, was a tour. There were several time review subsystems - Moon (Hunting-Collective), solar (agricultural), state (civil) and priest. In addition, there were calendar cycles - 5-, 12-, 60-year-old; They had symbolic notation. These are the assumptions of domestic researchers of proto-indian texts.

The problem of exchange and trade

For a long time in science on antiquity, there was an idea of \u200b\u200ba greater or lesser closetness and self-sufficiency of ancient social entities, in particular Harapp. So, W. Fercervis wrote that the trade was playing a big role in the Sumer, somewhat smaller - in Egypt, and the Harapp civilization was in a state of isolation and trade relations were random, and not systematic. Later, in the 70s of the XX century, the attitude towards the role of exchanging and trade in antiquity changed dramatically, especially in foreign science. Reconstruction not only the farm, but also the social device of ancient innovative or no informative written texts of societies began to be carried out taking into account the role of the exchange, and not at the local level, but for distant distances. Now some researchers attach the role of trade in the addition and existence of a haratpian civilization is very important. In particular, a number of Indian scientists believe that merchants played a large role in the formation of cities and ideological ideas, and the reason for the decline of cities, they consider violation of trade with countries to the west of Harapp. Sending trade in the late period of the researchers (including KN Dixit) are associated with the weakening of the central authority, as a result of which trading paths became unsafe. The change in the political situation in Mesopotamia, the coming to power of Hammurapi caused the weakening of the cities of Southern Mesopotamia, trade routes began to reoriented to the West, in Anatoly and Mediterranean. Cyprus became the source of copper, and not, as before, Oman and neighboring territories.

Trade with Western countries

The existence of harapping civilization connections with close and remote neighbors cannot be in doubt primarily because the Indus valley, its rooted territory, like Mesopotamia, poor minerals in which people needed and who used. From the territory of the subcontinent, minerals and shells received, widely used in various industries. From more remote areas, copper was delivered (its deposits in Iran were operated, in particular in Kerman, and Afghanistan) and gold. Tin, how to judge the information available now has been received from Central Asia (one of the alleged sources is the Fergana Valley, the other is located in the south-west of Afghanistan), Lazurjects from Badakhshan (if not from Chagai Mountains), turquoise - from Iran. Already in Neolithic Mehrgarh, the ties with Iran are clearly traced, from where widely used minerals - crystalline gypsum ("Alebaster" of archaeological literature) and steatitis have been delivered. The appearance of Latehamappian settlements in the foothills of Himalayas may be due precisely with the need of civilization in mineral raw materials - in one of the settlements, traces of production of a variety of beads that are clearly intended for exchange were found.

Already at the end of IV thousand BC. The names of the southern countries - Dilmun, Magan, Melukha began to appear in Mesopotamian texts. Regarding their localization in science, a debate was conducted and continue. Probably throughout the III-II thousand BC. Under them understood different territories. However, it is clear that Dilmun and Magan were intermediate between Mesopotamia and Muhahha - the alleged Valley of Indy. Dilmun (Bahrain) has always played a mediation role, while real sources so appreciated copper, wood, minerals were not always known in the inhabitants of Mesopotamia, and their source could consider it from where they received them, Dilmun. Thanks to the recent years, it became clear that one of the important suppliers of copper in Mesopotamia was Oman. Standard copper ingots weighing about 6 kg are typical for finding such a kind of Syria to Lothat. It is noteworthy that the peak of information about this exchange accounts for the heyday of the harapp, near the beginning of the II thousand BC. Scharapp type seals are found in ure, umma, Nippure, Talla Asmara, on the islands of the Persian Gulf, Bahrain and File, on the coast of the Arabian Sea. In Oman, the inscription was found by Harapp's letter. The carriers of another culture, kully, were also associated with Western areas - the products typical for it were found in Abu Dhabi.

In Lagasha at the end of the III thousand BC. Harappa merchants lived with families. Assumptions about the existence of the Mesopotamian colonies in the territory of the charapp, although direct data on this score still not enough. Universal surprise causes an extremely small amount characteristic of the civilization of the Mesopotamia of things in the Harapp. This is usually associated with the fact that they could be made from short-lived materials; Among the probable imports mention tissue. Perhaps the lack of foreign things - a consequence of the solid commitment of "Harapptsev" with its traditions: researchers remember that in the houses of Indian merchants and in the XIX century. Rarely it was possible to meet foreign things.

