Harappan Architecture.pptx

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1. Dr. Virag Sontakke Assistant Professor A.I.H.C. & Archaeology Banaras Hindu University Harappan Architecture

2. Features of Architecture Impressive urban planning Grid-lay out Well organized cities Well planned houses Highly effective drainage system Well set roads and lanes Residential and commercial area

3. Location

4. Introduction of IVC Known As : Indus valley civilization, Harappan civilization, or Saraswati civilization, Ghagghar-Hakra civilization, Indo- Sarsaswati civilization The earliest known Urban culture of the Indian subcontinent.  IVC consisted of large cities, and small towns and villages. The Indus Valley civilization was basically an urban culture sustained by surplus agricultural production and commerce. Mature period the civilization appear to be about 2500–1700  BCE. It spread in modern India, Pakistan, Afghanistan

5. Main FeaturesHarappan Architecture Fortifications Citadel Lower town Houses Drains Roads Wells Granary Great Bath Other

6. Types of Architecture Citadel Fortification Bastions Warehouse Manufacturing centers Trade places Granary Great Bath

7. The Citadel Distinct Mound called as citadel The Citadel is generally a high raised mound M citadel ohanjodaro rose to a height of 12 m from GL. Its size around 400 x 200 m. Generally Citadel is encircled by fortification wall

8. Citadel of Kalibangan Plan : Parallelogram ( समानांतर चतुर्भुज ) Height from GL : 9 meters Size : 240 meters north-south and 120 meters east-west Fortification wall: 3 to 9 meter width Rectangular bastions at regular intervals

9. Citadel of Lothal  The Citadel has an size of 420 m. N-S and 196 m. E-W. Structures were build on 6 meter high platform. It was also fortified.

10. Lower Town Lower town was perhaps residence of common people Lower town encompasses maximum area of the town Harappa lower town consisting over 80 ha. Lower town always enclosed by fortification wall Town was planned with broad streets intersecting each other at right angles Harappa: Main street was 9 meter wide Harappa: Miner street were 1.5 to 3 meter wide

11. Lower Town: Kalibangan Situated east of the citadel at a distance of 40 meter Plan : Parallelogram ( समानांतर चतुर्भुज ) Size : 360 meters north south and 24o meters east-west Enclosed with fortification wall with gateway (3-7 m.) and guard room Wall Width : 3.5 to 9 meter Made of mud bricks Size : 40 x 20 x 10 cm and 30 x 15 x 7.5 cm

12. Lower Town of Lothal Residential Area Various size Houses Generally 4-6 rooms A large courtyard and veranda Bathrooms Fire alters Manufactures/ Artisans houses: Coppersmiths Bead makers

13. Middle Town It was situated at the centre. Its only site in IVC consists middle town The Middle town is comprised of a central street It also has houses or shops on each side.. It has stadium at the center

14. Dolavira

15. Houses Houses were made of baked bricks It has open courtyard and multiple rooms Separate Kitchens, bathrooms Most houses had private wells Houses open through small lanes A few were multi-storied All houses had latrines, bathing houses, and sewage drains Size of the houses probably depends upon socio-economic status

16. Houses Houses followed the common pattern of all Harappan sites. The town planning is like a chess board. Varying types of houses and buildings are found. Central courtyard and rooms ( 4,5, 6–7 rooms) Entry from the lanes Multi-storeyed houses (1-2-3 stories) Stairs led to the upper stories through a side room or the courtyard  The average thickness of walls was 70 cm and the average ceiling height about 3 meters.  Doors were made of wood with wooden frames The windows had both shutters and grills, which were embedded into the building itself. Groups or clusters of houses are also in evidence Some houses have private wells Houses were built of 10 X 20 X 30 cm brick sizes Burnt bricks were used in drains, wells, bathing platforms, door-sills etc. Floors of rooms were built of thrashed fine mud, sometimes laid with mud bricks or terracotta cakes. A few house had floors built of burnt tiles decorated with geometrical designs (Kalibangan).

