Mohenjo-Daro

Mohenjo-Daro, Bronze Age city of the Indus Valley civilization, built on the west bank of the Indus, south of Lārkāna, in Pakistan. It consists of a fortified citadel overlooking a lower town. The citadel, built on an artificial mudbrick platform and defended by baked-brick towers, contained a number of important buildings: a large public bath and smaller private rooms, possibly for ritual ablutions; a ventilated granary; a building that may have been the residence of a priest or high official; and what is reasonably supposed to have been an assembly hall.

The lower town, with accommodation for workers and artisans, was laid out on a rectangular grid of main streets and smaller lanes. The grid-like arrangement of the streets and the stark uniformity of the houses suggests rigid state control, and may be the first instance of town planning in the world. The streets were unpaved but were supplied with an efficient drainage system. Most of the houses, made of baked brick, were two storeys high and most had underfloor drains, a well room, and a bathroom; some also had latrines with seats. Artefacts excavated at Mohenjo-Daro include terracotta figurines of humans and animals, sculpture in stone and bronze, and a quantity of seals, usually featuring an animal and an inscription.

Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa were by far the largest urban centres of the Indus Valley civilization. Both evidently fulfilled an important political and administrative function. It has been suggested that, while Harappa acted as the capital of the Punjab province, Mohenjo-Daro was the capital of Sindh. The ruins of the city were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980.