The seaway was most likely used - known images of sailing ships, which were built from wood and cane. Swimming was coastal, sailors did not let down the shore. There is an opinion divided, however, not by all researchers that the port was a lothat in Gujarat, where a construction similar to the dock was discovered. The lotch has a seal characteristic of the Persian Gulf region.

Trade with northern countries

Exchange with close territories could be directly, with distant - indirect. At the same time, symptomatic detection of a real haratpian colony in Northern Afghanistan, not far from the confluence of Cockch and Amudarya. It is believed that Shortugai was a "trading point" on the way, tieding Harappu with the territory of Turkmenistan and other neighboring regions. One of the probable objects of the interests of "Harapptsev" - lazuli, and possibly tin. The inhabitants of Shortugai brought lentil and sesame from India, the local cultures, wheat, rye and alfalfa; They bred zebu and buffaloes from their relatives. On the settlements of the Anao culture of the South Turkmenistan, the seals of Harapp type, products from ivory, there are signs characteristic of harappian products, forms and decoration of ceramic vessels.

Land routes ran to the north through mountain passes, bypassing the Desert of the Cheap-Lut in the Dialy Valley, along the river valleys inside its territory, possibly along the coast - the Harapp settlements were found on the Macroan coast. It is unlikely that for distant wanders used wagons harvested by bulls whose models from clay and bronze were found in different settlements. But during the period of developed, the harapps began to use dugorbic camels, as suggested, domesticated in Central Asia, the data about which were obtained in South Turkmenistan, where the camel, according to existing assumptions, was tamed in IV thousand BC. The exchange operations used mainly cubic shapes of stone weights weighing 8, 16, 32, 64, 160, 200, 320, 640, 1600, 3200, 6400, 8000, also used conical, spherical, barrel-shaped weights. A rules with measuring divisions are also used.

The discussion remains about the place of foreign trade in the household life of "Harapptsev". Was it a significant or peripheral part of the economy? Did it imagine more or less regular exchange or was the planned trade? How did the internal exchange products implemented in it? Is trade administrators sent or professional agents?

As with the study of other spheres of the Harapp culture, the answer to these questions depends on the reconstruction of the social system as a whole, the understanding of which is far from clarity. Nevertheless, it is unlikely to be legitimate about the fact that trade and production of goods differ little from modern.

Public device

Researchers of large haratpian settlements from the moment when their structure became clear, expressed, on the basis of dividing these settlements into two or more parts, the assumption of the division of society to know the inhabitants of the "citadel" and the rest of the population. Some researchers interpret inscriptions on clay bracelets as titles. M. Wieler saw the analogy of the Public Organization of Harapp in the cities-states of Mesopotamia, and the idea of \u200b\u200bcities considered the cities brought from Sumer. Many researchers wrote about the Harapp "Empire" with centralized power and the operated rural population. The existence of several classes - oligarchy, warriors, merchants and artisans (K.N. Dixit), rulers, agricultural traders, workers (BB Lal), to which some were added and slaves. M.F. Albedil wrote about the possibility of existence in the Proto Indian society a highly centralized political structure. At the same time, she admitted a strong role of local centers, in which the central government was partly duplicated in the field. Some researchers rightly focus on the specifics of the Harapp society, in particular at the place of priesthood in public life, which was different than in Mesopotamia with its organized temple economies. Nevertheless, there are reasons to believe that at least at some stages, especially in the period of the developed harapp, could have an existence of a strong ruling tip, which consisted of priests. Based on the documents proposed in the domestic science, proto-indian writing documents can be assumed to function by temples and priesthood and even the presence of political leaders.

So, the data does not allow direct parallels between public Organization Mesopotamia or Elama and the one that was at the carriers of a haratpian civilization. Until now, despite the significant amount of excavations, signs of the existence of rulers and persons who concentrated in their hands significant material values, departed, in particular, in the burials, as it was in Mesopotamia or Egypt. Symptomatic, weak manifestation in the society of military function. Apparently, significant wealth was concentrated in the temples. Documents of economic content were not detected or detected.

