History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c39.s2.t2.4

v1.c39.s2.t2.4

Gordon Childe deliberated on the phenomenon of ‘urban revolution’ in the ancient world and the ‘ten criteria’ which accompany it (Childe, 1950; Possehl, 1979). He also mentioned that one trait of urban revolution was the creation of ‘exact and predictive sciences’ such as arithmetic, geometry and astronomy. Childe could have included material technology (not science) as one of the traits of early urbanization. Though widely quoted, his ‘criteria’ or indices are ‘delineatary rather than explanatory’. His analysis evokes many subsidiary questions. Why the agricultural surplus does not always lead to the formation of cities, and how did some ancient cities (like Mathura) prosper without any agricultural surplus in the immediate neighbourhood? What induces the emergence of a ruling class to dominate over a city? What provides sufficient driving force for artisans to move from the rural to the urban environment?