The Indus Civilization c6.42

c6.42

Most of the inhabitants of the Indus valley seem to have worn amulets of some kind or other. The so-called seal (Pl. M), of which so many examples have been found, must now be regarded as having served also as an amulet, on account of the animals incised upon it. In most cases only the upper part, bearing the inscription, was employed as a seal proper, but it is not clear what material was mainly used for the sealings, as very few have been discovered. In fact, many more seals than sealings have been recovered from Mohenjo-daro. The numerous tablets of clay and copper, in the latter material peculiar to Mohenjo-daro, are undoubtedly amulets, and the poor condition of the clay specimens suggests that they were always on the person of the owner, perhaps loose in a case. The legends depicted on them seem to be episodes in the lives of various deities, and it is quite likely that they were presented to the worshippers after visits to certain shrines. Amulets bearing the same scene are, more often than not, found in the same quarter of Mohenjo-daro, which suggests that they were obtained from a shrine in that same neighbourhood.