A Historical Review of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappan Civilization in Pakistan

Abstract

The ancient Indus civilization, also known as Harappan civilization is famous for the ruins of two ancient cities, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa, which remained unknown for thousands of years due to little written record in human history. It was not in the 1820s, when archaeologists excavated a large number of stone tools, bronzes, seals and agricultural remains in the two cities, that the world began to learn about the secret of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappan civilization. The total number of Harappan civilization sites may be as many as 2,000, but most of them are still buried underground, awaiting further excavation. Nearly 200 sites have been excavated or are being excavated, ranging from ancient couple tombs to ancient city ruins. Mohenjo-Daro, which means "hill of death" in the local language, is  an ancient city of the civilization of the Indus valley located on the right bank of the Indus River, northern Sindh province, southern Pakistan. It was built around 2500 BC and was abandoned in 1900 BC. In the sites of both cities, archaeologists discovered the advanced scientific and technological achievements of the ancient Indus civilization, but they were puzzled by the loss of the civilization. This paper starts with the introduction of the ancient Indus civilization before moves to the discovery process of Harappa and Mohendaro. Literature review on the studies on Harappa and Mohenjodaro is presented with a brief analysis in the end. After giving an outline of the civilization, the paper tries to solve the mystery of the loss of civilization, but so far no agreed understanding of the cause has been reached. By reviewing the civilizations of Harappa and Mohenjo Daro, the paper presents to readers the ancient civilizations of Pakistan and enhance their understanding of human science, technology and culture in ancient times.