Large-scale, multi-temporal remote sensing of palaeo-river networks: A case study from Northwest India and its implications for the indus civilisation

© 2018 by the authors. Remote sensing has considerable potential to contribute to the identification and reconstruction of lost hydrological systems and networks. Remote sensing-based reconstructions of palaeo-river networks have commonly employed single or limited time-span imagery, which limits their capacity to identify features in complex and varied landscape contexts. This paper presents a seasonal multi-temporal approach to the detection of palaeo-rivers over large areas based on long-term vegetation dynamics and spectral decomposition techniques. Twenty-eight years of Landsat 5 data, a total of 1711 multi-spectral images, have been bulk processed using Google Earth Engine. © Code Editor and cloud computing infrastructure. The use of multi-temporal data has allowed us to overcome seasonal cultivation patterns and long-term visibility issues related to recent crop selection, extensive irrigation and land-use patterns. The application of this approach on the Sutlej-Yamuna interfluve (northwest India), a core area for the Bronze Age Indus Civilisation, has enabled the reconstruction of an unsuspectedly complex palaeo-river network comprising more than 8000 km of palaeo-channels. It has also enabled the definition of the morphology of these relict courses, which provides insights into the environmental conditions in which they operated. These new data will contribute to a better understanding of the settlement distribution and environmental settings in which this, often considered riverine, civilisation operated.ER

Ceramic analysis and the indus civilization. A review

Jonathan Mark Kenoyer has a long history of work with the ceramic vessels of the Indus Civilization and co-authored the most comprehensive assessments of the pottery from Mohenjo-daro yet attempted (Dales and Kenoyer 1986). For archaeologists, pottery is one of the most significant sources of data, not only for the durability and abundance of ceramic artefacts in the archaeological record, but also for the vast range of information on ancient societies that can be inferred from its study. Amongst various approaches to ceramic analysis, two main methods have dominated the field: the morphological approach, where pottery assemblages are grouped according to macroscopic attributes; and scientific analysis, where ceramics are understood in terms of composition and technologies. Even though the latter approach has been tentatively used in the study of ceramic industries in South Asia since the 1930s, it has become significant only in the past three decades. This contribution reviews the use and development of geochemical and petrographic methods for the study of South Asian ceramic traditions, with special emphasis on assemblages produced and used during the Urban and Post-Urban phases of the Indus Civilization (2500-1600 BC)

Approaching rice domestication in South Asia: New evidence from Indus settlements in northern India.

The nature and timing of rice domestication and the development of rice cultivation in South Asia is much debated. In northern South Asia there is presently a significant gap (c.4200 years) between earliest evidence for the exploitation of wild rice (Lahuradewa c.6000 BCE) and earliest dated evidence for the utilisation of fully domesticated rice (Mahagara c.1800 BCE). The Indus Civilisation (c.3000-1500 BCE) developed and declined during the intervening period, and there has been debate about whether rice was adopted and exploited by Indus populations during this 'gap'. This paper presents new analysis of spikelet bases and weeds collected from three Indus Civilisation settlements in north-west India, which provide insight into the way that rice was exploited. This analysis suggests that starting in the period before the Indus urban phase (Early Harappan) and continuing through the urban (Mature Harappan/Harappan), post-urban (Late Harappan) and on into the post-Indus Painted Grey Ware (PGW) period, there was a progressive increase in the proportion of domesticated-type spikelet bases and a decrease in wild-types. This pattern fits with a model of the slow development of rice exploitation from wild foraging to agriculture involving full cultivation. Importantly, the accompanying weeds show no increased proportions of wetland species during this period. Instead a mix of wetland and dryland species was identified, and although these data are preliminary, they suggest that the development of an independent rice tradition may have been intertwined with the practices of the eastern most Indus peoples. These data also suggest that when fully domesticated Oryza sativa ssp. japonica was introduced around 2000 BCE, it arrived in an area that was already familiar with domesticated rice cultivation and a range of cultivation techniques.This research was carried out as part of JB's PhD research funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, in the GPR laboratory in the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge. Samples were provided by the Land, Water and Settlement project, which was co-directed by CAP and RNS, and is part of a collaboration between the University of Cambridge and Banaras Hindu University, which has operated with the support of the Archaeological Survey of India. The project was funded by the UK India Education Research Initiative, British Academy Stein Arnold Fund, Isaac Newton Trust, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research and the Research Councils UK. Additional fieldwork funding for JB was provided by the AHRC, Rouse-Ball Research Fund, Cambridge India Partnership Fund, Division of Archaeology Fieldwork Fund and Trinity College Projects Fund.This is the author accepted manuscript. It is currently under an indefinite embargo pending publication by Elsevier

