TIME

Indus Valley Civilization

c. 2600–1900 BCE

The Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro, a rectangular brick-lined basin with stairs descending into it, among the brick walls of the ancient city.

Recorded HistoryIndus Valley Civilization

The Indus, or Harappan, civilization grew up across the plains of the Indus and its tributaries, in what is now Pakistan and north-western India. Its mature phase is conventionally placed from about 2600 to 1900 BCE. Cities such as Mohenjo-daro and Harappa were laid out on grids, with fired-brick houses, covered drains, and public works such as the Great Bath.

The archive marks a period, not a day, and it places the Moment at the start of the mature phase. The dates come from excavation and radiocarbon, and they are revised as sites are studied. The civilization’s seals carry a script that has not been deciphered, so its own account of itself cannot yet be read.

c. 2600–1900 BCE, placed on the scale of its era on a line leading toward now.

Era
Recorded History
Period
c. 2600–1900 BCE
Edition
1/1
Status
Reserved for a Future Release
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Background artwork

Cinematic background showing a brick street and a stepped public bath in an Indus Valley city at dusk. An illustration generated with an AI image tool for TIME. It is an artistic depiction, not a photograph or a record of the moment. It is inspired by Mohenjo-daro and is not a reconstruction of one site.