excavations at harappa: new instrumentations and their potential

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Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential for Archaeology Special thanks to Dr. Mayank Vahia and his staff for organizing this conference. Also thanks to the ICTS and TIFR for their support for improving the scientific study of the past in India and globally. George F. Dales Thanks to the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Govt. of Pakistan for inviting us to work at Harappa and for all the assistance over the years. And to the Archaeological Survey of India for providing access to records and photos of the earlier excavations. And all members of the HARP team starting from 1986, who have assisted in the survey, excavation, documentation and analysis of the materials from the cemetery. Grants from the Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Society, National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, the University of Wisconsin, Harvard University-Peabody Museum, New York University and contributions from HARAPPA.COM, Global Heritage Fund and private individuals.

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Page 1: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and

their Potential for Archaeology

Special thanks to Dr. Mayank Vahia and his staff for organizing this conference. Also thanks to the ICTS and TIFR for their support for improving the scientific study of the past in India and globally.

George F. Dales

Thanks to the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Govt. of Pakistan for inviting us to work at Harappa and for all the assistance over the years. And to the Archaeological Survey of India for providing access to records and photos of the earlier excavations. And all members of the HARP team starting from 1986, who have assisted in the survey, excavation, documentation and analysis of the materials from the cemetery. Grants from the Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Society, National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, the University of Wisconsin, Harvard University-Peabody Museum, New York University and contributions from HARAPPA.COM, Global Heritage Fund and private individuals.

Page 2: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

The Indus Civilization is contemporaneous with other early state level societies – but it has some unique and challenging issues

Using both traditional and new scientific analyses - major advances have been made in our understanding of the origins of the Indus and its relationships with surrounding regions.

Page 3: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Cultural Traditions Framework Prehistoric Cultural Traditions Bactro-Margiana, Helmand, Baluchistan, INDUS, Malwa, Ganga-Vindhya, Deccan, etc.

Indo-Gangetic Tradition Includes the Pre-Mauryan Early Historic Tradition, Mauryan Empire and its related regions,

Page 4: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Major Issues & solutions for Contemporary Archaeology

Challenges/Questions

Theoretical Framework Methodology

Instrumentation

India

Chronology

Culture History Processual Approaches

Survey, Excavation, Sampling, Dating, Texts, Numismatics

C 14 (AMS) Tree Ring Dating

Yes No

Thermo-luminescence (TL) Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL)

Yes No

What other approaches can we develop?

Page 5: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Harappa dates pertain primarily to the internal chronology of the site and the Punjab region. Comparative artifact analysis along with dates must be undertaken in each region to establish a regionally defined Indus chronology.

Radiocarbon dates From Harappa Hakra/Ravi Phase - 12 Kot Diji Phase - 27 Harappa Phase - 74 Late Harappa Phase - 8 Historical - 3 Total - 124

Page 6: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

General Chronology : Indus Tradition Localization Era 1900 to 1300 B.C. Harappa Period 5 (Late Harappan/Cemetery H)

1800-<1700 B.C. Harappa Period 4 (Late Harappan) 1900-1800 B.C. Integration Era 2600 to 1900 B.C. Harappa Period 3C 2200-1900 B.C. Harappa Period 3B 2450-2200 B.C. Harappa Period 3A 2600-2450 B.C. Regionalization Era circa 5000 to 2600 B.C. Harappa Period 2 (Kot Dijian) 35/3300-2600 B.C. Harappa Period 1A/B (Hakra/Ravi) 4000-3500 B.C. Early Food Producing Era circa + 7000 to 5000 B.C.

Page 7: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mound E, northwest corner 1988-1990, earliest levels represent the Ravi period occupation

Page 8: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential
Page 9: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Harappa panorama during Period 3C, 2200-1900 BC, maximum extent and highest density of occupation

Harappan Cemetery R 37 and Area G

Page 10: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Male burial with beads

OSL dating of sediments in burials

Dating of bone that has minimal organic preservation

Page 11: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

The burial of individual 148A involved the destruction of the burial of individual 156a whose decayed coffin was partly removed and the bones were dumped in a pile in the middle of the pit, the burial pottery was also damaged in re-excavating the grave pit - beginning of Period 3C based on PBGs & dates

Page 12: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Period 3B Period 3C

Period 3C

Period 3B

Page 13: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Harappa Period 4/5 Kiln, Trench 43

Tree ring dating needed for developing regional calibrations of C 14 dates

Page 14: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Localization Era: Late Harappan – highly variable in each region – need more accurate dating Punjab Phase = Cemetery H Culture 1900-1300 BC (or 1000 in Ganga region)

Page 15: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Survey

Site, Regional, Geographical Ecological, Question Driven

Physical Direct and Indirect, micro, macro, supra regional

Pedestrian, Theodolite/Total Station, etc

Yes

Aerial – high and low altitude

Not Accessible

Satellite - Landsat, Google Earth, etc

Not Accessible

Remote Sensing – Geomagnetic, Electric Resistivity and Conductivity, GPR, etc

Not Common

Laser mapping - Lidar, etc

Not Common

Challenges/Questions

Theoretical Framework Methodology Instrumentation India

Page 16: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mound E SW Surface Survey Dec. 2006 locations mapped on master site map