Feeding ancient cities in South Asia: Dating the adoption of rice, millet and tropical pulses in the Indus civilisation

© Antiquity Publications Ltd, 2016.The first direct absolute dates for the exploitation of several summer crops by Indus populations are presented here. These include rice, millets and three tropical pulse species at two settlements in the hinterland of the urban site of Rakhigarhi. The dates confirm the role of native summer domesticates in the rise of Indus cities. They demonstrate that, from their earliest phases, a range of crops and variable strategies, including multi-cropping, were used to feed different urban centres. This has important implications for understanding the development of the earliest cities in South Asia, particularly the organisation of labour and provisioning throughout the year.UK India Education and Research Initiative (Standard Award), British Academy (Stein Arnold Fund and International Mobility Scheme), Isaac Newton Trust, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Natural Environment Research Council (NERC Radiocarbon Facility (Project IDs: NF/2009/2/7, NF/2013/1/6)), Arts and Humanities Research Council (Studentship), Trinity College (University of Cambridge), Division of Archaeology, Department of Archaeology and Anthropology (University of Cambridge

'Multi-cropping', Intercropping and Adaptation to Variable Environments in Indus South Asia.

Past human populations are known to have managed crops in a range of ways. Various methods can be used, singly or in conjunction, to reconstruct these strategies, a process which lends itself to the exploration of socio-economic and political themes. This paper endeavours to unpack the concept of 'multi-cropping' by considering diversity and variation in the cropping practices of the populations of South Asia's Indus Civilisation. It argues that nuanced interpretations of the evidence provided by the combinations of crop seeds and weeds present in specific contexts and phases of occupation can reveal much about Indus cropping strategies, which in turn enables consideration of issues related to adaptation, intensification and resilience in the face of changing social, political, economic and environmental climates.Arts and Humanities Research Council, UK India Education and Research Initiative (Standard Award), British Academy (Stein Arnold Fund), Isaac Newton Trust, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), European Research Council (ERC) (Consolidator Grant

Exploring Indus crop processing: combining phytolith and macrobotanical analyses to consider the organisation of agriculture in northwest India c. 3200–1500 BC

This paper presents a preliminary study combining macrobotanical and phytolith analyses to explore crop processing at archaeological sites in Haryana and Rajasthan, northwest India. Current understanding of the agricultural strategies in use by populations associated with South Asia’s Indus Civilisation (3200–1900 bc) has been derived from a small number of systematic macrobotanical studies focusing on a small number of sites, with little use of multi-proxy analysis. In this study both phytolith and macrobotanical analyses are used to explore the organisation of crop processing at five small Indus settlements with a view to understanding the impact of urban development and decline on village agriculture. The differing preservation potential of the two proxies has allowed for greater insights into the different stages of processing represented at these sites: with macrobotanical remains allowing for more species-level specific analysis, though due to poor chaff presentation the early stages of processing were missed; however these early stages of processing were evident in the less highly resolved but better preserved phytolith remains. The combined analyses suggests that crop processing aims and organisation differed according to the season of cereal growth, contrary to current models of Indus Civilisation labour organisation that suggest change over time. The study shows that the agricultural strategies of these frequently overlooked smaller sites question the simplistic models that have traditionally been assumed for the time period, and that both multi-proxy analysis and rural settlements are deserving of further exploration.This research was carried out as part of JB’s Doctoral Research funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, in the GPR Laboratory in the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge. Samples were provided by the Land, Water, Settlement Project, co-directed by CAP and RNS, between the University of Cambridge and Banaras Hindu University, with the support of the Archaeological Survey of India. The project was funded by the UK India Education Research Initiative, British Academy Stein Arnold Fund, Isaac Newton Trust, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research and the Research Councils UK. Additional fieldwork funding for JB was provided by the AHRC, Rouse-Ball Research Fund, Cambridge India Partnership Fund, Division of Archaeology Fieldwork Fund and Trinity College Projects Fund