At the same time, there are facts that indicate the existence of property inequality, to the presence of groups in the society, which occupied a different social situation and performed different functions. The accumulation of values \u200b\u200bsuggest, in particular, the treasures found in Harappe, Mohenjo Daro and other places. W. Fercervis, given the features of the Haratpian civilization, drew attention to a large number of short-term settlements and a significant role of breeding livestock, which could act as a symbol of wealth. Settlements in a certain area played a different role - among them were the advantage of agricultural and those in which handicraft production and exchange prevailed. These settlements were interrelated. He suggested that the form of the organization was not a city-state or a single state, and the Headquarters. According to his hypothesis, the Harapp of the Headquarters were based on related links and are similar to those who are known in Hawaii, in North-West America, Southeast Asia and West Africa.

The degree of development of cities, crafts and farms, the addition of its specialized forms, agriculture and cattle breeding assumed the need to regulate relations between representatives of different fields of activity. The circulation of "primitive values", traced, in particular, on the example of products from Lazurit, has led other researchers to assume the addition of leading type formations already at an early stage of harapps. In the future, the emergence of a state in which the power has not been associated with a genealogical rank, and production relations are separated from relationships based on kinship. Application Development Concept (Chiefdom) for Reconstruction public building The East's Duct Societies caused objections. Alternatively, she proposed another model based on the study of the Akefal Societies of Eastern Himalayas (in domestic science, its development belongs to Yu.E. Berezkin). Type of farming - irrigated agriculture and cattle breeding. Signs of such societies, some of which can be caught on archaeological material, are expressed in the appearance of settlements. These are closely built-up villages without monumental architecture with many small shrines, the existence of differences in the property position, which is overcome thanks to the Special Institute for the Redistribution of the type of verdile, specialized craft, trade exchange, receiving exotic prestigious things by trading on distant distances. These are not chickens, but not a group of closed village communities. Community and generic institutions were weak, and the personality due to the individual property to the means of production was independent. Social life is regulated in the course of mass ceremonies and festivities, during which complex systems of relations covering the entire habitat of the ethnos. In the villages there were advice of respected men. It is impossible to exclude that the Society of Carriers of the Harapp of Civilization without a layer of elite and with public structures that required relatively small labor costs, it could rather be like described, but larger. It should be noted that before and, which is especially noteworthy, now, with the emergence of new data, opinions are expressed about the existence of the state.

Religious and mythological performances and rites

About myths, beliefs, rites, as in general about the spiritual life of "Harapptsev", is difficult to judge primarily due to the low informativeness of written monuments, even if recognizing the accuracy of their interpretation. Sources are primarily an image on seals and other things, samples of clay, stone, metal sculpture, traces of rites departure. Temples are some of the main evidence of the worship of the gods - they did not exist or are not determined. One of the grounds for reconstructions is a comparison of known data with ideas and rites of the alleged historical successors of the carriers of the Harapp of civilization or, as inclined to think many researchers related to them in the language of the Dravian-speaking peoples of India.

Pictures depicted on seals and metal signs: Humpback Indian bull, bull-gouur, buffalo, animal similar to a bull, but depicted with one horn ("Unicorn"), tiger, rhino, crocodile, elephant, rarely - rabbit, birds, fantastic Multidogo animals, on the assumption of domestic researchers, served as symbols, some of them are the parties to the light and / or seasons. Also depicted trees - Pipal, Ashwatthu. The tree is sometimes portrayed by rising from the ring-shaped fence - it probably served as an object of worship, embodying the idea of \u200b\u200bthe "global tree" (the fences of such a form were detected during excavations). In the late Time, the revered trees were decorated, in particular, in order to have children. Sacrificial rituals played an important role.

Printing with the image of a horned character, possibly yoga, or proto-shiva, or Pashuvati (animal lord).

The images of the anthropomorphic beings of female and male, found, in particular, in the scenes of worship them. On one press depicts a horned male character, the posture of which, according to J. Marshall, reminds the one in which Shiva depicted. E. Dr. Dr. Caspersion pointed out images of a horned and tailed character with a bow, testifying, in her opinion, on the existence of hunting rites. Women's creatures, the images of which are also known in shallow plastic, are usually associated with the images of "goddesses mothers." Apparently, there were many such mythological creatures, they, at least partly, were associated with fertility cults, ideas about life and death. Among the gods suggest the predecessors of Scanda, the Gods-Creators, spirits - the predecessors of Yaksha, Gandharvov, Apsear. There were sacred marriage rites, perhaps seasonally.

