Site older than Mohenjodaro ?

January 25, 2009

Site older than Mohenjodaro found in Pak

1/23/2009 1:25:20 PM (Times Now)

An archaeological site dating back about 5,500 years and believed to

be older than Mohenjodaro has been found in Pakistan's southern

Sindh province. A team of 22 archaeologists found some semi-precious

and precious stones and utensils made of clay, copper and other

metals during an excavation at the site in Lakhian Jo Daro in Sukkur

district yesterday.

" At present, we can say that it (the site) is older than

Mohenjodaro, " Ghulam Mustafa Shar, the director of the Lakhian Jo

Daro project, told Dawn newspaper. The find is said to be of the Kot

Diji era, experts said.

Shar said the remains of a " faience " or tin-glazed pottery factory

had been found at the site. It is believed to be of the era of

mirror factories in Italy that date back to some 9,000 years.

A painting has also been found at the site and the discovery of more

such items could establish the site as 9,000 years old, like the

remains found at Mehargarh in Balochistan and Jericho in Palestine,

Shar said.

Archaeology professors and students from Punjab University, Peshawar

University and Islamabad will soon join the team from Shah Abdul

Latif University that is currently excavating the site in Lakhian Jo

Daro.

Work on the second block of the site will continue for a month and

more items could be found, Shar said. Local officials have asked

Shar to prepare proposals for setting up a museum at the site.

(Agencies)

http://www.timesnow.tv/Newsdtls.aspx?NewsID=27411

February 15, 2009

IndiaArchaeology , " S. Kalyanaraman "

<kalyan97 wrote:

Lakhian jo daro and Bhirrana

Here is a report on a new site: Lakhian Jo Daro. An older site is Bhirrana

on Sarasvati River basin. The late Dr. LS Rao's contribution on Bhirrana

made at the Sarasvati Conference (Oct. 2008 at the India Intl. Centre, New

Delhi) can be seen at http://www.scribd.com/doc/7577484/lsraobhirrana (ppt

slides)

http://www.scribd.com/doc/7544034/Bhirrana-Excavation (paper) The

excavation

of the site at Bhirrana is a landmark in archaeological history of India.

For the first time, the possibility of identifying Vedic people of

circa 7thmillennium is close at hand, thanks to the splendid work done

by the late

Dr. LS Rao and his associates of ASI.

kalyanaraman

January 23

Ancient Lakhian Jo Daro city discovered in Sukkur----The 7000 year old

Pakistani Civilization

The Pakistani civilization is as old as time itself. 150,000 years ago

Pakistanis roamed the Soan river around the Potohar region. 7000 years ago

the Mehargarh Pakistanis worked on the first agricultural site in

South Asia

(religious dogma notwithstanding). 5000 years ago Pakistanis of the Sukkur

ditrict were building brick cities unequaled in the world. 3500 years ago

the Moenjodaro and Harrapa Pakistanis were trading with Sumer, and Ur with

the Mesopotamians, and with the Egyptian pharos. The Indus Valley and its

precedents of course existed only on along the banks of the Indus. The

Pakistanis of that time were not vegetarian, buried their dead, ate beef,

lived in unstratified housing (no caste system), used a pictographic

language in vogue during that era in Phoenicia etc., ate beef, wrote right

to left, and did not worship the current Bharati pantheon of Gods.

*SUKKUR, Jan 22: An archaeological site, about 5,500 years old, has been

found in Lakhian Jo Daro near Goth Nihal Khoso in the district of

Sukkur.**

The find is said to be of the era of Kot Diji.*

*A team of 22 archaeologists headed by the chairman of Shah Abdul Latif

University's archaeology department and Lakhian Jo Daro project director

Ghulam Mustafa Shar found some semi-precious and precious stones and

utensils made of clay, copper and other metals during excavation on

Thursday. The remains are said to be older than those of Moenjodaro.*

*Mr Shar told Dawn that remains of a 'faience' mirror factory had been

found

at the project's second block. It was believed to be of the era of mirror

factories of Italy which dates back to some 9,000 years.*

*He said a painting had also been found and discovery of more such items

could establish the site as 9,000 years old, like the remains found at

Mehar

Garh in Balochistan and Jericho in Palestine.*

* " At present, we can say that it is older than Moenjodaro, " he said.

Mr Shar

said that archaeology professors and students from Punjab University,

Peshawar University and Islamabad would join the team in a couple of

days.*

*He said the work on the second block would continue for a month and more

items could be found. Sukkur District Nazim Syed Nasir Hussain visited the

site on Thursday and asked the project director to prepare proposals for a

museum. Dawn. Site older than Moenjodaro found in Sukkur By Waseem Shamsi*

*The land East of the Indus was jungle roamed by lions and tigers and

monkeys*. Around 1500 BC part of the Pakistani civilization's Indus Valley

sections moved Eastwards to conquest territory in Western Gujarat. They

built some minor settlements but abandoned it soon after.

