Social Studies Notes (Wednesday October 11) - Indus Valley Civilization

- Cities in the Indus Valley:

• Huge Earth mounds dot the Indus Valley
• People found burnt bricks and tiny stone seals covered with a mysterious writing near them
• This caused further exploration of the mounds
• Archaeologists uncovered the ruins of the Ancient civilization

- Early Inhabitants:

• Civilization along the Indus river began with agriculture
• Earliest farmers raised wheat and barley
• By 3000 B.C, they were the first people in Asia to grow cotton and turn it into fabric
• They learned how to make copper and bronze tools, which were more effective than stone tools
• People in villages traded with one another
• Over time, the Indus valley people began to trade with people farther away
• The wealth they gained from trade helped them develop a more complex culture

- Great Cities:

• By 2500 B.C some villages had grown to be great cities
• The Indus and Saraswati valleys had hundreds of cities
• At least 35,000 people may have lived in:
• Mohenjo-Daro
• Harappa
• These were the largest cities
• This civilization featured planned cities
• These were cities that were built according to a design
• Architects surrounded these cities with heavy brick protected walls 
• City streets crossed each other in a neat grid with square corners
• The streets had homes, shops and factories
• The city had large public buildings, likely used for Religious or government functions

- Dealing with Problems:

• People in large cities always have to deal with the problem of removing human waste
• Harappan cities were very advanced in that area: almost every house contained a bathroom and a toilet
• Underground sewers carried away the waste
• People need to use much planning and organization to build such complex cities
• Because of that, historians believe that ancient Harappans must have had powerful leaders 
• We do not know if priests or kings or a combination of both ruled the Harappans, but their government must have been strong