Mound E SW

Pyramidal faience token

Page 17: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Surface Finds turned in by workmen – no provenience but general site area known

Page 18: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Rajanpur, was first reported by Muhammad Hasan - current curator of Harappa museum during the Punjab Survey

Rajanpur 77 km northeast of Harappa on the west bank of the Ravi

Page 19: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Rajanpur Survey and Mapping using tape measures and theodolite – highly accurate and can be combined with surface survey and collection

Basic survey methods and manual contour mapping require individuals to be aware of what they are measuring more intimately

Page 20: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Rajanpur Contour map - 110 x 130 meters - 3 meters deposit on the south - 4.5 meters above the plain - around 1.5 hectares - but more mounded areas may lie under the modern village to the north – this could not be determined without excavation

Page 21: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Randall Law – Archaeological and Geoarchaeological Gazetteer.

Page 22: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Excavation Culture Historical

Physical direct, sampling, large scale

trained excavation staff Yes

Question Driven

trained documentation staff Yes trained conservation staff Yes

Challenges/Questions

Theoretical Framework Methodology Instrumentation India

Page 23: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Trench 54 Excavation areas - 2001 section and excavations in 2007

Page 24: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Trench 54: Harappan Fired Brick Wall -Period 3B -3C

Page 25: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Student Training - Punjab University, Khairpur University, Hazara University, University of Wisconsin

Page 26: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mound E Northwest Corner and western extent of walls Period 2 and 3

Page 27: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mound E city wall and sample trenches used to trace the structure

Page 28: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mound E Western and Southern City Wall

Page 29: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

HARAPPA 2000/2001 WorkshopsE

ARTIFACT TYPE 54Percent

INLAY-STEATITE (94) 2 0.04BEAD FINISHED-STEATITE 879 15.75Steatite Bead Manufacturing Waste 295 5.28Agate/Other Beads 171 3.06Agate Manufacturing waste 424 7.60Stone Inlay Manufacturing waste 3 0.05Gold Bead/Frags 47 0.84Finished Amulet 40 0.72Unfinished Amulet 6 0.11Steatite Seal/Tablet 21 0.38Inscribed Objects 66 1.18Unifinished steatite seal 0 0.00

0.00CHERT/STONE WEIGHT 14 0.25CHERT UNFINISHED WEIGHT 4 0.07STONE SCULPTURE (98) 0 0.00

0.00DRILL/PERCOIR 211 3.78CONST. CYLINDRICAL DRILL (93) 0 0.00ERNESTITE DRILL MFG. WASTE (94) 1 0.02

0.00Retouched tools 1266 22.68ED Chert 473 8.47Chert debitage 916 16.41CORE 15 0.27

0.00HAMMERSTONE 207 3.71

0.00MISC MINERAL 12 0.21Stone Objects 78 1.40Stone Manufacturing waste 139 2.49Ground stone tools 292 5.23

5582 100.00

Excavations result in artifacts that need to be correlated with structures and periods

Page 30: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

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Challenges/Questions

Theoretical Framework Methodology Instrumentation India

Page 31: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Harappan phase- 2600-1900 BC - riverine trade and local agro-pastoralism supported the rise of prosperous cities - surrounded by mud brick walls, with baked brick facing and fired brick gateways

Harappa

Page 32: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Dried up Ravi river and modern Harappa built on top of ancient mounds

Page 33: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mohenjo Daro possible location of river during the Harappan period - 2600-1900 BC

Present bed of the Indus river

Page 34: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Kutch Trade routes for shell and agate nodules and finished goods Dholavira

Page 35: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

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Challenges/Questions

Theoretical Framework Methodology Instrumentation India

Page 36: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mohenjodaro

Melongenidae bucephala

Lambis Truncta Sebae Cowries and Conus

Pinctada, mother of pearl Turbinella pyrum

Page 37: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Multiple levels of exchange Extra- regional – between cities and distant resource areas Long distance – international – between distant culture regions such as Central Asia, the Gulf region, Mesopotamia

Page 38: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Mehrgarh – crossroads of trade between the Baluchistan and the Indus valley plains!

Mehrgarh burialsShell bangles, steatite beads, stone bead anklets T. pyrum

Engina mendicaria

Conus Sp.

Spondylus Sp.

Page 39: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Indus Valley Sites Indus Valley Sites

Makran Shell Trade

Indus Shell Trade

Lapis Trade

Turquoise Trade

Page 40: Excavations at Harappa: New Instrumentations and their Potential

Generalized trade networks based on visual characterization of marine shell and minerals

Ravi Phase Rock and Mineral Networks supplying Harappa. Research and map by Randall Law 2008 – using multiple methods of scientific analysis