17. Houses of Mohenjodaro Different size of houses One bigger house ( Mohenjodaro ) with multiple room where large number of seals and sealing and statue found considered as house of important person. Size may indicate the social hierarchy

18. House Pattern of the Mohenjo-daro

19. Houses of Kalibangan Houses in lower town was in grid pattern. Streets running north-south and east-west, dividing the area into blocks.  The houses were built of mud-bricks, baked bricks. Houses have drains, wells, etc.  

20. Houses: Kalibangan Chess-board pattern Layout of the city was according to the fortification wall Fortification and streets were planned at the same time Early Harappan houses made of mud bricks Houses opened from lanes Double storied houses also presents Roof probably flat with mud plastered A few floors were paved with decorated tiles with intersecting circles Door size : 70-75 cm. wide Door shape : single -leaf

21. Indus Valley Civilisation

22. Indus Valley Civilisation

23. House structures: Lothal

24. House structures: Lothal

25. Wells Indus valley Civilizations had developed well system Many houses owned a personal well A few houses had shared wells Public wells were also reported Wells made of baked bricks Constructed by wedge shaped bricks Total 30 wells were reported in Harappa Total 700 wells were reported in Mohenjodaro“ City of Wells ” Mohenjo-Daro identified as a High numbers of wells indicate one in every third house had a well Wells were constructed by 10-15 meter deep Proper drains were planned for circulation of waste water

26. Wells of IVC

27. Bathroom/ Sanitation Each house has bathroom Bathing platforms were situated next to the wells. Bathing platform were raised above ground level. Bathing place had tightly fitted brick floors which made them more or less waterproof. Drains from these rooms led separately to the main drains Almost every house in Harappa has a latrine. Latrines had a large terracotta jar sunk into the ground and sometimes connected to the external drains.

28. Well and Bathing Platform, Harappa, 2200-1900 BCE

29. Drainage Harappan civilization is famous for their drainage system They has series of drains running along the streets  Later these connected to larger sewers in the main streets.  Houses smaller drains of latrines and bathing areas connected to larger drains. Bigger drains had corbelled roofs so they could be buried underneath the main streets. Drains exiting the city even had wooden doors  Sump pits were found at intervals. It seem that drains were regularly cleaned to avoid blockages.

30. Bathroom & Drainage of Lothal The main sewer, 1.5 meters deep and 91 cm width It connected to many sewers. Bricks smoothened and joined together seamlessly. These sewer are watertight. Drops at regular intervals for cleaning. Houses baths and drains that emptied into underground soakage jars.

31. Streets: Roads of IVC were superb in human history Big road network were systematically planned All cities were well planned major, miner roads They were 13 to 34 feet wide and were well lined. The streets and roads divided the city into rectangular blocks.  Not only roads but small lanes were also fashioned Finding of lamp posts at intervals suggests the existence of street lights.  Dustbins were also provided on the streets.

32. Streets The earliest civilization of grid pattern layout Systematic streets Streets running north-south Lanes running east-west Made of mud bricks with gravel at the top One big street identified as “bazar street” (Lothal) There were shops along the street

33. Streets at Kalibangan Eight main roads have been exposed Five roads in north-south and Three east-west. B. B. Lal : streets were also in ratio Small lanes connect to the roads Size : 1.8 meters to 7.2 meters Drains were found below the roads Probable evidence of wooden drains

34. Granary Granary found in IVC At Harappa mound F It is 45 x 45 meters There are 12 rooms Six in one row Seven meter broad passage in-between Each room measured 15.2 meters

35. Granary: Conjunctural view

36. Granary of Mohenjodaro This structure is situated in the citadel area Initially it was identified as “ Hammam ” Build on higher platform Size : 50 x 27 meter Structure probably made of wood with solid brick foundations Foundation was divided into 27 blocks with narrow passageway in-between 4.5 meter thick wide stairway to reach the structure A brunt brick platform identified as loading dock by Wheeler It has a bathing platform and well nearby

