Module: | Archaeological Discovery & Civilization Decline
Q45: Consider the following statements regarding the collapse of Harappan central authority and the end of urbanization:
1. The ultimate hallmark of the Harappan collapse was the sudden and complete disappearance of a strong, unifying central political or administrative authority.
2. Following the collapse of the cities, the Harappan script was preserved by local priests and eventually evolved directly into the Brahmi script used by the Mauryan Empire.
3. During the Late Harappan phase, the highly standardized 4:2:1 brick ratio was largely abandoned, and the construction of massive public buildings and grid-pattern streets completely ceased.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
2. Following the collapse of the cities, the Harappan script was preserved by local priests and eventually evolved directly into the Brahmi script used by the Mauryan Empire.
3. During the Late Harappan phase, the highly standardized 4:2:1 brick ratio was largely abandoned, and the construction of massive public buildings and grid-pattern streets completely ceased.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
✅ Correct Answer: B
🎯 Quick Answer:
Option B is the correct answer because statement 2 is factually incorrect regarding the survival and evolution of the Harappan script.The unifying force that maintained strict municipal standards across hundreds of miles evaporated.
Structural Breakdown: Without a central authority to enforce standards or manage long-distance trade, the markers of a unified empire vanished.
The construction of complex civic amenities (drains, great baths, granaries) ceased entirely.
Local, haphazard house construction replaced the strict grid planning.
Historical/Related Context: The subsequent cultures that occupied the region, such as the Cemetery H culture or the Jhukar culture, were rural, localized, and lacked the massive economic surplus required to sustain urbanization.
Causal Reasoning: Statement 2 is entirely false.
When the state collapsed, the administrative need for writing vanished with it.
The Harappan script died out completely and was lost to history.
The Brahmi script, which appeared over a thousand years later during the Mauryan period, has no proven evolutionary link to the Harappan script, marking a severe, centuries-long gap in literacy on the Indian subcontinent.