The Ganges Plains were inhabited later, centuries later when the incoming

Aryan hordes destroyed the IVC and moved Eastward. The news about new

cities

being discovered in the Punjab will help us further define the breadth and

depth of the Pakistani civilization

http://moinansari.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!13E83389ABB46AB9!1904.entry?wa=wsigni\

n1.0 & sa=663647294<http://moinansari.spaces.live.com/blog/cns%2113E83389ABB46AB9%\

211904.entry?wa=wsignin1.0 & sa=663647294>

Site older than Moenjodaro found in Pakistan

Islamabad | January 23, 2009 12:09:27 PM IST

An archaeological site, about 5500 years old,, has been found in a

district

in Pakistan, which has been claimed by experts as being older than the

ruins

of Moenjodaro.

According to a report in Dawn, the site was found in Lakhian Jo Daro near

Goth Nihal Khoso in the district of Sukkur.

The find is said to be of the era of Kot Diji.

A team of 22 archaeologists, headed by the chairman of Shah Abdul Latif

University's archaeology department and Lakhian Jo Daro project director

Ghulam Mustafa Shar, found some semi-precious and precious stones and

utensils made of clay, copper and other

metals<http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/Asia/20090123/1159409.html>duri\

ng

the excavation.

The remains are said to be older than those of Moenjodaro.

The remains of a 'faience' mirror factory had been found at the project's

second block. It was believed to be of the era of mirror factories of

Italy

which dates back to some 9,000 years, according to Shar.He said that a

painting had also been found and discovery of more such items could

establish the site as 9,000 years old, like the remains found at Mehar

Garh

in Balochistan and Jericho in Palestine.

" At present, we can say that it is older than Moenjodaro, " he said.

Shar said that archaeology professors and students from Punjab University,

Peshawar University and Islamabad would join the team in a couple of days.

He said the work on the second block would continue for a month and more

items could be found. (ANI)

http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/Asia/20090123/1159409.html

The Excavation Branch-I, Nagpur of the Archaeological Survey of

India<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeological_Survey_of_India>excavated

this site for three field seasons during 2003-04, 2004-05 and

2005-06.

The excavation has revealed the remains of the Harappan culture right from

its nascent stage, i.e. Hakra Wares Culture (antedating the Known Early

Harappan Culture in the subcontinent, also known as

Kalibangan<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalibangan>-I.)

to a full-fledged Mature Harappan city.

*Puratattva*, the Bulletin of the Archaeological Society of India No.

34, 35

and 36; Man and Environment

http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_2007_bhirrana_images.asp

*The ageless tale a potsherd from Bhirrana tells *

T.S. Subramanian

â€ " Photo: ASI

http://www.thehindu.com/2007/09/12/images/2007091255372201.jpg*sequence:**The

" Dancing Girl "

*

CHENNAI: In a rare discovery, the Archaeological Survey of India has found

at Bhirrana, a Harappan site in Fatehabad district in Haryana, a red

potsherd with an engraving that resembles the 'Dancing Girl,' the iconic

bronze figurine of Mohenjodaro. While the bronze was discovered in the

early

1920s, the potsherd with the engraving was discovered during

excavations by

the ASI in 2004-05.

A few hundred kilometres separate Mohenjodaro, now in Pakistan, and

Bhirrana. The potsherd, discovered by a team led by L.S. Rao,

Superintending

Archaeologist, Excavation Branch, ASI, Nagpur, belonged to the Mature

Harappan period. Mr. Rao called it the " only one of its kind " because " no

parallel to the Dancing Girl, in bronze or any other medium, was known "

until the latest find.

In an article in the latest issue of *Man and Environment *(Volume XXXII,

No.1, 2007), published by the Indian Society for Prehistoric and

Quaternary

Studies, Pune, Mr. Rao says, " ... the delineation [of the lines in the

potsher d] is so true to the stance, including the disposition of the

hands,

of the bronze that it appears that the craftsman of Bhirrana had

first-hand

knowledge of the former. "

In his article, Mr. Rao has said the bronze was justly known for its

stance

and workmanship. " With its tilted head, flexed legs, right hand resting on

the hip and the left suspended by its side, the bronze sculpture, although

nude, enjoys a modest ornamentation with a necklace, wristlets and

armlets.

