The history behind Harappa

Harappa is set in the cities of the Indus Valley Civilization (also known as the Harappan Civilization), roughly 3300 to 1900 BCE. We leaned on what archaeologists have actually found wherever we could, and this page walks through how it was implemented in the game. Where experts have not found evidence – and that is in many places – we made our best guess while trying to stay within reason.

Our full list of sources is at the bottom.

A walled town from above: river fields, a craft quarter, blocks of houses and a white precinct.
Kalibangan in the game: blocks of houses between straight streets.

Grid cities and wide streets

One of the distinct features of Indus settlements was how well they were planned. They had straight main streets, divided into blocks, and 90-degree intersections. Main streets could also be broad – First Street at Mohenjo-daro is about 10 metres wide, with narrow lanes running off it.

In the game

Within the game, we are adding multiple paths and street types. You start with the basic (free) street. But that can be upgraded to rough streets and wide streets – each with a speed bonus. Later you can further upgrade them to paved (brick) streets that are even faster, and look better.

Houses

Coming soon.

Water and drains

Coming soon.

Bricks

Coming soon.

The river

Coming soon.

Crafts

Coming soon.

Trade and weights

Coming soon.

Citadels

Coming soon.

Kalibangan’s fire altars

Coming soon.

The Indus Script

Coming soon.

Sources

Our main sources (not including YouTube videos, which were not really considered expert). Any mistakes on this page or in the game are ours.

  1. The Ancient Indus Valley: New Perspectives – Jane R. McIntosh
  2. Kalibangan: A Harappan Metropolis Beyond the Indus Valley – B. K. Thapar
  3. The Ravi Phase: A New Cultural Manifestation at Harappa – J. Mark Kenoyer and Richard H. Meadow
  4. Harappa.com – Harappa Archaeological Research Project
  5. The Origins of Agriculture in the Bronze Age Indus Civilization – Jennifer Bates
  6. Ancient Cities of the Indus – Gregory L. Possehl (editor)
  7. A Statistical Assessment of House Patterns at Moenjo-Daro – Anna Sarcina
  8. Preliminary Report on Kot Diji Excavations 1957–58 – F. A. Khan
  9. A Harappan Trading and Craft Production Centre at Gola Dhoro (Bagasra) – K. K. Bhan et al.
  10. Bhirrana Excavation 2005–06 – L. S. Rao et al.
  11. Rehman Dheri and the Origins of Indus Civilization – Farzand Ali Durrani
  12. Archaeological Excavations at Rahman Dheri in the Gomal Plain 2015 – Abdul Samad and Zakir Ullah Jan
  13. Some Newly Discovered Bronze Age Sites in the Gomal Valley – Zakirullah Jan, Ihsan Ali and Shah Nazar Khan