Harappa

Harappa is located in Punjab, northeast Pakistan, about 35km (22 miles) southwest of Sahiwal.
The modern town is located near the former course of the Ravi River and also beside the ruins of an ancient fortified city, which was part of the Cemetery H culture and the Indus Valley Civilization.
This ancient settlement existed from about 3300 BCE and is believed to have had as many as 23,500 residents—considered large for its time. Although the Harappa Culture extended well beyond the bounds of present day Pakistan, its centres were in Sindh and the Punjab.
One of the most fascinating yet mysterious cultures of the ancient world is the Harappan civilization. This culture existed along the Indus River in present day Pakistan and India. It was named after the city of Harappa which it was centered around. Harappa and the city of Mohenjo-Daro were the greatest achievements of the Indus valley civilization. These cities are well known for their impressive, organized and regular layout, road and street network, drainage and step-wells for water. Over one hundred other towns and villages also existed in this region. Only part of this language has been deciphered today, leaving numerous questions about this civilization unanswered.
The Indus Valley civilization (also known as Harappan culture) has its earliest roots in cultures such as that of Mehrgarh, approximately 6000 BC. The two greatest cities, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa, emerged circa 2600 BC along the Indus River valley in Punjab and Sindh. Indus Valley civilization was mainly an urban culture sustained by surplus agricultural production and commerce, the latter including trade with Sumer in southern Mesopotamia. Both Mohenjo-daro and Harappa were built according to similar plans of well-laid-out streets, "differentiated living quarters, flat-roofed brick houses, and fortified administrative or religious centers." Weights and measures were roughly the same (though not fully standardized) throughout the area and distinctive seals were used, among other applications, for identification of property and shipment of goods. Although copper and bronze were in use, iron was still not employed. "Cotton was woven and dyed for clothing; wheat, rice, and a variety of vegetables and fruits were cultivated; and a number of animals, including the humped bull, were domesticated." Wheel-made pottery, some of it adorned with animal and geometric motifs, has been found in profusion at all the major Indus sites. A centralized administration for each city, though not the whole civilization, has been inferred from the revealed cultural uniformity; however, it remains uncertain whether authority lay with a commercial oligarchy. There appears to be a complete lack of priestly "pomp or lavish display" that was common in other civilizations.