A statuette of 11 cm in height, it occupies a unique position in the

sculptural art of the Mature Harappan period. "

http://www.thehindu.com/2007/09/12/images/2007091255372202.jpg *The

potsherd

with the engraving. *

Mr. Rao called the engraving on the potsherd " a highly stylised figure

whose

torso resembles that of an hour-glass or two triangles meeting at their

apex. " Upon the horizontal shoulder line, a partly damaged round head was

visible. In consonance with the bronze, " here too, the right hand is

akimbo,

and the left is suspended by its side. Slight oblique strokes on the right

upper arm are suggestive of the presence of armlets. The lower portion of

the body is missing owing to damage on the sherd. The clothing is

indicated

by horizontal hatchings on the chest and abdomen, and vertical

hatchings on

the thighs. "

Mr. Rao called Bhirrana an " exemplary " and " paradigmatic " site that stood

out on two more grounds. For the first time in the post-Independence

period,

artefacts called Hakra ware, belonging to the pre-early Harappan period,

were found as independent, stratified deposits at Bhirrana. This and other

discoveries established the presence of an unbroken cultural sequence at

Bhirrana: from the Hakra ware culture and its evolution into early

Harappan,

early Mature Harappan and Mature Harappan until the site was abandoned.

The discoveries of these periods include underground dwelling pits;

house-complexes on streets; a fortification wall; bichrome pottery;

terracotta cups; arrowheads, fish-hooks and bangles, all in copper;

incised

copper celts; terracotta toy-carts and animal figurines; and beads of

semi-precious stones.

Seals made of steatite of the Mature Harappan period were found. They have

animal figures such as a unicorn, a deer with wavy antlers, a bull with

outsized horns, and an animal with three heads â€ " of a deer, a

unicorn and a

bull. The seals also have typical Harappan legends on them. All these were

found during excavations in 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Mr. Rao and colleagues have written on their work in *Puratattva

*(Nos. 34,

35 and 36), a bulletin of the Indian Archaeological Society.

http://www.hindu.com/2007/09/12/stories/2007091255372200.htm

*ARCHAEOLOGY*

*Harappan link *

T.S. SUBRAMANIAN

*Discoveries made at Bhirrana in Haryana provide the missing link in the

evolution of Harappan civilisation archaeology. *

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012901.jpg *The red

potsherd

with the engraving resembling the Dancing Girl bronze figurine of

Mohenjodaro, found at Bhirrana. *

THE Archaeological Survey of India's discoveries at the Harappan sites of

Bhirrana and Rakhigarhi, both in Haryana, in the past one decade

testify to

the importance of these sites in the evolution of the Harappan

civilisation.

While excavations were carried out in three consecutive seasons â€ "

2003-04,

2004-05 and 2005-06 â€ " at Bhirrana in Fatehabad district, excavations at

Rakhigarhi in Hissar district lasted from 1997 to 2000. Both sites are on

the banks of the Saraswati river, now dried up.

In a rare discovery during the excavations of 2004-05 at Bhirrana, the ASI

found a thick red potsherd with an engraving that resembles the Dancing

Girl, the famous bronze figurine found at Mohenjodaro in the early 1920s.

Bhirrana is a few hundred kilometres from Mohenjodaro, which is now in

Pakistan. The potsherd with the engraving was discovered by a team led by

L.S. Rao, Superintending Archaeologist, Excavation Branch, ASI, Nagpur. It

belongs to the mature Harappan period.

L.S. Rao called the discovery " the only one of its kind " because " no

parallel to the Dancing Girl, either in bronze or in any other medium, was

known " until the potsherd was found. Bhirrana is an " exemplary site "

because, for the first time in post-Independence India, Hakra ware

belonging

to the pre-early Harappan period were found as independent, stratified

deposits. L.S. Rao also called it a " paradigmatic site " because " to put it

in a nutshell, the importance of the excavation at Bhirrana lies in

the fact

that we have strong evidence for the first time of an unbroken cultural

sequence, starting from the village culture represented by Hakra ware and

its evolution gradually into semi-urban and urban cultures till the

site was

finally abandoned. " Excavations at Bhirrana conclusively show that during

the period of Hakra ware culture, people lived in circular pits cut

into the

soil. There were auxiliary pits for cooking and for industrial activities

(such as melting copper) and for religious purposes, including animal

sacrifices. " In the present state of knowledge, " L.S. Rao said, " the Hakra

ware culture belongs to the fourth millennium B.C., or 6,000 years before

the present. "

In the early Harappan period, people came out of the pits and built houses

made of sun-baked bricks. The whole settlement was within a fortification

wall. In the mature Harappan period, the entire settlement was once again

reorganised and the city layout reoriented with major and minor lanes,

by-lanes and streets, which had house complexes. The streets always

cut one

another at right angles.