Research Yu.V. Knorozova, M.F. Albedel and other domestic scientists make it possible to assume the readings of heavenly shtamil, based on deep knowledge in the field of astronomy and observations of nature phenomena. Famous sculptures of men and women were most likely priests and performers of ritual dances. There is information that rites were carried out in open courtyards; In Kalibangan, something like the fire altars near the platform was found to "Citadel". Podiums are found with signs of sacrifices of major cattle. The existence of shaman type rites and relevant ideas is very likely. With the ancient ideas inherent in hunters, images of bull hunters may be related; Curious the image of people jumping through the buffalo (W. Fercervis suggested the possibility of Cretan influence on it made in an unusual linear style image, which requires new confirmations). The cult objects were conical and cylindrical stones - something like lingamov and ring-shaped items - possible predecessors of Yoni.

Many researchers have no doubt about the deep impact of the religious practice and ideas of carriers of Harappa culture on the later, brought by arias. These, in particular, include the practice of yoga.

In general, the interpretation of evidence of the Harapp of religion, as well as a public system, depends on the position of the researcher:

• if you assume that society was organized hierarchically, and civilization represented a holistic education, we can talk about pantheon, priests with a hierarchy, etc.;
• if we believe that the organization of the Company was archaic, then we will have to talk about the diversity of ideas and religious life, even if you have a certain generality.

The disappearance of the haratpian civilization

The reasons for which harappian civilization could disappear, in tradition two -

• the change climatic conditions, and, as a result, changing the bed of Inde
• the arrival of other ethnic groups in the Valley of Indus, A particular Ariev.

In more detail, what could happen, you can read in.

Be that as it may, but the role of harappian civilization in the history of India is still truly difficult to determine, although after many researchers it can be regarded as extremely important. Among the preserved heritage, the forms of traditional lifestyle, social structure, a significant array of religious representations and rites are distinguished. It is assumed that the quadbarrow division and the caste system was formed under the influence of non-uniced ethnocultural substrates.

Archaeological excavations conducted by numerous expeditions from different countriesmade it possible to establish that the first centers of the culture of India existed already in the III milk. BC. On average and lower course, Indea is the cities of Harapp and Mohenjo Daro. Highly developed urban culture This period rose based on local traditions, its city centers supported close contacts with Mesopotamia, Central and Central Asia, regions of the south of India. Harappa civilization was one of the largest in the ancient East. Her Area extended about 1600 km from the west to the east and 1250 km from the north to south. High development in it reached the crafts, art, writing appeared, not yet deciphered.

The main centers of this civilization of Harapp and Mohenjo Daro were major cities with a population of about 100 thousand people. These city differed in a strict layout: rectangular quarters with dimensions of 200 x 400 m were divided by the main highways, the width of which reached 10 m. The cities also distinguished the lower city, where residential buildings were located, and the upper city - a citadel built on an artificial elevation separated by the wall from The rest of the city. Here, obviously, were administrative buildings. It also the population of the city was escaped from flooding, quite frequent in Indus Valley.

The most vivid feature of this culture is its extraordinary conservatism. For a thousand years of existence of India civilization in Egypt, more than a dozen large dynasties changed. Sumer was conquered by Akkad, and all Mesopotamian cities over this period have undergone many significant changes in their device. However, none of the cities of the Indus valley until the very end of their existence were not subject to any changes. Nine layers of buildings were excavated in Mohenjo Daro. As the level of land rose due to periodic floods, new homes were erected almost exactly on the place of the previous ones. For at least the millennium, the location of the central streets of the city remained unchanged. Only by the end of the existence of cities appear signs of decline and launch. Not subject to change and remain almost alone and the same ceramic products, types of guns and prints. Complete stability is also observed in the alphabet, which is very different from later Indian and Chinese.

Unlike other ancient cultures in the cities of Harapp, civilization did not discovered grandiose monuments or any other structures. In the cities of the Indus valley, only artistic craft items were discovered - bronze products, jewelry items, patterned ceramics, engraving on seals and small plastic.

