THE PALEOGEOGRAPHY AND PREHISTORIC SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN SIND, PAKISTAN (CA. 4000-2000 B.C.)

A regional and ecological approach is used to study prehistoric settlement patterns in Sind, Pakistan. Three regional ecologies are defined and analyzed: (1) the Lower Indus Basin, or Indus river plain, (2) the Kirthar Mountains and the subjacent piedmont plain, and (3) Sind Kohistan (mountains-valleys). For the Lower Indus Basin the diachronic history, or evolution of river courses and coastline is discussed, and the rivers and coastline of the fourth and third millennia B.C. are delineated. The prehistoric sites in Sind and their ecological locations are described. From the fieldwork and analysis of data which formed the basis for this study came the following major results. The discovery was made of the high place /lower-town settlement type in Sind Kohistan. The Early Harappan dating of several sites exhibiting this settlement plan provides anticipatory evidence for the Mature Harappan citadel /lower-town plan as known from such sites as Mohen jo Daro, Harappa, Kot Diji, and Kalibangan. This type also provides evidence for the development of complex social organization in prehistoric Sind (ranked to stratified/state society). The synchronic settlement systems of the Amri and Kot Diji components of the Early Harappan phase, and the Harappan component of the Mature Harappan phase are defined. Kot Dijian settlements located within the Amrian ecosystem of the Kirthar piedmont and Kohistan regions articulate the complexity of cultural interactions over relatively long distances between populations which primarily occupied diverse ecosystems (respectively riverine vs. mountain-piedmont/valley). The Harappan settlement patterns suggest a close network of inter-regional interaction along specific transfer routes with a large degree of reciprocity, probably accounting for the multi-regional uniformity of Harappan artifact assemblages. Diachronic settlement pattern study shows a shift in population distributions, from the Early to Mature Harappan phases, from the mountainous Kirthar and Kohistan regions to the riparian and river plain loci of the Lower Indus Basin. The diachronic patterns also suggest a shift from Early Harappan overland east-west transfer of resources and interactions, to riverine and sea-route transfers during the Mature Harappan phase