The discoveries at Bhirrana include underground dwelling pits; house

complexes on streets and lanes; a fortification wall; bichrome pottery;

terracotta vases, bowls and cups; arrowheads, fish-hooks and bangles, all

made of copper; terracotta toy-carts and animal figurines; and beads

made of

semi-precious stones such as faience, lapis lazuli, agate and

carnelian. One

of the arrowheads, of the mature Harappan period, still retains a fibre

impression of the wooden haft.

Several mature Harappan period seals made of steatite were also found in

Bhirrana. The animals represented on the obverse of these seals include

unicorns, deer with wavy antlers and a bull with outsized horns. The seals

have typical Harappan legends. The reverse side of the seals has a

knob with

perforations.

D.R. Sahni discovered Harappa (which is also in Pakistan now) in Punjab in

1921 and R.D. Banerji discovered Mohenjodaro in Sind a few months later in

the same year. Both were archaeologists of the ASI. The existence of these

sites was known to scholars for about 85 years before their actual

discovery. What came to light after the discoveries was that a highly

developed civilisation (the Harappan civilisation, or the Indus

civilisation) had flourished on the banks of the rivers Indus and

Saraswati,

around 3000 B.C. It was Banerji who discovered the " Dancing Girl " .

The Harappan culture was a highly developed, urbanised culture. People

lived

in houses that had several rooms, bathrooms and underground drainage. The

discovery of Harappa and Mohenjodaro, and the many other sites that were

excavated later, revealed the grandeur of this civilisation, and scholars

made consistent attempts to find out what had preceded it. This curiosity

drove archaeologists to locate more and more Harappan sites.

BENOY K. BEHL/COLLECTION: NATIONAL MUSEUM, NEW DELHI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012902.jpg *The Dancing

Girl, the iconic bronze figurine of Mohenjodaro. *

Since the 1920s, about 300 Harappan sites have been excavated in Pakistan

and India. The sites excavated in India include Bhirrana, Kunal,

Rakhigarhi,

Banawali, Bedhawa and Farmana in Haryana, Sanauli in Uttar Pradesh,

Dholavira and Lothal in Gujarat, Kalibangan and Baror in Rajasthan, and

Daimabad in Maharashtra.

At its height, the Harappan civilisation flourished over an area of 2.5

million sq km, from Sutkagendor in the Makran coast of Balochistan to

Alamgirhpur in the east in Uttar Pradesh and from Manda in Jammu to

Daimabad

in Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra.

Between 1972 and 1974, M.R. Mughal, former Director-General of Archaeology

and Museums, Pakistan, explored Bahawalpur in the Cholistan region of

Punjab, situated just across the international border from adjoining

Rajasthan. Mughal found a lot of pottery on the surface there. The

ware was

named after the Hakra river, which flows there. Ultimately, Hakra ware was

found stratigraphically during the excavations at Jalilpur, on the

banks of

the Ravi river near Harappa. It was found lying beneath early Harappan

deposits. This was the story on the Pakistani side.

On the Indian side, although many excavations were carried out at

Kalibangan, Banawali, Rakhigarhi and Kunal, they did not yield any

independent horizon of Hakra ware culture in their earliest levels. So

there

was a missing link in the Harappan civilisation archaeology between

Pakistan

and India.

" For the first time now, " L.S. Rao said, " in post-Independence India,

stratigraphically positioned Hakra ware culture deposits have been exposed

at Bhirrana. They show a typical early village settlement, wherein

dwelling

pits were cut into the natural soil. " These pits had a superstructure.

Interestingly, no post-holes were found on the floor of the pits. (Posts

would have supported the roof of these dwelling pits).

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012903.jpg *The site

of the

Harappan excavation at Bhirrana. *

In their article entitled, " Unearthing Harappan Settlement at Bhirrana

(2003-04) " , published in *Puratattva* (number 34, 2003-2004), L.S. Rao and

his colleagues, Nandini B. Sahu, Prabash Sahu, U.A. Shastry and Samir

Diwan,

say the pits are mostly circular in shape with occasional brick

lining. " The

bricks used are of irregular shape and as such do not conform to the known

ratio of early Harappan brick sizes. The inside walls of the pits were

mud-plastered. The average diameter of the pit was 2.30 metresâ€¦.

This unique

tradition of pit dwelling, especially in the early Harappan context of

Haryana region, was in practice " at Mitathal, Hissar district, and Kunal,

Fatehabad. " The distinguishing ceramic of the period is the bichrome ware

where the outlines of the motifs are painted in black and the space within

is painted in evanescent white, " the authors say.

In the transitional period, there was a phenomenal change in the

settlement

pattern. " The entire site was occupied and the town appears to have been

fortified. People started living over ground in houses, built of mud

bricks

of pink and buff colour, of size 30 Ã— 20 Ã— 10 cm, 33 Ã— 22 Ã— 11 cm

or 36 Ã— 24

Ã— 12 cm, conforming to the ratio of 3:2:1â€¦. Besides, a few

rectangular mud

brick platforms with circular fire pits and hearths were exposed, " the

writers say.

