CULTURAL HERITAGE OF INDIA: SCULPTURE AND ARCHITECTURE. — Social Science STD 10 — Question
Gujarat BoardEnglish MediumSTD 10Social ScienceCULTURAL HERITAGE OF INDIA: SCULPTURE AND ARCHITECTURE.4 Marks
Question
Give detailed information about the roads and drainage system in Mohen-jo-Daro.
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Answer
Mohen-Jo-Daro
In $1922,$ archaeologists Rakhal Das Banerji and Dayaram Sahni found the remains ofa town during excavation work which was being carried out under the guidance of Sir John Marsha! and Colonel Mackey, in Larkhan district $($now in Pakistan$)$.
Mohen-jo-Daro means ‘the heap of the dead'.
Construction of the town
Houses
Mohen-jo-Daro had the best town planning.
The houses here were built on a high plinth to protect them from dampness or floods.
The houses of the rich were double storeyed with five to seven rooms, while those of the poor were single-storeyed with two to three rooms.
The main entrance of the houses opened in the side lanes and not on the main roads.
The remains of a kitchen, store-house and bathroom were found in every house.
There was proper arrangement for doors and windows to keep the houses well ventilated.
The town was fortified.
Roads
Roads were the main features of this town planning.
The main roads were $9.75$ metres wide.
There were two main roads one going from North to South and the other from East to West.
Both crossed each other at right angle.
The small link roads crossed the major ones at right angles.
The roads were.wide enough for a number of vehicles to pass at a time.
Pits on the road side suggest that there might have been lamp posts there.
Roads of the town were straight and the main roads had no turns, this was a speciality of ancient time.
Drainage System
Drainage system is a unique feature of this town planning.
The town had an underground drainage system.
Each house had a cesspit and the dirty water was drained out of the town.
Such a drainage system was only found in the island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea.
This proves how careful those people were for their health and hygiene.
Public Baths
A huge bath was excavated at Mohen-Jo-Daro.
There was an arrangement to supply fresh water and throw out the dirty water.
There might have been facility for hot water and small rooms for changing clothes.
The public baths might have been used on festivals and religious ceremonies.
Public Buildings
The ruins of two huge buildings have been found at Mohen-Jo-Daro.
They might have been used as a town hall or a theatre or an administrative office or a granary.
A barrack of such buildings was found out and this must have been used to accommodate soldiers.
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