Indus valley art and architecture
☆ Architecture : is not a modern phenomenon. It began as soon as the early cave man began to build his/her own shelter to live in. Indian Architecture evolved in various stages in different parts and regions of the country. Apart from the natural and obvious evolutions from the pre historic and historic periods, evolution of Indian Architecture was generally affected by many great and important historic developments. Naturally,
historic and historic periods, evolution of Indian Architecture was generally affected by many great and important historic developments. Naturally, empires and dynasty in the subcontinent, each in their way influenced the growth and shaped
the evolution of Indian architecture.
● Architecture and Sculpture:
Architecture refers to designing of and construction of buildings, whereas sculpture is a 3D ls are used i.e. stone, wood, glass, metal.
Architecture refers to designing of and construction of buildings, whereas sculpture is a 3D work of art.
In Architecture, various types of materia
etc. whereas sculpture is made of single piece of material.
Architecture involves study of engineering and engineering mathematics and depends upon measurement, whereas sculpture involves creativity, imagination and may not depend on measurement.
● Classification of India Architecture Indian Architecture can be classified into as follows -
□ Ancient India---
▪ Harappa Art.
▪ Mauryan Art Post.
▪ Mauryan Art.
▪ Gupta Age Art.
▪ south India Architecture.
● Medieval India:
▪ Delhi Sultanate.
▪ Mughal Period.
● Modern India:
▪ Indo-Gothic Style.
▪ Neo-Roman Style.
---●Harappan Civilization
(Indus Valley Civilization) Art:
Harappan civilization emerged during second half of the 3rd millennium BCE and was a Bronze Age Civilization.
Along with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia it was one of the three early civilizations of the world. It flourished in the basins of the Indus River, one of the major rivers of Asia, and the Ghaggar - Hakra River, which once coursed through northwest India and eastern Pakistan.
The two major sites of the Indus valley civilization are along the Indus River. The cities of Harappa in the north and Mohenjo-Daro in the south showcase one of the earliest examples of civil planning. While Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro are situated in Pakistan, the important sites excavated in India are Lothal and Dholavira in Gujrat, Rakhigarhi in Haryana, Ropar in Punjab, Kalibangan and Balathal in Rajasthan, etc.At its peak, the Indus Civilization may have had a population of over five million.
○ Seals:
Seals are square, rectangular or circular or triangular piece of material (mainly stones).
The standard Harappan seal was a square plaque 2×2 square inches, usually made from the soft river stone, steatite.
Every seal is engraved in pictographic script along with animal impressions which are yet to be deciphered. Some of seals have also been found in gold and Ivory.
On an average 5 signs or symbols are present on a seal. Direction of writing is right to left. They all bear a great variety of motifs, most often of animals including those of the bull, the elephant, tiger, goat and also monsters. Sometimes trees or human figures were also depicted.
Most important example is Pashupati Seal and Unicorn Seal which are shown above and below.
• Significance of Seals:
° They were mainly used as unit of trade and commerce.
° They were also used as an amulet (to ward off the evil).
° They were also used as an educational tool(pie).
-----) Sculptures :
•Dancing Girl
▪bearded person
is a fire baked clay and is handmade using pinching method.The Indus Valley people made terracotta images also but as compared to stone and bronze statues the terracotta representations of human form are crude. They are more realistic in Gujarat sites and Kalibangan. Examples are Mother Goddess, Toy carts with wheels, whistles, birds and animals etc.
☆ Pottery:
A large quantity of pottery excavated from the sites indicates gradual evolution of various design motifs as employed in different shapes and styles. Potteries were mainly plain, red and black painted. The Indus Valley pottery consists chiefly of very fine wheel- made wares, very few being hand-made. Plain pottery is more common than painted ware. Plain pottery is generally of red clay, with or without a fine red or grey slip. It includes knobbed ware, ornamented with rows of knobs. The black painted ware has a fine coating of red slip on which geometric and animal designs are executed in glossy black paint.
● Use of Pottery :
- For household purpose (storage of water, food grains etc).
