Harappa was one of the two most important cities of the Indus valley civilization; the other being Mohenjodaro. The civilization, with urban centers, and diversified social and economic system, was rediscovered in the 1920s after excavations at Mohenjo-daro (which means "mound of the dead") in Sindh near Sukkur, and Harappa, in west Punjab south of Lahore(both in Pakistan now).The Indus Valley civilization is also known as the Harappan culture and existed from about 3300 B.C. until 1600B.C.and had as many as 40,000 residents.The origin and the race of the Harappans is not known properly . While one section of scholars believes that they were Dravidian, definitely Indo-Aryan, another section believes that they were the same as Sumerians or the Cretans.

The two large cities of this great culture bear such a similarity to each other that it seems clear they were closely linked, probably politically as well as culturally. The Harappan civilization was mainly an urban culture sustained by surplus agricultural production and commerce. Both Mohenjodaro and Harappa had similar town planning with well laid out streets, separate living quarters, flat-roofed brick houses, and efficient drainage system and ventilation .

Craft of the Harappan civilization was very advanced.Iron as a metal was unknown to the Harappan people but copper and bronze were used in making statues .The excavations have yielded a rich collection of objects in stone, bronze and terracotta. One of the most known figurines is perhaps the `dancing girl` in bronze. The figure of Mother Goddess found from excavation is also an exemplary piece of craft form .The stone figures of torso in red sandstone and the other of a bust of a bearded man bear ample testimony to the exquisite art form of the civilization. The Harappan people also made rough terracotta statuettes of women and men .A terracotta mask of a horned deity has also been found. Archaeologists have discovered thousands of seals with beautiful figures of animals, such as unicorn bull, rhinoceros, tiger, elephant, bison, goat, buffalo etc. The most remarkable seal is Pashupati Seal. Some seals have also been found in gold, ivory or blue or white .The seals also carry figures of animals including bull, with or without hump, elephant, tiger, goat and also monsters. They also made toys in terracotta with movable heads, monkeys that would slide down a string; little toy carts (one of the oldest example of a wheeled vehicle) and whistles shaped like birds.

Jewellry were mostly made in gold and silver .It included bangles, necklaces and other ornaments, which were well crafted. Both men and women wore ornaments. While necklaces, fillets, armlets and finger-rings were common to both sexes, women wore girdles, earrings and anklets. Ornaments were made of gold, silver, copper, ivory, precious and semi-precious stones, bones and shells etc. From archaeological findings it appears that the Harappans were conscious of fashion. Different hairstyles and beards were in vogue. Cosmetic and face-paints, lipsticks and collyrium (eye liners) were also known to them. Tools of stone, copper and bronze have also been found from excavation The Harappans used chisels, pickaxes, and saws. They used saws with undulating edges so that dust escaped from the cut that they were sawing.

The main diet consisted of wheat, barley and milk products. Fruits, vegetables, fish and meat were also consumed. Music and dance appear to be the main sources of entertainment. Agriculture was their main occupation. There has been enough evidence of the cultivation of wheat, barley, peas, mustard, cotton and rice.

Enough evidence of religious practices was not found as no temples have yet been discovered. From the Pashupati seal, it is certain that they worshipped Shiva. There is an image of Shiva, seated on a stool flanked by an elephant. Numerous pottery figurines of Mother Goddesses have also been found. Nature worship must have been part of their ritual as revealed in the seals. There is a scene of a horned goddess, before whom another horned deity is kneeling and animals as some male figures wearing the horns of a goat or a bull, some animals standing on rectangular pedestals, composite animals having body of a ram and trunk of an elephant, a limestone bull having a garland round his neck and a unicorn being carried in a procession.

How this ancient civilization declined is yet to be known. Scholars believe that the city might have been washed away in flood or destroyed in earthquake. Some scholars also believe that influx of refugees from nearby villages could also have outnumbered the Harappans, which resulted in their decline.