Of all the works of artistic crafts, special attention deserve small statuettes and reliefs on seals.Skillfully carved printing from steatitis with an image of elephants, bulls, mountain goats, the location of the figures and signatures around the images, as well as the subtlety of the plastic surface treatment indicate their close similarity with the works of the artistic crafts of Mesopotamian culture. However, in these early Indian artwork You can see the features brought together with the subsequent, already actually Indian culture. So, on one of the seals, a three-way horned creature is depicted, clearly resembling the future image of the Divine of Shiva - the lord of the destructive forces of the universe.

But not only the reliefs and patterns of the seals, and the small stone and bronze figures show that already in that distant period the sculptors mastered the skill of the plastic image of the human body and the transfer of movement. Bright samples of this plastic are a priest bust (18 cm) from Mohenjo-Daro and a torso of a dancing man (10 cm) from harappa. It can be seen that the image of a person was already an important, mastered area of \u200b\u200bancient Indian artistic culture.

One of the most complex mysteries Harapppian civilization still remains language and writing. It can be assumed that, having writing, the Harapp culture managed to create some literary works, religious and epic poems, like Sumerian and Babylonian. But there is nothing known about this kind of artistic culture monuments, as the language and writing remain unfinished. From the inscriptions in seals, ceramics and metal products, scientists were able to allocate more than 400 different characters, but the question of what the origins of this writing and in what language the population of the Harapp culture remained open.

Around the middle of the II thousand to n. e. The culture of Harappa civilization has declined. The reason for its sunset also remains mysterious and causes different assumptions. Perhaps the fall in this civilization occurred due to the invasion of nomadic tribes that stood at a lower stage of social development. At the very last time, anthropologists, applying a new methodology for analyzing bone remains, came to the conclusion that the possible cause of the death of residents of the Old Indian cities was the Malaria epidemic.

"Harappa civilization is one of the greatest mysteries of world history. True, it was discovered only in the 20th century. At first, the researchers perceived it as something alien to the rest of the history of India. Only studies of the last decades have shown that Harappa civilization is a natural stage in the development of cultures of Northern India and Pakistan. "

So far, this civilization can provide surprises. Not all of her settlements excavated completely. Linguists failed to decipher the language on which residents said Harappa and Mohenjo-Doro.. Knowledge of religion and political power in the Indus valley also remain at the level of guessing. Was it a single state, several states or many independent cities?

Start of haratpian civilization

The first traces of the ancient civilization of Industan were discovered by the British in the first half of the XIX century. For the first time, small excavations in Harappe They were held in 1875 by the English archaeologist L. Kanningham. He found a round seal, one of the characters of the Harapp of civilization, and drew attention to the antiquity of this city. But regular work on this place began only after half a century.

In 1921, the Indian archaeologist D. R. Sakhney began to keep systematic excavations in Haratpe. A year later, another Indian, R. D. Baerjja opened Mohenjo Daro. After that, in the Indus Valley, systematic archaeological studies began, which were conducted by scientists and archaeologists from England and other European countries.

There is still no clear answer to the question of origin. Harapp city civilization. The studies of the mid-20th century believed that civilization on Indeed was founded by messengers from Mesopotamia. Their opponents defended the opposite opinion - the Harapp city civilization gave rise to Sumerian. Other scientists associated the appearance of harapps and other cities with Indo-European migrations.

Studies of 1970-1980s have shown that the Harapp City was a natural stage in the development of agricultural crops of this region. In Cinda, Beloohistan and Indus Valley already in VII and VI millennia BC There were neolithic agricultural culture. In the V Millennium, the population of these lands mastered copper and painted ceramics. Media of this culture was built rectangular houses with rooms.

By the end of the volume of the Millennium BC. The ancestors of the builders of Harappa mastered the pottery circle. After a thousand years, the inhabitants of Beloohistan established regular contacts with the Iranian plateau and the south of Central Asia.

In the south of Beluzhistan and Sinda the greatest development was achieved by Cully and Amry-Nal culture. The carriers of these crops were looking for new land for the settlement and mastered the valley Indus. They distributed all the best that there were Synda and Beloohistan farming cultures: metal processing, settlement layout.

Period 3200-2600 BC. Call early harappe. During this period, the first urban settlements were made, the carriers of this culture domesticated grain crops. At the end of the period, the early harapps of the settlement began to turn into major cities. According to researchers, the rural population moved to new urban centers.