- For decoration- Miniature vessels used for decoration (Less than ½ inch).
- Used as perforated pottery (large hole at the bottom and small holes all over the wall, and probably was used for straining liquor.)
• Beads and Ornaments:
The Harappan men and women decorated themselves with a large variety of ornaments produced from every conceivable material ranging from precious metals, gemstones, bone and even baked clay. Necklaces, armlets and finger rings were common and worn by both males and females. While women wore girdles, earrings and anklets.
The bead industry seems to have been well developed as evident from the factories discovered at Chanhudaro and Lothal. Beads were made of cornelian, amethyst, steatite, tourquise etc. The beads are in varying shapes – disc shaped, cylindrical, spherical, barrel shaped and segmented. Great technical skill has been displayed in the manufacture of these beads.
Evidences of dead bodies buried along with ornaments have also been found. Harappans were also conscious of fashion (as different hair styles, wearing of a beard etc have been found). Cinnabar was used as cosmetic, Lipstick, face-paint and even eyeliner's were all known to them.
☆ Extensive Town Planning:
A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture is evident in the Indus Valley Civilization making them the first urban centers in the region. Within the city, individual homes or groups of homes obtained the water from wells. The ancient Indus systems of sewerage and drainage were far more advanced than any found in contemporary urban sites. Roads used to cut at right angles. Houses were built of baked bricks of fixed sizes. Use of stone and wood in buildings has also been found. The concept of two-storied houses was also present. Citadels were supposed to be the habitation of elites but its purpose still remains debated. Although the citadels were walled, it is far from clear that these structures were defensive. They may have been built to divert flood waters. Granaries were another important creation which used to be located in citadel. Their construction was intelligent and it has strategic air-ducts and platforms. Public bath was a common feature e.g. Great bath at Mohenjo-Daro (It has galleries and rooms on all sides).Most city dwellers appear to have been traders or artisans, who lived with others pursuing the same occupation. Spinning of cotton and wool was common among the Harappan people.
historic and historic periods, evolution of Indian Architecture was generally affected by many great and important historic developments. Naturally, empires and dynasty in the subcontinent, each in their way influenced the growth and shaped
the evolution of Indian architecture.
● Architecture and Sculpture:
Architecture refers to designing of and construction of buildings, whereas sculpture is a 3D ls are used i.e. stone, wood, glass, metal.
Architecture refers to designing of and construction of buildings, whereas sculpture is a 3D work of art.
In Architecture, various types of materia
etc. whereas sculpture is made of single piece of material.
Architecture involves study of engineering and engineering mathematics and depends upon measurement, whereas sculpture involves creativity, imagination and may not depend on measurement.
● Classification of India Architecture Indian Architecture can be classified into as follows -
□ Ancient India---
▪ Harappa Art.
▪ Mauryan Art Post.
▪ Mauryan Art.
▪ Gupta Age Art.
▪ south India Architecture.
● Medieval India:
▪ Delhi Sultanate.
▪ Mughal Period.
● Modern India:
▪ Indo-Gothic Style.
▪ Neo-Roman Style.
---●Harappan Civilization
(Indus Valley Civilization) Art:
Along with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia it was one of the three early civilizations of the world. It flourished in the basins of the Indus River, one of the major rivers of Asia, and the Ghaggar - Hakra River, which once coursed through northwest India and eastern Pakistan.
The two major sites of the Indus valley civilization are along the Indus River. The cities of Harappa in the north and Mohenjo-Daro in the south showcase one of the earliest examples of civil planning. While Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro are situated in Pakistan, the important sites excavated in India are Lothal and Dholavira in Gujrat, Rakhigarhi in Haryana, Ropar in Punjab, Kalibangan and Balathal in Rajasthan, etc.At its peak, the Indus Civilization may have had a population of over five million.
○ Seals:
The standard Harappan seal was a square plaque 2×2 square inches, usually made from the soft river stone, steatite.
Every seal is engraved in pictographic script along with animal impressions which are yet to be deciphered. Some of seals have also been found in gold and Ivory.