Cereals, calories and change: exploring approaches to quantification in Indus archaeobotany

Several major cereal groups have been identified as staples used by the pre-urban, urban and post-urban phase populations of the Indus Civilisation (3200–1500 BCE): wheat, barley, a range of small hulled millets and also rice, though their proportional exploitation is variable across space and over time. Traditional quantification methods examine the frequency, intensity and proportionality of the use of these crops and help ascertain the ‘relative importance’ of these cereals for Indus populations. However, this notion of ‘importance’ is abstracted from the daily lives of the people using these crops and may be biased by the differential production (as well as archaeological survival) of individual cereals. This paper outlines an alternative approach to quantifying Indus cereals by investigating proportions of calories. Cereals are predominantly composed of carbohydrates and therefore provided much of the daily caloric intake among many late Holocene farming populations. The four major cereal groups cultivated by Indus farmers, however, vary greatly in terms of calories per grain, and this has an impact on their proportional input to past diets. This paper demonstrates that, when converted to proportions of calories, the perceived ‘importance’ of cereals from five Indus sites changes dramatically, reducing the role of the previously dominant small hulled millet species and elevating the role of Triticoid grains. Although other factors will also have affected how a farmer perceived the role and importance of a crop, including its ecological tolerances, investments required to grow it, and the crop’s role in the economy, this papers suggests that some consideration of what cereals meant in terms of daily lives is needed alongside the more abstracted quantification methods that have traditionally been applied.This research was carried out as a part of JB’s PhD research, which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Analysis was carried out in the George Pitt Rivers laboratory in the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge. Samples were provided by the Land, Water, Settlement project, co-directed by CAP and RNS, which is a collaboration between the University of Cambridge and Banaras Hindu University that was carried out with the support of the Archaeological Survey of India. The Land, Water, Settlement project was funded by the UK India Education Research Initiative, British Academy Stein Arnold Fund, Isaac Newton Trust, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research and the Research Councils UK. Additional fieldwork funding for JB was provided by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Rouse-Ball Research Fund, Cambridge India Partnership Fund, Division of Archaeology Fieldwork Fund and Trinity College Projects Fund

Indian winter and summer monsoon strength over the 4.2 ka BP event in foraminifer isotope records from the Indus River delta in the Arabian Sea

Abstract. The plains of northwest South Asia receive rainfall during both the Indian summer (June–September) and winter (December–March) monsoon. Researchers have long attempted to deconstruct the influence of these precipitation regimes in paleoclimate records, in order to better understand regional climatic drivers and their potential impact on human populations. The mid–late Holocene transition between 5.3 and 3.3 ka is of particular interest in this region because it spans the period of the Indus Civilization from its early development, through its urbanization, and onto eventual transformation into a rural society. An oxygen isotope record of the surface-dwelling planktonic foraminifer Globigerinoides ruber from the northeast Arabian Sea provided evidence for an abrupt decrease in rainfall and reduction in Indus River discharge at 4.2 ka, which the authors linked to the decline in the urban phase of the Indus Civilization (Staubwasser et al., 2003). Given the importance of this study, we used the same core (63KA) to measure the oxygen isotope profiles of two other foraminifer species at decadal resolution over the interval from 5.4 to 3.0 ka and to replicate a larger size fraction of G. ruber than measured previously. By selecting both thermocline-dwelling (Neogloboquadrina dutertrei) and shallow-dwelling (Globigerinoides sacculifer) species, we provide enhanced detail of the climatic changes that occurred over this crucial time interval. We found evidence for a period of increased surface water mixing, which we suggest was related to a strengthened winter monsoon with a peak intensity over 200 years from 4.5 to 4.3 ka. The time of greatest change occurred at 4.1 ka when both the summer and winter monsoon weakened, resulting in a reduction in rainfall in the Indus region. The earliest phase of the urban Mature Harappan period coincided with the period of inferred stronger winter monsoon between 4.5 and 4.3 ka, whereas the end of the urbanized phase occurred some time after the decrease in both the summer and winter monsoon strength by 4.1 ka. Our findings provide evidence that the initial growth of large Indus urban centers coincided with increased winter rainfall, whereas the contraction of urbanism and change in subsistence strategies followed a reduction in rainfall of both seasons. ER