The period of mature harapps

The heyday of the civilization of Indian cities takes about 700 years - the XXVI-XIX centuries. BC. Harappa civilization occupied the territory of the Valleys of the Indus and Sarasvati rivers, reached Gujarat in the south, Mecran - in the West and the Northeast Preignations of the North-East. The internal areas of Belukhistan experienced the influence of the Harapp culture, but did not become part of it.

In the period of mature harapps there is a flourishing of the cities of this civilization. The largest of them are Harapp and Mohenjo Daro. All cities have common features and differences. For all of them, the same structure, similar artifacts and architecture of buildings.

Great bath B. Mohenjo-Doro. It was unique, but in many cities there were pools with water. Probably, the ablution played an important role in the life of the ancient Indians. Some cities find fire alignments and places for animal sacrifices. Sometimes they were located in public places, sometimes in houses, where they probably served as family sanctors. It is assumed that the Harapp Civilization consisted of communities with the general ideology that had different traditions and probably ethnic origin.

Most people of Harappa civilization were farmers and cattle. They had the opportunity to acquire craft products that did the townspeople. The farmers lived in the villages and grown barley, wheat, beans. Cattlers founded temporary settlements in places where they were driven by their animals.

Indians traveled between cities in violent sledding. The goods were transported on the backs of the binding animals or water. Some minerals were mined in the territories belonging to the Harapp city. Others came from residents of neighboring regions. Copper and Tin Ruda supplied Jodpura-Ganeshvar's Culture Culture Hills, honey and elephant bone - hunters-assemblies from the land south of Inde and Sarasvati.

Cities

For the cities of this people, the division of the settlement to the lower city and the fortified citadel is characterized. The cities operated an effective drainage system. Often, cities surrounded industrial areas. The largest centers like Harapp and Mohenjo Daro specialized in the production of various craft products. Small cities focused on something one. For example, residents of the city of Nedezhevar in Gujarat created craft products from sea shells and caught fish in the scaling.

Two riddles are connected with the cities of the Indus Valley. Although they have a division into the lower city and the citadel, the cities cannot find monumental temples and palaces that are characteristic of the monarchies of the Ancient East. There are no monumental tombs or inscriptions in which the rulers would glorify their acts. This causes the question: What was the political organization of Indus cities?

The second riddle is the absence (judging by the archeology) of any military conflicts between the cities of the Harapp, civilization or neighboring cultures. Although cities surrounded high and durable walls, there are no traces of their Opad. It seems that the fortifications were erected against floods and to manage the flows of people and goods included in the city.

Most of the settlements existed in the territory of the modern desert Cholyan in the lower part of the valley Sarasvati.. The settlements of the region were of different sizes - from 2 to 100 hectares. There are neighboring villages and small towns. In Saraswati Valley there was one really major city center - Ganberivala. He occupied the territory of 80 hectares and approached Mohenjo Daro in size.

Earth east of Ganberivals at the sources of Sarasvati were also tightly populated. The cities of this region occupied the territory of about 10-30 hectares. In the fusion of the rivers of Sarasvati and Drishadvati, a major city was built Caliban.

The southernmost region, which was reached by the Harapp of the settlers was Gujarat. In the inner areas of this province, they find numerous rural settlements of immigrants from the Indus Valley. Coastal Harapp city specialized in maritime trade. The largest city of Dholavira occupied the territory of 60 hectares. The most important port city was a lothat in which trading flourished, and which attracted maritresses by the presence of protected bay, as well as the presence of rice and cotton fit. Here, in addition to ceramic and copper products, archaeologists have found beads and objects of semi-precious stones. In Punjab, on the contrary, there were few cities. Presumably, the absence of cities is associated with a great value for this cattle breeding region. The only major city of Punjab was Harapp herself. To the northeast of the foothills of Himalayas, several more cities were founded. The largest city in the province of Sind was Mohenjo Daro.

For most cities are characterized by comfortable houses of brick, sewage system, straight streets. Cities surrounded by the walls, outside the suburbs for the settlement. There were also regional features. The stone during the construction of cities was used mainly in Gujarat. Mohenjo-Daro is wider than in other cities, a burned brick was used during construction.