The Bhirrana excavation in 2003-04 also yielded two inscribed copper

celts,

each bearing typical Harappan alphabets of the mature Harappan period.

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012904.jpg *TERRACOTTA

HORNS

among the exciting finds. *

Copper smithy, which began with the Hakra ware culture, advanced in

technology over a period of time, and bigger objects such as shells,

bangles, fish-hooks and arrowheads made of copper were found. There was a

flourishing bead industry, and beads were manufactured out of

semi-precious

stones such as lapis lazuli, carnelian, agate, faience and steatite.

It was during the second season of excavation, in 2004-05, that the sturdy

red ware with the incised figure of the Dancing Girl was found.

In an article in *Man and Environment* (Volume XXXII, No.1, 2007), the

journal of the Indian Society for Prehistoric and Quaternary Studies,

Pune,

L.S. Rao says, " â€¦the delineation of the lines in the potsherd is so

true to

stance, including the disposition of the hands, of the bronze that it

appears that the craftsman of Bhirrana had first-hand knowledge of the

former. " The bronze, 11 centimetres in height, occupied a unique

position in

the sculptural art of the mature Harappan period. " With its tilted head,

flexed legs, right hand resting on the hip, and the left [hand]

suspended by

its side, the bronze sculpture, although nude, enjoys a modest

ornamentation

with a necklace, wristlets and armlets. " The engraving on the potsherd

was a

highly stylised figure whose torso resembled that of an hourglass, or two

triangles meeting at their apex. In consonance with the bronze, on the

potsherd, " the right hand is akimbo, and the left is suspended by its

side.

Slight oblique strokes on the right upper arm are suggestive of the

presence

of armletsâ€¦. "

During the Harappan civilisation, seals were made as a mark of trade and

commerce. Those made during the early Harappan period were button

seals, but

later, they were made out of steatite. An important seal, made out of

black

steatite, has an engraving of an animal with three heads â€ " those of

a bull,

a unicorn and a deer. A horned deity standing nearby holds the deer's neck

with his right hand, and his left hand is raised. There is a manger in

front

of the animal. Interestingly, this seal does not have any Harappan legend.

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012905.jpg *SEALS,

FOUND AT

Bhirrana, with animals such as a deer, a three-headed animal, a

unicorn, and

a bull. These seals have typical Harappan legends. *

Other exciting finds at Bhirrana include terracotta horns and terracotta

wheels with painted spokes.

Largest site

The Rakhigarhi site, discovered in 1963, is the largest Harappan site

found

in India. For three seasons, from 1997 to 2000, Amarendra Nath, who

recently

retired as Director of the ASI, headed the excavations there, with

important

contributions coming from Alok Tripathy and Arun Malik. Since 1963,

several

archaeologists have visited the site and carried out exploratory work.

" The site has acquired importance, " said Amarendra Nath, " because we have

been able to extensively identify the purpose behind early Harappan

structures and trace the beginning of the emergence of town planning in

early Harappan levels, wherein the structures were well laid-out with

evidence of a public drainage system. " The use of burnt bricks could

also be

traced to the early Harappan level at this site.

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012906.jpg *PAINTED

TERRACOTTA TOY wheels were also discovered at the site. *

Other sites have yielded potsherds with graffiti marks. But Rakhigarhi is

important because " here we have graffiti arranged in a sequence, which

suggests the beginning of writing in the early Harappan level " , Amarendra

Nath said.

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012907.jpg *THE EXCAVATION

OF 2003-04 yielded inscribed copper celts. *

The finding of a needle suggested that some kind of a stitched

clothing was

used. As if to confirm this, a potsherd with a painting was found:

Amarendra

Nath said, " This is a rare painting in the Harappan context, wherein

you get

evidence of a person wearing a dhoti and a stitched upper garment. "

ASI

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2502/images/20080201504012908.jpg *THE ARTEFACTS

UNEARTHED include pottery and potsherds, an ivory comb, bone points and

chert blades. *

A number of sealings and seals were found. (A seal is an original stone

object, which is carved in depth. A sealing is an impression of a

seal.) One

of them is a cylindrical seal, which indicates contact with contemporary

urban centres in Iraq. This seal has an engraving of a crocodile on

the one

side and Harappan characters on the other. Such types of seals have been

found in Iraq. The significance of the Rakhigarhi site also lies in its

having 11 burials, with the skeletons aligned north to south. The

skeletons

were laid in pits with grave goods, copper bangles and shell bangles. Arun

Malik found an intact skeleton in a pit. The burial site is located

north of

the habitational site.

http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2502/stories/20080201504012900.htm

http://www.scribd.com/doc/6973419/*Bhirrana*-Excavation<http://www.scribd.com/do\

c/6973419/Bhirrana-Excavation>

*The ageless tale of a Bhirrana potsherd; dance as a hieroglyph *

http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_2007_bhirrana.asp Excavation site: Bhirrana

http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_2007_bhirrana_images.asp Images of site and

artefacts discovered

Why is a 'dancing girl' glyph shown on a potsherd discovered at Bhirrana?

