Excavation

Kalibangan, Dt.-Hanumangarh, Rajasthan

1960 to 1969 Go to Gallery
  • Kalibangan, Dt.-Hanumangarh, Rajasthan
  • 1960 - 1969

Kalibangan is situated on the left bank of the Ghaggar (anciently known as the Sarasvati) in Tehsil Pilibangan, District Hanumangarh in Rajasthan the site was excavated for nine field seasons (1960-1969) by the Archaeological Survey of India.
The excavation has brought to light a twofold sequence of cultures, of which the upper one (Kalibangan I) is the Harappa, showing the characteristic grid layout of a metropolis and the lower one (Kalibangan II) Early Harappa or antecedent Harappa.

  • Period-I
  • The settlement of Kalibangan-I was fortified from the beginning of the occupation. The fortification was made of mud bricks. Within the walled area, the houses were built of mud bricks of the same size as used in the fortification wall; the use of baked bricks is attested by a drain within the houses, remains of ovens and cylindrical pits, lined with lime plaster. The distinctive trait of this Period is, however, the pottery, first identified at Sothi, which is characterized by six fabrics, labelled A, B, C, D, E and F. Of these Fabrics, E and F distinguished essentially by surface colour (E by buff and F by grey) do not show marked individualities in shape or in painted design and are also rather uncommon, particularly the latter.
    Among the remaining, Fabrics A, B and D are marked by an individuality which isolate them from the Harappa assemblage. Fabric A is a carelessly potted ware showing painted designs in light-black combined at times With white; Fabric B is distinguished essentially by the roughened or rusticated surface of the lower portion of the pots, the upper part being smooth-slipped; Fabric C is marked by a fine-textured paste and all-over smooth- slipped surface in shades of red and purple or plum-red, recalling pottery from the pre-defence deposits of Harappa; Fabric D is characterized by a thick sturdy section, represented in such shapes as the heavy jar, trough and basin, the interior sides of the latter being decorated With ridged incisions of varying patterns. Among the other finds of this Period are: small-sized blades of chalcedony and agate, sometimes serrated or backed; beads, variously of steatite, shell, carnelian, terracotta and copper; bangles of copper, shell and terracotta; terracotta objects like a toy-cart wheel and a bull; quern with mullers, a bone point, and copper celts, including an unusual axe.
  • Period-II
  • In this Period the settlement into two parts - the citadel (KLB-l) on the West, located atop the abandoned settlement of Period I, and the lower city (KLB-2) towards the East., laid out on the natural plain, leaving a gap of about 40 m.
    The citadel complex was roughly a parallelogram and consisted of two almost equal but separately patterned parts. Both these parts were contained by a fortification wall, and the enclosed area contained some five to six massive platforms of mud bricks, each separate from the other and perhaps intended for a specific purpose by the community as a whole.
    The lower city was also a parallelogram. It was found to be enclosed by a fortification wall, involving three to four structural phases. It was made of mud bricks of similar sizes as those used for the fortifications of the citadel (40 x 20 x 10 and 30 x 15 x 7.5 cm). Within the walled city was a gridiron plan of streets running north to south and east to west, dividing the area into blocks.