Trade

Trading routes between Iran and India ran through the territories of modern Seistan and Afghanistan. In the III millennium BC. acted a trading network created Elam. In the cities of the Indus Valley, bowls of chlorite are found. Such bowls were done in the Eamsk city of Tepe-Yahma, and they are found in Mesopotamia, at the Iranian plateau, on the Persian Gulf Coast and in Indea cities.

By the end of the III millennium, the structure of foreign trade changed. Before states Mesopotamia were the main buyer of raw materials, which went from the Iranian plateau and further - from the Valley of Inde. Now Mesopotamia switched to trade in the Persian Gulf. At the same time, the contacts between the Harappi cities and Seistan were fed. The trading path between Northern India and Mezhdrachy fell into decay. The small number of Indian things belonging to this period are found in the territory of the Iranian plateau: in the sowes, tepes-yachma and other cities.

From the middle of the 3th millennium BC. Mesopotamia and city of Valley Inde continued contacts. But now trading went on the sea. This allowed both parties not to depend on intermediaries. Cities of Harappa civilization got access to the resources and markets of the Persian Gulf coast.

At this time, on the coast of the Arabian Sea in the region of Mekran, new settlements of Harapptsev appeared, which reflects the development of trade with overseas lands. The cities of immigrants from the Indus valley in Mecran had strong fortifications, because they were located in someone else's territory. The settlements were erected on the coast in the mouths of seasonal rivers, which provided access to the internal areas of the country.

Indian settlement Sutkagan-Dor. - The most western city of Harappa civilization. Sochagan-Dora Square - four and a half hectares. The city had a common structure for Indian settlements - the Citadel and the Lower City. At Sutkagan-Dora were strong stone walls with a thickness of 8 meters equipped with towers. Not all the Harapp city of Mecran were trading ports. The settlement of sitmia seems to be just a fishing village whose residents did not participate in international trade. The city of Allahdino on the Malir River was not a port, but served as the center of the redistribution of goods.

By the XXIV century BC. Charappets began to swim directly in the interfluve. Evidence that Suchmers and Acquadges were swimming east further than Magana. Three countries are mentioned in the texts of Mesopotamian cities with which trade was carried out: Dilmun, Magan and Melukha. It is assumed that under the name "Melukha", the indie civilization was known under the name of "Melukha". In the texts of the interfold, they wrote that a tree, carnelian and elephant bone were brought from this country.

The ruler of Lagas Gudea ordered to build a large temple in the famous city of Girsu. The material for him served as a carnelian from Mural. The immigrants from the Indus valley lived in Mezhdrachye, as permanent sales representatives.

The main product that Indians supplied the neighbors was copper and copper products. On the territory of modern Afghanistan, Indians founded the city of Lyapis-Lazuri, the city of Shortugai, from where caravans with Lazurit went to the West.

Religion, burial

The dead was put in an oval or rectangular pit. Her bottom was made of clay bricks or the body of a person put in a wooden coffin. The dead lay on his back head north. Sometimes the body wrapped in a savan of fabric or cane. The deceased left the decorations that he wore during his lifetime. Sometimes there should be copper mirrors next to women. Perhaps they were perceived as objects with which it was possible to look into another world. Sometimes an earthen or stone embankment was built over the graves.

In Harappe and the lotchale, the graves have been impossible. Later burials often occupied the previous ones. Inventory of old graves broke, and the bones were thrown away.

There were several graves in the lotchale where two people were buried. They suggested that the remains belonged to the widows who decided to follow their husbands. But at least in one grave both skeleton men's.

It is assumed that the inhabitants of the Indian cities could use other burial methods, for example, cremation. In the Cemetery in Calibangan, they found plots of charred land, and in Harappe, urns were found with ceramic products, ashes and bones.

It is assumed that already in the Harapp era, its inhabitants had different religious views. Residents of cities ancient civilization They could have different ethnic origin, and they were contacted with various neighboring cultures that influenced their religion.

Judging by the abundance of water bodies in the cities of the Indus valley, the most ambitious of which "Big Bath" in Mohenjo-Doro.Water has played a key role in the religious practices of the ancient Indians. It is assumed that religious rituals were accompanied by ablutions. Based on the iconography, researchers conclude that residents of the ancient cities perceived heaven as the water in which the sun, the moon and stars swim.