Dancers are depicted as hieroglyphs on a tablet m0493 as shown below.

m0493Bt Pict-93: Three dancing figures in a row.

Text 2843

Glyph: Three dancers. Kolmo 'three'; meD 'to dance'

Rebus: kolami 'furnace, smithy'; meD 'iron'

http://www.orientalthane.com/archaeology/s1.jpg Sign 44 (this glyph

could be

compared with the orthography of three dancers in a row; the glyph is a

ligature showing a 'dance step' and a rimless pot). Glyphs: meD 'dance'

(Remo); rebus: meD 'iron'; bat.a 'pot'; bat.hi 'furnace'.

So, why a dancing girl? Because, depiction of a dance pose is a hieroglyph

to represent what was contained in the pot. The glyph encodes the mleccha

word for 'iron': med.

Glyph: meD 'to dance' (F.)[reduplicated from me-]; me id. (M.) in Remo

(Munda)(Source: D. Stampe's Munda etyma)me??u to tread, trample, crush

under

foot, tread or place the foot upon (Te.); me??u step (Ga.); mettunga steps

(Ga.). ma?ye to trample, tread (Malt.)(DEDR 5057)

Rebus: meD 'iron' (Mundari. Remo.)

Bhirrana find; the potsherd with the engraving.

â€ " Photo: ASI sequence: The " Dancing Girl " statuette made of bronze.

The ageless tale a potsherd from Bhirrana tells

T.S. Subramanian (The Hindu, 12 Sept. 2007)

CHENNAI: In a rare discovery, the Archaeological Survey of India has found

at Bhirrana, a Harappan site in Fatehabad district in Haryana, a red

potsherd with an engraving that resembles the 'Dancing Girl,' the iconic

bronze figurine of Mohenjodaro. While the bronze was discovered in the

early

1920s, the potsherd with the engraving was discovered during

excavations by

the ASI in 2004-05.

A few hundred kilometres separate Mohenjodaro, now in Pakistan, and

Bhirrana. The potsherd, discovered by a team led by L.S. Rao,

Superintending

Archaeologist, Excavation Branch, ASI, Nagpur, belonged to the Mature

Harappan period. Mr. Rao called it the " only one of its kind " because " no

parallel to the Dancing Girl, in bronze or any other medium, was known "

until the latest find.

In an article in the latest issue of Man and Environment (Volume XXXII,

No.1, 2007), published by the Indian Society for Prehistoric and

Quaternary

Studies, Pune, Mr. Rao says, " ... the delineation [of the lines in the

potsher d] is so true to the stance, including the disposition of the

hands,

of the bronze that it appears that the craftsman of Bhirrana had

first-hand

knowledge of the former. "

In his article, Mr. Rao has said the bronze was justly known for its

stance

and workmanship. " With its tilted head, flexed legs, right hand resting on

the hip and the left suspended by its side, the bronze sculpture, although

nude, enjoys a modest ornamentation with a necklace, wristlets and

armlets.

A statuette of 11 cm in height, it occupies a unique position in the

sculptural art of the Mature Harappan period. "

Mr. Rao called the engraving on the potsherd " a highly stylised figure

whose

torso resembles that of an hour-glass or two triangles meeting at their

apex. " Upon the horizontal shoulder line, a partly damaged round head was

visible. In consonance with the bronze, " here too, the right hand is

akimbo,

and the left is suspended by its side. Slight oblique strokes on the right

upper arm are suggestive of the presence of armlets. The lower portion of

the body is missing owing to damage on the sherd. The clothing is

indicated

by horizontal hatchings on the chest and abdomen, and vertical

hatchings on

the thighs. "

Mr. Rao called Bhirrana an " exemplary " and " paradigmatic " site that stood

out on two more grounds. For the first time in the post-Independence

period,

artefacts called Hakra ware, belonging to the pre-early Harappan period,

were found as independent, stratified deposits at Bhirrana. This and other

discoveries established the presence of an unbroken cultural sequence at

Bhirrana: from the Hakra ware culture and its evolution into early

Harappan,

early Mature Harappan and Mature Harappan until the site was abandoned.

