The Indus Civilization c8.39

c8.39

Several round ivory rods—the largest nearly eight inches long—which are graded down to a blunt point, are still unidentified. These rods, which are well polished, are simply decorated at either end with an incised pattern filled in with a black pigment, and it is thought that the smaller sizes, at any rate, may have been used to fasten cloaks. Ivory was certainly not so popular as shell, perhaps because it was more expensive to procure, though there is reason to believe that the elephant was a native of Sind some 4500 years ago. Shell was certainly very popular, but it was, of course, impossible to make articles of any considerable size from it.