Senile Systemic Amyloidosis: Clinical Features at Presentation and Outcome

Background Cardiac amyloidosis is a fatal disease whose prognosis and treatment rely on identification of the amyloid type. In our aging population transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRwt) is common and must be differentiated from other amyloid types. We report the clinical presentation, natural history, and prognostic features of ATTRwt compared with cardiac‐isolated AL amyloidosis and calculate the probability of disease diagnosis of ATTRwt from baseline factors. Methods and Results All patients with biopsy‐proven ATTRwt (102 cases) and isolated cardiac AL (36 cases) seen from 2002 to 2011 at the UK National Amyloidosis Center were included. Median survival from the onset of symptoms was 6.07 years in the ATTRwt group and 1.7 years in the AL group. Positive troponin, a pacemaker, and increasing New York Heart Association (NYHA) class were associated with worse survival in ATTRwt patients on univariate analysis. All patients with isolated cardiac AL and 24.1% of patients with ATTRwt had evidence of a plasma cell dyscrasia. Older age and lower N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide (NT pro‐BNP) were factors significantly associated with ATTRwt. Patients aged 70 years and younger with an NT pro‐BNP <183 pmol/L were more likely to have ATTRwt, as were patients older than 70 years with an NT pro‐BNP <1420 pmol/L. Conclusions Factors at baseline associated with a worse outcome in ATTRwt are positive troponin T, a pacemaker, and NYHA class IV symptoms. The age of the patient at diagnosis and NT pro‐BNP level can aid in distinguishing ATTRwt from AL amyloidosis

Remote Sensing and historical morphodynamics of alluvial plains: the 1909 Indus flood and the city of Dera Ghazi Khan (Province of Punjab, Pakistan)

This paper explores the historical inundation of the city of Dera Ghazi Kkan (Punjab, Pakistan) in 1909. The rich documentation about this episode available – including historic news reports, books and maps - is used to reconstruct the historical dynamics between an urban settlement and the river morphodynamics in the Indus alluvial plain. Map and document-based historical regressive analysis is complemented with the examination of images obtained through different Remote Sensing techniques, including the use of new algorithms specifically developed for the study 16 of topography and seasonal water availability which make possible to assess long-term changes in the Indus River basin. This case of study provides an opportunity to examine: 1) how historical hydrological dynamics are reflected in RS produced images; 2) the implications of river morphodynamics in the interpretation of settlement patterning; and 3) the documented socio-political responses to such geomorphological change. The results of this analysis are used to consider the long-term dynamics that have influenced the archaeo/cultural landscapes of the Indus River basin. This assessment provides critical insights for: 1) understanding aspects of the formation, preservation of representation of the archaeological record; 2) identifying traces of morphodynamics and their possible impact over the cultural heritage; and 3) offering insights into the role that recent historical documents can have in the interpretation of RS materials. This paper should be read in conjunction with the paper by Cameron Petrie et al. in the same issue of Geosciences, which explores the Survey of India 1" to 1-mile map series and outlines methods for using these historical maps for research on historical landscapes and settlement distribution.ER