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Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2025/Paper II/Prehistoric Archaeology
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2025 10 Marks Model Answer Available

Lothal Dockyard and International Trade Relations — 2025 Paper II

Question · 2025 · Paper II · 10 Marks

Lothal dockyard and international trade relations

Model Answer

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Introduction

Lothal, situated near the Bhogavo River and Gulf of Khambhat in Gujarat, was a Harappan port-town occupied broadly between c. 2400 and 1600 BCE. Excavations by S. R. Rao revealed a large brick-lined basin, warehouse, seals and specialised workshops, making Lothal central to debates on Harappan maritime trade.

Dockyard and urban economy

  • The trapezoidal basin had high vertical walls and inlet-outlet arrangements suited to regulating tidal water; an adjoining platform has been interpreted as a wharf.
  • A warehouse with sealings, standardised weights and nearby bead-making workshops linked storage, administration and production to maritime exchange.
  • Stone anchors, marine shells and the palaeochannel connecting the settlement with tidal waters support the port interpretation.
  • Lothal was a major centre for carnelian and agate beads, shell objects, copper goods, pottery and other craft products.

International trade relations

Harappan seals and commodities found in Mesopotamia, references to Meluhha, Persian Gulf-style seals at Lothal, and exchange through Dilmun (Bahrain) and Magan (Oman) indicate a network across the Arabian Sea. Raw materials and goods circulated between Gujarat, the Indus domain, Oman and Mesopotamia through coastal navigation and intermediary ports.

Critical evaluation

  1. R. Rao identified the basin as a tidal dockyard, an interpretation supported by associated anchors, channels and warehouse. Lawrence Leshnik and others proposed that it may have functioned primarily as an irrigation or water-storage reservoir. Hence it is best described as a dockyard interpretation supported by substantial evidence but not free from debate, rather than uncritically called the world’s first dock.

Conclusion

Lothal demonstrates the integration of hydraulic engineering, craft specialisation, standardised commerce and long-distance exchange in Harappan urbanism. Whether exclusively a dock or multifunctional basin, it anchored Lothal within the western Indian Ocean trading world.

Diagram to draw: Craft workshop -> warehouse/sealing -> basin/wharf -> Gulf routes -> Dilmun, Magan and Mesopotamia.

Selected authentic sources: Archaeological Survey of India excavations by S. R. Rao; UNESCO Tentative List, “Archaeological Remains of a Harappa Port-Town, Lothal”; Mesopotamian references to Meluhha; Lawrence Leshnik’s reservoir critique.

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