On an average 5 signs or symbols are present on a seal. Direction of writing is right to left. They all bear a great variety of motifs, most often of animals including those of the bull, the elephant, tiger, goat and also monsters. Sometimes trees or human figures were also depicted.
Most important example is Pashupati Seal and Unicorn Seal which are shown above and below.
• Significance of Seals:
° They were mainly used as unit of trade and commerce.
° They were also used as an amulet (to ward off the evil).
° They were also used as an educational tool(pie).
-----) Sculptures :
•Dancing Girl ▪bearded person
The stone statuaries found at Harappa and Mohenjodaro are excellent examples of handling three- dimensional volumes. In stone are two male figures— one is a torso in red sandstone and the other is a bust of a bearded man in steatite.
The art of bronze casting was practiced on a wide scale under Harappan art.
The technique used for casting is known as "Lost wax technique". Under this technique, at first wax figures are covered with a coating of clay and allowed to dry.
Then it is heated and the molten wax is allowed to drain out through a tiny hole at the bottom of the clay cover. The hollow mould is then filled with bronze or any other metal. Once the metal is cooled, the clay is removed.Kalibangan and Daimabad yielded excellent examples of metal-cast sculptures.In bronze we find human as well as animal figures, the best example of the former being the statue of a girl popularly titled ‘Dancing Girl’. Amongst animal figures in bronze the buffalo with its uplifted head, back and sweeping horns and the goat are of artistic merit.
----□ Terracotta:
☆ Pottery:
A large quantity of pottery excavated from the sites indicates gradual evolution of various design motifs as employed in different shapes and styles. Potteries were mainly plain, red and black painted. The Indus Valley pottery consists chiefly of very fine wheel- made wares, very few being hand-made. Plain pottery is more common than painted ware. Plain pottery is generally of red clay, with or without a fine red or grey slip. It includes knobbed ware, ornamented with rows of knobs. The black painted ware has a fine coating of red slip on which geometric and animal designs are executed in glossy black paint.
● Use of Pottery :
- For household purpose (storage of water, food grains etc).
- For decoration- Miniature vessels used for decoration (Less than ½ inch).
- Used as perforated pottery (large hole at the bottom and small holes all over the wall, and probably was used for straining liquor.)
• Beads and Ornaments:
The Harappan men and women decorated themselves with a large variety of ornaments produced from every conceivable material ranging from precious metals, gemstones, bone and even baked clay. Necklaces, armlets and finger rings were common and worn by both males and females. While women wore girdles, earrings and anklets.
The bead industry seems to have been well developed as evident from the factories discovered at Chanhudaro and Lothal. Beads were made of cornelian, amethyst, steatite, tourquise etc. The beads are in varying shapes – disc shaped, cylindrical, spherical, barrel shaped and segmented. Great technical skill has been displayed in the manufacture of these beads.
Evidences of dead bodies buried along with ornaments have also been found. Harappans were also conscious of fashion (as different hair styles, wearing of a beard etc have been found). Cinnabar was used as cosmetic, Lipstick, face-paint and even eyeliner's were all known to them.
☆ Extensive Town Planning:
A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture is evident in the Indus Valley Civilization making them the first urban centers in the region. Within the city, individual homes or groups of homes obtained the water from wells. The ancient Indus systems of sewerage and drainage were far more advanced than any found in contemporary urban sites. Roads used to cut at right angles. Houses were built of baked bricks of fixed sizes. Use of stone and wood in buildings has also been found. The concept of two-storied houses was also present. Citadels were supposed to be the habitation of elites but its purpose still remains debated. Although the citadels were walled, it is far from clear that these structures were defensive. They may have been built to divert flood waters. Granaries were another important creation which used to be located in citadel. Their construction was intelligent and it has strategic air-ducts and platforms. Public bath was a common feature e.g. Great bath at Mohenjo-Daro (It has galleries and rooms on all sides).Most city dwellers appear to have been traders or artisans, who lived with others pursuing the same occupation. Spinning of cotton and wool was common among the Harappan people.
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