A Guest Comes to Town

The Indus Valley Civilisation, 2,600 bce On a hot summer day, a boat came floating down the River Indus towards Panduka Town, located somewhere on the border of the present-day Punjab and Sindh. The women of Panduka, who usually washed clothes at the river during this hour, were surprised to see this ancient contraption approaching their banks. There was no doubt that the boat was from some far-away place as the Harappan boats were no longer simple dugout canoes like this one. They made boats that were flat-bottomed with joined wooden pieces. The women called out to the menfolk who...