Photographing Indus Valley Artefacts at the National Museum, Delhi: A Citizen Archaeology Task Report by Varun Jha

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For my first task with Citizen Archaeology,I was given the most profound and yet intriguing part of Ancient Indian History, the Indus Valley Civilisation. Growing up, I had a fascination for the history of ancient urban civilisations. The magnitude of the cities always drew my interest, and when I was offered to cover the artefacts from one of these civilisations, I was more than happy to put in the extensive research for the task.

I live in the vicinity of the National Museum, Delhi and I had already been a frequent visitor. This task gave me another opportunity to explore the museum one more time, this time with a more systematic approach. The museum had tuck loads of IVC artefacts, ranging form pottery to terracotta seals and toys, beside having  casts of the famed dancing girl and priest king.

The task drew me closer to my topic. I got the answers to some of my questions, but, the ambiguity regarding the civilisation's rise, the advancement, the grandeur of their town planning, and their sudden end intrigue me even more now.

Working on this task, made me grow even more curious about the topic and I developed an even stronger connection to the civilisation,  whose secrets, like its script, still remain a puzzle for all history lovers to solve.

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