50. Which city is traditionally interpreted as the major Harappan port?
[SSC MTS 2017]
A. Lothal
B. Harappa
C. Kalibangan
D. Banawali
Answer: A. Lothal
Explanation: The brick-lined basin and commercial installations at Lothal, combined with its coastal geography, indicate an important role in maritime exchange.
49. Dholavira is located in:
[SSC MTS 2017]
A. Gujarat
B. Punjab
C. Haryana
D. Rajasthan
Answer: A. Gujarat
Explanation: Dholavira is situated on Khadir Bet in Gujarat’s Kutch region. Its reservoirs, stone architecture and distinctive city divisions make it a remarkable Harappan settlement.
48. Which site marks the eastern limit of the Harappan Civilization in traditional examination geography?
[SSC 2017]
A. Alamgirpur
B. Sutkagendor
C. Shortughai
D. Dholavira
Answer: A. Alamgirpur
Explanation: Alamgirpur in western Uttar Pradesh lies much farther east than the great Indus cities and preserves Late Harappan material culture.
47. Which civilization used baked-brick drainage systems extensively?
[SSC 2017]
A. Harappan Civilization
B. Paleolithic culture
C. Mesolithic culture
D. Early Stone Age
Answer: A. Harappan Civilization
Explanation: Harappan cities integrated household drains with covered street channels. Fired brick was particularly valuable where structures regularly came into contact with water.
46. Which site had the Great Bath?
[SSC CPO 2017]
A. Mohenjo-daro
B. Harappa
C. Lothal
D. Kalibangan
Answer: A. Mohenjo-daro
Explanation: The Great Bath occupied the elevated western sector of Mohenjo-daro and remains the civilization’s best-known example of monumental water architecture.
45. Which Harappan city was famous for extensive craft production but lacked monumental public structures comparable to Mohenjo-daro?
[SSC 2017]
A. Chanhudaro
B. Harappa
C. Dholavira
D. Kalibangan
Answer: A. Chanhudaro
Explanation: Chanhudaro contained specialized workshops for beads, shell objects and other manufactured goods, illustrating the economic role of smaller craft-focused Harappan settlements.
44. