Ancient site · City
Dholavira
A Harappan city on Khadir Bet island in the Rann of Kutch, Gujarat, and a World Heritage Site since 2021. Built of stone as well as brick, it had a castle, a 'middle town' and a lower town, all walled, and a remarkable system of dams, channels and great rock-cut reservoirs to store scarce rain.
A signboard of ten large Indus signs, once set in wood, was found by the north gate. Its dates are debated, from about 3500–1800 to 2650–1450 BCE.
- Dates
- c. 3000–1500 BCE (phases debated)
- Still standing
- Yes
- UNESCO World Heritage
- Yes
- Location
- 23.89° N, 70.21° E
How we know
The Indus script is undeciphered; dates come from excavations of 1990–2005 and radiocarbon, and scholars still argue over its phases.
Nearby sites
- Submerged structures off Dwarka disputed: c. 1500 BCE (S. R. Rao) or historical to medieval times
- Lothal c. 2300–1900 BCE
- Junagadh rock inscriptions (Girnar) Ashoka c. 250 BCE; Rudradaman c. 150 CE; Skandagupta c. 456 CE
- Kot Diji c. 3300–2100 BCE
- Mohenjo-daro c. 2500–1700 BCE
- Karla Caves 2nd century BCE–5th century CE