Indus Valley 1k526k

Clothing Men and women dressed in colorful robes. Women wore jewelry of gold and precious stone, and even wore lipstick! Among the treasures found was a statue of a women wearing a bracelet. (Bracelets with similar designs are worn today in India.) Clothing was for the most part, similar for both men and women. The basic costume of ancient society was a length of cloth wrapped around the lower part of the body, and a loose fitting garment for the upper body, which was usually another length of fabric. A headdress was also worn, mainly by the men. Women in Vedic society wore a variety of garments. The first being a skirt type garment (dhoti), with a blouse (choli) and scarf. Second is a sari, which is a length of fabric wound around the body with the loose end (pallu) thrown over the shoulder. Sometimes a choli would be worn with this. The last garment was worn mainly by tribal women. The Adivasi is a length of fabric tied around the waist with no upper garment worn. Men also had a choice in their clothing though not as varied as the women. Men usually wore a Dhoti, which is a length of fabric wrapped around the waist. This could be left as a skirt or brought through the legs and made into a pants type garment. Men of the south rarely wore shirts, but men of the north wore a fitted upper garment. Male headdress was also a length of fabric, wrapped around the head, called a Turban. Women sometimes wore the turban also. Due to the large area of India many differences in clothing emerged, mainly due to climate differences. The southern Indians wore much less than in the colder north. Women in the south rarely wore a upper garment. Northern women adopted a fitted upper garment to be worn under the loose fitting one. Clothing was made from resources found in each region. Cotton and wool were the most abundant, since silk was not introduced from China until around the 1st century B.C.E. People also enjoyed lavish embroidery and embellishments. Gold being the preferred, though there was also an abundance of silver and precious gems.

Female figurine with four flowers arranged on the front part of a fan shaped headdress with cups at two sides and braided edging. This figurine is heavily adorned with a triple strand choker with pendant beads, a double strand necklace with central disc pendant, and a triple strand belt with disc shaped ornaments.

F at women figurines with turban-like headdress and appliqué ornaments. Bangles are worn on both wrists and upper arms, ankle bracelets and a choker probably represent beaded ornaments. The right hand is held to the mouth and the left hand clutches the heart, in an expression of amazement that is still typical in the subcontinent today. Period III, Harappan, 2300-2200 B. C. Material: terra cotta

The cup shaped headdress of some figurines may have been used for holding oil and used as lamps.

Many of the terra cotta bangles were originally painted with black or red designs. Such ornaments are found in the thousands and may have been worn, broken and discarded much as glass bangles are used today throughout the subcontinent.

Two copper/bronze bangles, one from Harappa and the other from Mohenjodaro. The bangles were made from a round hammered rod bent in a full circle. The space between the ends of the bangle would be pried apart to slip it over the wrist.

This collection of gold and agate ornaments includes objects found at both Mohenjodaro and Harappa. At the top are fillets of hammered gold that would have been worn around the forehead.

The other ornaments include bangles, chokers, long pendant necklaces, rings, earrings, conical hair ornaments, and broaches. Such ornaments were never buried with the dead, but were ed on from one generation to the next. These ornaments were hidden under the floors in the homes of wealthy merchants or goldsmiths.

Carnelian and copper/bronze necklace or belt. With 42 long bicone carnelian beads, 72 spherical bronze beads, 6 bronze spacer beads, 2 half moon shaped bronze terminals, 2 hollow cylindrical bronze terminals. Hoard No. 2, DK Area, Room 1, House 1, Trench E. Material: carnelian, bronze

Necklace from Mohenjo-daro made from gold, agate, jasper, steatite and green stone (lizardite or grossular garnet). The gold beads are hollow and the pendant agate and jasper beads are attached with thick gold wire. Steatite beads with gold caps serve to separate each of the pendant beads. This necklace fragment is only half of the original ornament which was divided between India and Pakistan in 1947. Hoard No. 1, found in a silver vessel in DK Area, Room 2, eastern end of Block 16, Section B and C. Material: gold, green stone (lizardite or grossular garnet, originally reported as jade)