Archaeological Continuity

Cultural Remains: Stone Age to Harappa | Mehrgarh

Mehrgarh is the ancient site that provides continuous cultural remains from the Stone Age all the way to the Harappan Civilization.

Primary Reference: NCERT Class 11 - Ancient India (R.S. Sharma)

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The cultural remains from Stone Age to Harappan Civilization have been obtained from which one of the following ancient sites?

[U.P.P.C.S. Prelims 2008]

Detailed Solution & Historical Context

Concept


Few sites in the world show a continuous sequence of human occupation across major technological epochs (Stone Age -> Neolithic -> Bronze Age).

Authentic Source Evidence


Excavations at Mehrgarh show a stratigraphic sequence beginning with aceramic Neolithic (Stone Age) and evolving directly into the pre-Harappan and Harappan cultures.

Analytical Breakdown


  • Mehrgarh (B): Provides the uninterrupted 'missing link' between early prehistoric hunters and the sophisticated urban Harappans.

  • Amri/Kotdiji: These are pre-Harappan sites but do not show the same deep time depth reaching back to the early Neolithic Stone Age.
  • Conceptual Deep Dive & Logic

    "How long was Mehrgarh continuously occupied?"

    It was occupied from roughly 7000 BCE to 2500 BCE, spanning the early Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and the start of the Bronze Age.

    Examiner's Mindset & Pro-Tip

    "Mehrgarh is the key archaeological site that proves the Indus Valley Civilization was an indigenous development that grew out of local Stone Age cultures."

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