Early Satavahanas: The founder of the Satavahana dynasty was Simuka. He and his successors established their authority from the mouth of the Krishna to the entire Deccan plateau. According to the Puranas, the Satavahana king killed the last Kanva ruler of Magadha and presumably took possession of his kingdom.

Satavahana rulers were identified through metronymics which means that names were derived from that of their mother's. It does indicate that Mother in some level was regarded high in the society.

Scholars have stated many reasons for the decline of the Indus valley civilization:
i. Some scholars suggest that it could be due to natural calamities like floods, earthquakes, droughts or epidemics.

ii. some scholar suggest that it could be due to the end of strong unifying element. or the end of Harappan state which lead to the decline of the civilization.

Following are the important features of the town planning of the Harappan cities:

1. The Harappan cities were generally divided into two main parts - the raised area; known as the ‘Citadel’, and the lower town. The Citadel was more in height because the buildings in it were built on mud brick platforms. This area was separated from the lower town by a wall. The Citadel had within its fold important buildings like the Great Bath, the assembly hall, the granary and the workshops. The lower town, on the other hand had residential dwellings.
2. The main streets of the Harappan cities were built according to the grid pattern. They were built from north to south and from east to west.
3. The houses built on the corners of streets were rounded in order to allow the passage of carts. The main road in the city of Mohenjo-daro was 10.5 meters wide and 800 meters long.
4. The house drains relayed all the waste water to the drains built in streets.
5. The streets were so designed as to cross the main road of the city at right angles, thus dividing the city into square or rectangular blocks.

Indus Valley Civilization which is also referred as Harappan civilization is of the largest cities of its time.This civilization was discovered in 1920 - 22 with the excavation of two of its most important sites i.e , Harappa on the banks of the river Ravi and Mohenjodaro on the banks of the Indus. The Indus Valley civilization is called the Harappan civilization because Harappa was the first site where the unique archaeological evidences of the civilization were discovered.

John Marshall was an archaeologist

He announced the discovery of a new civilization i.e. Indus Valley Civilization/ Harappa culture

John Marshall was the Director Geneeral of ASI from 1902 to 1928. In fact, John Marshall’s stint as Director-General of the ASI marked a major change in Indian archaeology. He was the first professional archaeologist to work in India, and brought his experience of working in Greece and Crete to the field. More importantly, though like Cunningham he too was interested in spectacular finds, he was equally keen to look for patterns of everyday life.

Before discussing John Marshall's work we should discuss the general picture of archaeology in India of that time. Most of the archaeologist prior to Marshall was of view that indian civilization started from 6th century BCE and there was this tendency to use written words to guide the archaeological digs. Thus when Cunnigham came across with Harappan artefacts he was not able to understand it and tried very hard to fit it within the time frame he was familiar with (6th - 4th century BCE).

It was much later when Daya Ram Sahni discovered seals which he found in the layer of soil which was way more older than the 6th century BCE. The information began to come and it was Rakhal Das Bannerji who discoverd the similarities of the seals discovered from the various sites leading to the conjecture that these sites were part of a single archaeological culture. Based on these finds, in 1924, John Marshall, Dir ector General of the ASI, announced the discovery of a new civilisation in the Indus valley to the world. It was then that the world knew not only of a new civilisation, but also of one contemporaneous with Mesopotamia.

The Cold War referred to the competition, the tensions and a series of confrontations between the US and Soviet Union. It never escalated into a hot war, i.e. a full-scale war between these two powers.

Harappan civilization developed the first accurate system of standardized weights and measures. Harappans created sculptures, seals, pottery, and jewelry from materials, such as terracotta, metal, and stone. Harappan people were literate and used the Dravidian language. By 2600 BCE, the small Early Harappan communities had become large urban centers. These cities include Harappa, Ganeriwala, and Mohenjo-daro in modern-day Pakistan, and Dholavira, Kalibangan, Rakhigarhi, Rupar, and Lothal in modern-day India.

Main items found in the graves of Harappans are: Pottery, ornaments, jewellery, shell rings, beads, etc. Copper mirrors have also been found in the graves. Main items found in the graves of Harappans are: Pottery, ornaments, jewellery, shell rings, beads, etc. Copper mirrors have also been found in the graves.

Harappans grew wheat, barley, pulses, peas, rice, sesame, linseed, and mustard. They also developed some new tools known as plough and was used to dig earth for planting the seeds and turning the soil. A method of irrigation was used due to less rainfall. The Harappan reared cattle sheep, goat, and buffalo. The most remarkable feature of Harappan civilisation was its urbanisation. The Harappan places which were small towns, show an advanced sense of town planning. The major centres are Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro, Kalibangan, Lothal, Sutkagen-Dor, Dholavira, etc. Usually towns were laid out in a parallelogrammic form.