The discoveries of these periods include underground dwelling pits;

house-complexes on streets; a fortification wall; bichrome pottery;

terracotta cups; arrowheads, fish-hooks and bangles, all in copper;

incised

copper celts; terracotta toy-carts and animal figurines; and beads of

semi-precious stones.

Seals made of steatite of the Mature Harappan period were found. They have

animal figures such as a unicorn, a deer with wavy antlers, a bull with

outsized horns, and an animal with three heads â€ " of a deer, a

unicorn and a

bull. The seals also have typical Harappan legends on them. All these were

found during excavations in 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Mr. Rao and colleagues have written on their work in Puratattva (Nos.

34, 35

and 36), a bulletin of the Indian Archaeological Society.

http://www.orientalthane.com/archaeology/news_2008_03_11_1.htm

--- End forwarded message ---

February 15, 2009

IndiaArchaeology , " Carlos Aramayo "

<cararam50 wrote:

IndiaArchaeology , " Francesco Brighenti "

<frabrig@> wrote:

>

> Nowhere in Dr. Rao's paper are archaeological remains at Bhirrana

> dating from the seventh millennium BCE mentioned (and there is, of

> course, no mention at all of " Vedic people " in the paper -- that's

> entirely a fantasy of your own!).

>

> Rao reports that the earliest archaeological layers he found at

> Bhirrana should be identified with the pre-Early Harappan Hakra Ware

> Cultures, whose beginnings are dated to the first half of the fourth

> millennium BCE by archaeologist Rafique Mughal.

>

As ever, Francesco obviously did not read L S Rao 2005 paper or B B

Lal's article from the same year and subsequent papers.

Of course, it is not JUST a fantasy of Dr K.

B B Lal commented on possible Vedic people also.

Bhirrana's early datings were also mentioned in Sarasvati Conference,

Delhi, October 2008, and are shown in a table in a ppt in an article

related to this meeting.

On the other hand, Francesco still uses his offensive words against

ANOTHER member of the present group without academic support. Hey!

Moderator! Are you there???

Best regards,

Carlos

--- End forwarded message ---

February 15, 2009

How can you call them Pakistanis when Pakistan itself was not there during those times of civilization.

On 2/15/09, Kishore patnaik <kishorepatnaik09 wrote:

IndiaArchaeology , " Carlos Aramayo " <cararam50 wrote:

IndiaArchaeology , " Francesco Brighenti " <frabrig@> wrote:

>> > Nowhere in Dr. Rao's paper are archaeological remains at Bhirrana > dating from the seventh millennium BCE mentioned (and there is, of > course, no mention at all of " Vedic people " in the paper -- that's

> entirely a fantasy of your own!).> > Rao reports that the earliest archaeological layers he found at > Bhirrana should be identified with the pre-Early Harappan Hakra Ware > Cultures, whose beginnings are dated to the first half of the fourth

> millennium BCE by archaeologist Rafique Mughal.> As ever, Francesco obviously did not read L S Rao 2005 paper or B B Lal's article from the same year and subsequent papers.Of course, it is not JUST a fantasy of Dr K.

B B Lal commented on possible Vedic people also.Bhirrana's early datings were also mentioned in Sarasvati Conference, Delhi, October 2008, and are shown in a table in a ppt in an article related to this meeting.

On the other hand, Francesco still uses his offensive words against ANOTHER member of the present group without academic support. Hey! Moderator! Are you there???Best regards,Carlos--- End forwarded message ---

-- Bhalchandra G. ThatteyShubham BhavatuSvalpasya Yogasya Trayate Mahato Bhayat

February 16, 2009

, " Kishore patnaik "

<kishorepatnaik09 wrote:

>

> IndiaArchaeology , " Carlos Aramayo "

> <cararam50@> wrote:

>

> IndiaArchaeology , " Francesco Brighenti "

> <frabrig@> wrote:

> >

> > Nowhere in Dr. Rao's paper are archaeological remains at Bhirrana

> > dating from the seventh millennium BCE mentioned (and there is,

of

> > course, no mention at all of " Vedic people " in the paper --

that's

> > entirely a fantasy of your own!).

> >

> > Rao reports that the earliest archaeological layers he found at

> > Bhirrana should be identified with the pre-Early Harappan Hakra

Ware

> > Cultures, whose beginnings are dated to the first half of the

fourth

> > millennium BCE by archaeologist Rafique Mughal.

> >

>

> As ever, Francesco obviously did not read L S Rao 2005 paper or B B

> Lal's article from the same year and subsequent papers.

>

> Of course, it is not JUST a fantasy of Dr K.

>

> B B Lal commented on possible Vedic people also.

