Finding Out About Craft Production

Chanhudaro, a small settlement, is significantly smaller than Mohenjodaro, with a primary focus on craft production. Various crafts, including bead-making, shell-cutting, metalworking, seal-making, and weight-making, were practiced there.

The beads produced at Chanhudaro were made from a diverse range of materials, including stones like carnelian, jasper, crystal, quartz, and steatite, as well as metals like copper, bronze, and gold, along with shell, faience, and terracotta. These beads displayed a wide variety of shapes, such as disc-shaped, cylindrical, spherical, barrel-shaped, and segmented, with some featuring decorative elements like incising, painting, or etched designs.

Different techniques were employed for making beads depending on the material used. Steatite, being a soft stone, was easily worked, allowing for the creation of various shapes through moulding with a paste made from steatite powder. However, the process of creating micro beads from steatite remains a puzzle for archaeologists.

The distinctive red color of carnelian beads was achieved through firing the yellowish raw material at various stages of production. Nodules of carnelian were chipped into rough shapes and then finely flaked to their final form, followed by grinding, polishing, and drilling. Specialized drills discovered at Chanhudaro, Lothal, and Dholavira indicate the advanced technological skills of ancient craftsmen.

Additionally, coastal settlements like Nageshwar and Balakot specialized in shell crafts, including bangles, ladles, and inlays, which were likely traded with other settlements. Similarly, finished products like beads from Chanhudaro and Lothal were probably traded to larger urban centers such as Mohenjodaro and Harappa.

Craft Production of the Harappan Civilization is a subpart of the Class 12 history. Craft Production of the Harappan Civilization falls under the chapter “Bricks, Beads, and Bones”. The subpart gives us an idea of the ancient Harappa Civilization with its Craft Production capabilities and related trade processes. Most of the Harappan artifacts were developed and made with the use of stones, different metals, and shells. Sometimes they used high-quality copper and bronze to make different types of weapons, daily using tools, beautiful ornaments, and vessels. The gold and silver metals were used to make different ornaments and high-quality stones for making seals.

In this article, we will discuss the Craft Production of Harappan Civilization in detail.