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Art and Craft, Pottery and Seal Making in Indus Valley Civilization

In The Earliest Cities I - Concepts

Civilization and The City

Story of Harappa

Urbanization and the City

Indus Valley Civilization

Life in the City

Art and Craft, Pottery and Seal Making in Indus Valley Civilization

Mohenjodaro

Class - 6th CBSE Subjects

Concept Explanation

Art and Craft, Pottery and Seal Making in Indus Valley Civilization

New craft in the city: Copper and bronze were used to make tool, weapons, ornaments and vessels, gold and silver were used to make ornaments and vessels. The Harappans also made seals out of stone. These are generally rectangular and usually have an animal carved on them. The Harappans also made pots with beautiful black designs. Many of the things that were produced were probably the work of specialists a specialist is a person who is trained to do only one kind of work, for example, cutting stone, or polishing beads, or carving seals.

Art and Craft of Indus valley Civilization:

The arts of Indus Valley civilization, one of the earliest civilizations of the world, emerged during the second half of the third millennium (Bronze Age).

The forms of art found from various sites of civilization include sculptures, seals, pottery, gold ornaments, terracotta figures, etc.

Their delineation of human and animal figures was highly realistic in nature.

Modelling of figures was done in an extremely careful manner.

Two major sites of Indus Valley civilization, along the river Indus are: North – cities of Harappa; South – Mohenjo-Daro.

Seals

Thousands of seals were discovered from the sites, usually made of steatite, and occasionally of agate, chert, copper, faience and terracotta, with beautiful figures of animals such as unicorn bull, rhinoceros, tiger, elephant, bison, goat, buffalo, etc.

The purpose was mainly commercial.

They were also used as amulets, carried on the persons of their owners, perhaps as modern identity cards.

Standard Harappan seal was 2 x 2 square inches.

Every seal is engraved in a pictographic script which is yet to be deciphered.

Some seals were also been found in Gold and Ivory.

Seals of Pashupati Mahadeva

Found in Mohenjo-Daro.

The seal depicts a human figure seated cross legged.

An elephant and a tiger are depicted to the right side of the figure, while on the left a rhinoceros and a buffalo are seen.

Two antelopes (deer) are shown below the seat (nearby his feet).

The figure has a three horned head.

Pottery:

Indus valley pottery consists of very fine wheel made wares, very few being handmade.

Plain pottery is more common than painted ware.

Plain pottery is generally red clay, with or without a fine red or grey slip.

The black painted ware has a fine coating of red slip on which geometric and animal designs are executed in glossy black paint.

Painted Earthen Jar

Found in Mohenjo-Daro.

Made on a potters’ wheel with clay.

The shape was manipulated by pressure of the crafty fingers of the potter.

After baking a clay model, it was painted with black colour.

High polishing was done as a finishing touch.

Motifs are vegetal and geometric forms.

Designs are simple.

Sample Questions

(More Questions for each concept available in Login)

Question : 1

What is a seal?
A. clay tablets	B. Charcoal	C. Thread	D. None of these
Right Option : A
View Explanation

Question : 2

Which one of the following was not a characteristic of the Harappan pottery ?
A. Peacock and fish representation		B. Geometrical figure like intersecting circle
C. Non - glossy wares		D. Use manganese paint and various colours like black, green, red, yellow, etc.
Right Option : C
View Explanation