Images on the seals were to be associated with the religious beliefs of the Indians. Here you see images of male and female deities in the form of plants and animals. Unicorns shown in some seals did not belong to the earthly world, but they could be part of the world of gods from the beliefs of the inhabitants of Indian cities. Supposedly, there were local cults that reflected the past of different groups included in the Harapp Civilization. In Indus's valley, many terracotta women's figurines have been discovered, in which the image of the goddess-mother is now seen. They resemble the figurines that previously made residents of Indo-Iranian border. In Gujarat and the Valley of the Sarasvati River, residents sacrificed animals through the burning.

Decline of haratpian civilization

After seven centuries of prosperity of the city of Indus, about 1900 BC. Began to come into decay. At the beginning of the II millennium BC. Harappa civilization ceased to exist as a whole. After her decline, the Indian River has ceased to be the center of the civilization of India, lifting this role of Hugu.

The townspeople stopped watching drainage systems, the houses began to be built worse, public institutions stopped working. Some cities were abandoned. Residents of the cities moved from the former centers of the Indus valley to the outskirts of civilization, in particular, to Gujarat. The reason for the decline of the Indy Valley is seen in epidemics, in particular - malaria. Another reason for the decline of cities is the drying of the Saraswati River. This led to the leave of cities and the relocation of their inhabitants on the east.

Marine trade also declined. As one of the reasons, problems in Mesopotamia are considered. At the beginning of the II millennium BC. Some cities of southern Meternrachia were left due to soil salinization, and the attention of the authorities appealed to Northern Babylonia. This led to a reduction in marine trade in the Persian Gulf.

In the period of late harappa, the development of agriculture continued. In the previous era, the Indians were grown barley, wheat and legumes, which was characteristic of many lands from Western Europe to the Iranian plateau. At the turn of the III and II millennium BC. Indian farmers began to grow rice and millet, which were better approached for this region.

In the north of the Harapp civilization in 1900-1300. BC. There was "Culture of the Cemetery H", named so on the cemetery in Harappe. For its carriers, the cremation of the deceased is characteristic. In the zone of this culture of the burial in wooden coffins, coexist with urns for cremated remains.

In the eastern part of the Harapp Culture Area during this period, it is distributed to the south of Mezhda Ganges and Jamna. Some of the cities of this interfold existed since the times of mature harapps (Mitathal), others were founded by migrants like a bar. The resettlement was associated with the drying of Sarasvati and the cultivation of rice, for which the lamps of the Mezhda Ganges and Jamna were more suitable. By 1300 BC. The old cities of the Harapp Civilization were abandoned.

Harappa - the city that gave the name of civilization

The first settlement on the site of the charappes appeared in the IV millennium BC. In the period of early harapps, the settlement developed into a major city, which occupied the territory of 25 hectares. Already in this era, he was the center of many crafts. At the same time, the city acquired a structure characteristic of the settlements of the civilization of the Indus valley - the Nizhny city and the Citadel. The buildings of the Citadel Harappa were looted by builders during work on laying in these places railway In the XIX century.

During the heyday of the Indian civilization, Harapp occupied the territory of about 150 hectares, and its population is assessed at 23 thousand people.

The city was focused from north to south. Like Mohenjo-Daro, which has been studied significantly better, Harapp had straight wide streets. From public restrooms along the streets ran the estones that were associated with larger.

Houses in Harappe were single and two-story. The windows went on the side streets. The average wall thickness was 70 centimeters, the height of the ceiling is 3 meters. The windows had shutters and lattices built into the building itself.

The main material for the construction of houses was the burned brick. Doors and window frames were made of wood. During construction, clay and gypsum plaster were also used.

In the first half of the II millennium BC. In Harappe, traces of decline are noticeable, although they are not also pronounced, as in Mohenjo Daro. Harapp gatherings are no longer kept properly. During construction used brick of destroyed buildings. The animal corpses were left to lie on the streets, and deceased people were in abandoned houses instead of decent burial. Nevertheless, the city continued to live and existed for about 1300 BC.

By this period there is a new way of burial - cremation and collecting bones of the dead in the urns. The analysis of the bones of cremated showed that these people differed from the previous residents of the harapps. Ceramics of this period retains traditional features and acquires new ones. Ceramics depict stars, dotted circles, people with long hair. Similar style was characteristic of the settlements of Northern Afghanistan.