AtlasERA
5000 BCE
South Asia · Early State

Indus Valley – Mature Phase

c. 2600–1900 BCE

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Overview

Peak urban planning, standardized weights, and drainage

Indus Valley Civilization

One of the three earliest urban civilizations (with Mesopotamia and Egypt). Spanning from Neolithic Mehrgarh through the Mature Harappan phase (c. 2600-1900 BCE) with planned cities, standardized weights, undeciphered script, and long-distance trade. Declined into regional Late Harappan cultures by c. 1900 BCE.

Territory Phases

  1. Pre-Harappan Farming Communities5000 BCE – 3300 BCE

    Scattered Neolithic farming villages in the Bolan Pass and Kacchi Plain piedmont zone. Pre-urban — no 'Indus Valley' civilization yet. Mehrgarh is the dominant settlement.

  2. Pre-Harappan Communities4000 BCE – 3300 BCE

    Expanding farming communities along the upper Indus tributaries and Kacchi Plain. Mehrgarh is now Chalcolithic (ceramic, early copper). Hakra-related scattered settlements spreading east.

  3. Indus Valley – Early Phase3300 BCE – 2600 BCE

    Initial urbanization along the Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra river valleys. Regional cultures including Ravi, Hakra, Kot Diji and Amri-Nal develop proto-urban settlements with trade networks.

  4. Indus Valley – Mature Phase2600 BCE – 1900 BCE

    Broader extent of Mature Harappan influence. Sparser settlement in Gujarat, upper Punjab foothills, and the eastern Ghaggar-Hakra paleochannel.

  5. Indus Valley – Mature Phase2600 BCE – 1900 BCE

    Dense urban core along the Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra rivers. Planned cities with standardized weights, seals, script, and brick sizes.

  6. Cemetery H1900 BCE – 1300 BCE

    Post-urban culture at Harappa and surrounding Punjab. Distinctive painted pottery with peacock and pipal motifs. Cremation burials in Cemetery H at Harappa.

  7. Jhukar Culture1900 BCE – 1500 BCE

    Post-urban Sindh culture succeeding Mature Harappan at sites like Jhukar and Mohenjo-daro. New pottery styles, continued use of Indus-era sites but with declining urbanism.

  8. Late Ghaggar-Hakra1900 BCE – 1300 BCE

    Remnant settlements along the drying Ghaggar-Hakra paleochannel. Population gradually shifts eastward as the river system fails. Sites like Rakhigarhi and Banawali continue with reduced scale.

  9. Late Harappan Kutch1900 BCE – 1500 BCE

    Dholavira and surrounding Kutch settlements in gradual decline. Water management systems deteriorate as climate dries.

Sources

  1. Hand-drawn polygon
  2. Kenoyer, J.M. (1998) Ancient Cities of the Indus Valley Civilization
  3. Possehl, G.L. (2002) The Indus Civilization: A Contemporary Perspective