37. Great Bath It’s a unique architecture and model of engineering of IVC found in Mohenjodaro Also called as earliest public water tank in the ancient world Size : 14.5 x 7 meter Depth: 2.5 meter Entry from North and South via wide steps The floor and walls are water-tight Mortar : gypsum Earliest example of waterproofing structure Slope : south-west corner (drain with corbelled arch) A walkways surrounded the structure Series of room from eastern side and one room has a well At north eight room with bathing platform

38. The  Great Bath  at Mohenjo-Daro is one of the most famous structures. Its dimensions are 11.88 meters x 7.01 meters with a maximum depth of 2.43 meters. Two wide staircases serve as entry to the structure. The Great Bath is watertight with finely fitted bricks on edge with gypsum plaster and a thick layer of bitumen (waterproof tar). Most scholars believe that the structure was used to purge the impurities of the bathers before rituals. Great Bath 

39. Great Bath

40. Drainage System IVC HAD Very sophisticated Drainage System Underground drains, covered by stone House drains wee connected to road drains Drainage System was so big than a human can walk

41. Water Reservoir Dholavira is the sophisticated water conservation system The site is situated in Kutch region, which is dry This evidence is earliest found anywhere in the world It shows advanced hydraulic engineering of IVC The city had massive reservoirs, three of which are exposed. They were used for storing fresh water brought by rains It stored water diverted from two nearby rivulets The reservoirs are cut through stone vertically

42. Dockyard of Lothal Situated eastern end of the site It is surrounded by a wall of burnt bricks Size : East-west : 212 meter and 215 meter North-south : 37 meter and 35 meter. Has a sluice gate and a spill channel for maintaining water Towards western side a mud platform could be wharf (jetty) At wharf goods were loaded and unloaded

43. Dockyard

44. Warehouses 64 cubical blocks 3.6-meter square each Rest on 1-meter high platform Has wooden canopy For protecting cargo from sun and rain It featured paved baths, underground and surface drains and a drinking The warehouses near the dockyard. Set on a 4 m. high plinth. Area: 1930 Square meters The cubical blocks were connected by passages.

45. Warehouses

46. Defensive Arrangement: Fortifications IVC has Massive defensive walls on all sides Both Citadel and lower town has thick fortification Made of bricks, mud and stones Entry gates from different directions Bastions are seen at regular intervals Bastions also has entrance to go up. This leads to ramps and terraces to supervised from guardrooms. The fortifications have been built and rebuilt  many times First utilizing simple brick-bats were replaced nearly from the ground up by baked bricks One gate found measures only 2.6 meters wide (Harappa) Fortifications at the site shows strong administrative system

47. Fortification of Mohenjodaro Both Citadel and lower town has thick fortification Size of Citadel’s fortification was 6 m. thick The wall has bastions It also has towers to supervise from top

48. Indus Valley town planning was the division : Citadel and Lower Town. The town of Mohenjodaro was also divided into these two broad divisions, Kot Diji (3300 BCE) was a fortified site with a massive wall made of limestone rubble and mud-brick, Kalibangan (2920–2550 BCE) was surrounded by massive mud-brick fortifications. Dholavira was fortified with an imposing wall made of stone rubble set in mud mortar. Lothal and Surkotada was also fortified

49. Fortification of Kalibangan Fortification wall made of baked bricks (40 x 20 x 10 cm and 30 x 15 x 7.5 cm) Southern wall portion is heavily fortified with corner bastions Three entrance: east, north and west

50. Plan and architecture Of Kalibangan

51. Building Materials The main materials used were burnt bricks Bricks were made in moulds of 1:2:4 ratios Mud mortar and gypsum cement were used Mud plaster and gypsum plaster are also found

52. Conclusion IVC show great technological achievement in every aspect Well planed cities and towns Grid-like layout with developed sense of house structure Advanced hygiene system with Latrines, Bathrooms, wells and drainage system Wide streets and straights lanes also well designed Big structures like Graneries , Warehouse indicate the advance structural achievement. Structures like Great Bath and Dockyard represent progressive technical achievement