>

> Bhirrana's early datings were also mentioned in Sarasvati

Conference,

> Delhi, October 2008, and are shown in a table in a ppt in an

article

> related to this meeting.

>

> Carlos

Are you referring to slide 3 of the L.S. Rao's ppt presentation

regarding dates?

M. Kelkar

>

> --- End forwarded message ---

>

February 16, 2009

There is definitive continuity between Bhirrana and later sites.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhirrana

" The (Bhirrana) site is one of the many sites seen along the channels

of the ancient Saraswati riverine systems, now represented by the

seasonal Ghaggar River which flows in modern Haryana from Nahan to

Sirsa "

That means the site belongs to the Vedic people!

" The excavation has revealed cultural periods viz., Period IA: Hakra

Wares Culture, Period IB: Early Harappan Culture, Period IIA: Early

Mature Harappan and Period IIB: Mature Harappan Culture. Period IA:

Hakra Wares Culture: The excavation has revealed the remains of the

Harappan culture right from its nascent stage, i.e. Hakra Wares

Culture (antedating the Known Early Harappan Culture in the

subcontinent, also known as Kalibangan-I.) to a full-fledged Mature

Harappan city. "

http://asi.nic.in/asi_exca_2007_bhirrana_images.asp#

http://tinyurl.com/aj3624

" For the first time in the post-Independence period, artefacts called

Hakra ware, belonging to the pre-early Harappan period, were found as

independent, stratified deposits at Bhirrana. "

Could that mean 7000 BCE?

http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2502/stories/20080201504012900.htm

L.S. Rao called the discovery " the only one of its kind " because " no

parallel to the Dancing Girl, either in bronze or in any other

medium, was known " until the potsherd was found. Bhirrana is

an " exemplary site " because, for the first time in post-Independence

India, Hakra ware belonging to the pre-early Harappan period were

found as independent, stratified deposits. L.S. Rao also called it

a " paradigmatic site " because " to put it in a nutshell, the

importance of the excavation at Bhirrana lies in the fact that we

have strong evidence for the first time of an unbroken cultural

sequence, starting from the village culture represented by Hakra ware

and its evolution gradually into semi-urban and urban cultures till

the site was finally abandoned. " Excavations at Bhirrana conclusively

show that during the period of Hakra ware culture, people lived in

circular pits cut into the soil. There were auxiliary pits for

cooking and for industrial activities (such as melting copper) and

for religious purposes, including animal sacrifices. " In the present

state of knowledge, " L.S. Rao said, " the Hakra ware culture belongs

to the fourth millennium B.C., or 6,000 years before the present. "

L. S. Rao goes as far back as 4000 BCE.

http://www.orientalthane.com/archaeology/news_2008_03_11_1.htm

M. Kelkar

February 17, 2009

I wrote:

> As ever, Francesco obviously did not read L S Rao 2005 paper or B

> B Lal's article from the same year and subsequent papers.

> Of course, it is not JUST a fantasy of Dr K.

>

> B B Lal commented on possible Vedic people also.

>

> Bhirrana's early datings were also mentioned in Sarasvati

> Conference,Delhi, October 2008, and are shown in a table in a ppt

> in an article

> related to this meeting.

M. Kelkar wrote:

> Are you referring to slide 3 of the L.S. Rao's ppt presentation

> regarding dates?

>

Dear Mayuresh,

I'm refering to table of C14 datings in page 69 of Rao's ppt found

at:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/7577484/lsraobhirrana

(Please scroll down to p.69)

I also refer to B B Lal's article " Can the Vedic people be

identified archaeologically? " 2005.

You can also find these C14 datings at:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/7753728/The-Sarasvati-bb-Lal

(Scroll down to pages 9-10):

" The Birbal SahniInstitute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow has provided the

following C-14 dates for the early (not the earliest) levels of the

site (Rao et al.2005).

Sample No. BS 2314. Calibrated age: 1 Sigma 4770 (4536,4506, 4504

BC) 4353 BCE

Sample No. BS 2318. Calibrated age: 1 Sigma 5336 (5041)4721 BCE

Sample No. BS 2333. Calibrated age: 1 Sigma 6647 (6439)6221 BCE

Even if we temporarily ignore Sample No. BS 2333, the other two

samples clearly show that the ancestry of the Harappa Culture in

the Sarasvati Valley goes back to the beginning of the fifth

millennium BCE. "

Best regards,

Carlos

February 18, 2009

If the term 'Pakistani' is used, historical perspective is seriously diluted, although present geographical cum political positioning is maintained. The phrase should read somewhat like 'in present day Paki.....".

Possibly should be Indus people or something alike that takes us back to the place instantaneously in relation to the time---- as there has been at least sporadic efflux of sub-populations if not on a near continuous manner.