• According to popular belief, shalabhanjika was a woman whose touch caused trees to flower and bear fruit. It is likely that this was regarded as an auspicious symbol and integrated into the decoration of the stupa.
• The shalabhanjika motif on most of the Buddhist sculptures suggests that many people who turned to Buddhism enriched it with their own pre-Buddhist and even non-Buddhist beliefs, practices and ideas.

In Vedic culture, everyone is considered to be born as Shudra. Then based on his or her education, one becomes a Brahmin, Kshatriya or Vaishya. ... Similarly, son of a Shudra or even a Dasyu, if he completes his education can become a Brahmin, Kshatriya or Vaishya. This is pure meritocracy. "The Shudra belongs to the fourth caste, which has one birth (only). And serves the higher (Castes). From them he shall seek to obtain his livelihood. He shall use their cast off shoes.

The Indus River Valley Civilization, also known as Harappan civilization, developed the first accurate system of standardized weights and measures, some as accurate as to 1.6 mm. Harappans created sculpture, seals, pottery, and jewelry from materials, such as terracotta, metal, and stone. By 2600 BCE, the small Early Harappan communities had become large urban centers. These cities include Harappa, Ganeriwala, and Mohenjo-daro in modern-day Pakistan, and Dholavira, Kalibangan, Rakhigarhi, Rupar, and Lothal in modern-day India. 

Between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE, Magadha (in present-day Bihar) became the most powerful Mahajanapada. Modern historians explain this in a variety of ways.
(i) It was a region where agriculture was especially productive. 
(ii) Besides, iron mines (in present-day Jharkhand), were accessible and provided resources for tools and weapons.
(iii) Elephants, an important component of the army, were found in forest in the region.
(iv) Moreover, the Ganga and its tributaries provided a means of cheap and convenient communication.
(v) Early Buddhist and Jaina writers who wrote about Magadha attributed its power to the policies of a number of ruthlessly ambitious kings of whom Bimbisara, Ajatasattu and Mahapadma Nanda are the best known.

• Inscriptions usually refer to carved writings on historic stones and walls.
• They depict the time when early civilizations existed.
• They often describe the life of a ruler, his kingdom, his people, his architecture, etc.
• So, it would not be wrong to say that inscriptions open the door of history.
• They give us evidences of the early stages of civilization when kingdoms and empires were built.

Following examples can be cited to show the existence of social and economic variations : in the Harappan society:
(i)Study of burials is one example. In the Harappan sites, the deads were usually laid in pits. There were differences in the Way burial pits were made. At some instances, the hollowed-out spaces were lined with bricks. But these may not be taken as an indication of social differences.
(ii)In some graves pottery and ornaments have been found. Jewellery has been found from the graves of men and women as well. These findings can point out social and economic differences. ‘
(iii)The artefacts have been classified into two categories, Utilitarian and Luxurious. Objects of daily uses and objects made of ordinary materials made of clay or stone come under utilitarian category. Ordinary articles consisted of querns, pottery, flesh-rubbers and needles. These have been found distributed throughout settlements.
(iv)Objects of luxuries were rare and made from precious, non-local materials. The technology used was advanced and complicated. Little pots of faience were considered precious. They were also not easy to make. These show the existence of social and economic variations in the Harappan society.

Two strategies adopted to identify social differences among the Harappans are:
1. Burials- How the death are buried, what artefacts are buried along with it does help in identifying social differences.
2. Luxury goods-  Archaeologists assume objects were luxuries if they are rare or made from costly, non-local materials or with complicated technologies. By the availability of it we can assume the existence of social differences. For example larger town like Harappa or Mohenjodaro have large

By 1700 BC, most of the cities were abandoned. However, one can see the various element of the Ancient Indus Valley Civilization in later cultures. Archaeological data indicates the persistence of the Late Harappan culture till 1000-900 BC

For men wealth-Inheritance, Finding, Purchase, Conquest, Investment, work and acceptance of gifts from good people.
For women - what was given at the time of the marriage, Bridal procession, Token of affection she got from her brother, mother or father and she could also acquire husband.  

i) The nobility was recruited from diverse ethnic and religious groups. (ii) Nobility was composite one comprising Iranis, Afghans, Rajputs, Shaikhzdas, Deccanis on the basis of their service loyalty to the king. (iii) This ensured that no faction was large enough to challenge the authority of the state. The Mughal nobility came to comprise mainly the Central Asians (Tūrānīs), Iranians (Irānīs), Afghans, Indian Muslims of diverse subgroups, and Rajputs.