In The Earliest Cities - Class 6 History - Extra Questions

The houses in Mohen-jo-Daro were built on high plinth for protection from floods or dampness of any sort. The houses owned by the rich had two storeys and had five to seven rooms. The poor had single-storey houses with two to three rooms. The main entrance to all the houses was in the side lanes. The residential  building were built according to a set plan on a high mound in order to protect them from floods. Each house had covered drains, connected with street drains.

Actual pieces of cloth have been found in Mohenjodaro, attached to the lid of a silver vase and some copper objects. Spindle whorls have also been discovered, which were used to spin thread. This indicates cloth was used in the Harappan civilisation.

1. Metals like Copper and bronze were used for making tools, weapons, ornaments, vessels, gold and silver ornaments, vessels.
2. Writing has always been a very important means of communication. It was important for the Harappans also.
3. The wheel was used in carts which made agriculture easy and also they were used for spinning pottery.
4. The plough was used to dig the earth for turning the soil and for planting seeds.

Craftsman like the carpenters, weavers, potters, etc. were presumably present in both villages and cities.

The answer to this question depends on the city/village you live in. Take the help of your teacher to prepare the answer.

Irrigation

Most of the seals were made of steatite, which is a kind of soft stone.

Spindle whorls were used to spin thread.

Unlike other Harappan cities, Dholavira was divided into three parts. There were massive stone walls around each part and entrances were made through gateways. There was a large open area in the settlement where the public meetings were held. In other Harappan cities, the carvings were made on small objects like seals. In Dholavira, the carvings were made on white stones and inlaid in wood.

Most of the things found in the Harappan cities were made up of stone, shell and metals, like copper, bronze, gold and silver. The seals were made up of stones.

In the Harappan context, a specialist is a person who was trained to do only one kind of work such as, cutting stones, polishing beads, carving seals, etc. Some women and men may have been specialists during the Harappan Civilisation.

The citadel of the Harappan cities had some important buildings. One of these is called the Great Bath present at the Mohenjodaro. It was lined with bricks, coated with plaster, natural tar was used to make it water-tight. The steps were present on two sides. The rooms were present on all sides. A well would supply water to it and water was probably drained after usage. It was probably used by important people for taking dips on some important occasions. 

People used ring wells as drains and garbage dumps. Sometimes, these were used as toilets. Ring wells were built as rows of pots, or ceramic rings arranged one on top of the other.

Ring wells were built as rows of pots, or ceramic rings arranged one on top of the other. Ring wells were used as drains and garbage dumps. Sometimes, these were used as toilets.

There were following categories of people in a Harappa city:

clay

The Harappan cities imported copper from Oman and West Asia. Tin, which was mixed with copper to obtain bronze was imported from Afghanistan and Iran. Precious stones were also obtained from Afghanistan and Iran.

Harappans grew wheat, barley, pulses, peas, rice, sesame, linseed and mustard. A new tool called plough was used to dig earth for turning the soil and planting seeds. Irrigation processes were also used. The Harappan reared cattle, sheep, goat and buffalo.

There were three basic occupations of people living in Harappan cities.
(i) Specialized craft like jewellery making was practiced by them. Many beaded jewellery has been recovered and some of them contained precious stones. Lapiz Lazuli was brought all the way from Afghanistan.
(ii) Scribes were people who knew how to write. They prepared the seals.
(iii)The city contained a lower part and the upper portion known as citadel. There are monuments like Great bath, granary and organized house structures which may have required specialized labors and architects.
Besides these three categories, there were the farmers and herders who lived outside the city and provided food to the people.

Due to possible floods and loss of control by the rulers, people abandoned Sind and moved into newer and smaller settlements to the east and south. New cities gradually emerged 1400 years later.

Harappan objects were made up of stones, shells and metals. Copper and bronze were used to make tools, weapons, ornaments and vessels. Gold and silver were used to make ornaments and vessels. They also made stone seals.

The possible reasons behind the end of the Harappan civilization are:

1 Roadways:
a Roads are the main feature of town planning of Mohenjodaro.
b Roads were 9.75 metres wide.
c The roads were wide enough for a number of vehicles to pass at a time.
d They were built from north to south and east to west intersecting each other at right angles.
b Such a drainage system was found nowhere except in island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea.
c Drains were built alongside the roads and the waste and water from kitchens and bathrooms emptied directly into the main drains.
d This planned, systematic and efficient drainage system proves the health and hygiene of ancient people.