Harappan Studies: Vol. III: Recent Researches in South Asian Archaeology

Contents: 1. Prelude to Emergence of Harappans in the Watershed of Sarasvati–Drishadvati Rivers/Amarendra Nath. 2. Fish Utilization during the Harappan Period at Shikarpur, Gujarat, India/Abhayan G.S., P.P. Joglekar, P. Ajithprasad, K. Krishnan, K.K. Bhan and Rajesh S.V. 3. Excavations at Khanak, Bhiwani, Haryana (2013-2014 & 2015-2016)/Ravindra N. Singh, Cameron A. Petrie, A.K. Pandey, D.P. Singh, Vikas K. Singh, Amit Ranjan, Sudarshan Chakradhari, Aftab Alam, P.P. Joglekar, Sayantani Neogi and Charly French. 4. Metal Technology and its Socio-Cultural Dimensions: The Bronze Age Civilization in India/Vibha Tripathi. 5. Why the Pieces of Evidence from Sanauli Excavation Represent Late Harappan Culture/V. N. Prabhakar. 6. Explorations in Rohtak Tehsil, Haryana/Vivek Dangi and Manmohan Kumar. 7. A Note on the Recent Explorations of Anupgarh Tehsil, Sri Ganganagar District, Rajasthan/Samunder and Arun K. Singh.

The series Harappan Studies is devoted to the study of the Harappan civilization and its contemporary cultures. It covers a wide spectrum of topics, as evident from the present volume, the third in the series, which contains seven papers.

The first paper by Amarendra Nath discusses the prelude to the emergence of the Harappans in the watershed of the Saraswati-Drishadvati rivers. In the subsequent paper, Abhayan G.S. and others have discussed the use of fish during the Harappan period. They have analysed fish remains from various sites, including Shikarpur (Gujarat). In the next paper, two seasons' report of excavations conducted at a site named Khanak is outlined by Ravindra N. Singh, Cameron A. Petrie, and their team. Vibha Tripathi, in her analytical work, has explored the sociocultural dimensions of metal technology in the Bronze Age civilization in India. V.N. Prabhakar, based on excavations at the Sanauli site (Uttar Pradesh), where he was personally involved, and later excavations conducted under the direction of Dr. Manjul, raises some intriguing questions. V.N. Prabhakar, through comparative studies of evidence from various Harappan and post-Harappan sites, has concluded that the evidences from Sanauli represents the Late Harappan culture.  The next paper by Vivek Dangi and Manmohan Kumar is based on their explorations in the Rohtak tehsil of Haryana. In the final paper of this volume, a brief report of the explorations conducted in Anupgarh tehsil, Rajasthan by Samunder and Arun K. Singh is given.

The contributors of the volume include a wide range of international and national experts as also young and budding scholars. The volume would be a useful reference for students and scholars of South Asian archaeology.