The Indus Civilization c9.47

c9.47

The extensive use of glazed and vitreous pastes in the manufacture of small ornaments and animal figures is a prominent feature at both Mohenjo-daro and Harappa (Pl. J, 2, 4). Steatite, both as the natural stone and also in the moulded form, was coated with a glaze which in many cases has lost its colour owing to the salts in the soil, but which was originally blue or green. True faience is also well known, and consists of a base of powdered quartz mixed with some binding material, perhaps natron, and coated with a glaze. Another common material was a vitreous paste composed of quartz and a glaze mixed together and fired at a high temperature. This process results in a material with a firm, smooth surface and interior, which, though not possessing the glassy surface of faience, is stronger and more compact in every way. Disc-beads of glazed crystal or quartz, similar to some found in the early graves of Elam and Sumer, have also come to light, but whether these particular specimens were made in India or imported, as their rarity suggests, is not yet known.