Lower Town
Topic: Harappan (Sindhu-Sarasvati) Civilisation · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 1 "Bricks, Beads and Bones"
Meaning
The Lower Town was the larger, lower eastern part of a Harappan city. It was also walled. Most people lived here, in houses built on brick platforms. Streets were laid out in a grid and crossed at right angles. It shows that the city was planned before anyone built houses.
Example
At Mohenjo-daro, the platforms for the Lower Town were built before the houses. Experts have worked out that the foundations alone needed about four million person-days of labour. Streets and drains were laid out first, and houses were added along them later.
Don't confuse with
- Citadel: The Citadel was the smaller, higher western part. It held special public buildings like the Great Bath and the warehouse, not ordinary homes.
Related concepts
- Harappan town planning
- Citadel
- Upper town and lower town
- Harappan bricks
- Harappan domestic architecture
- Harappan drainage system
- Mohenjo-daro
- Great Bath of Mohenjo-daro
- Warehouse of Mohenjo-daro
- Dholavira reservoirs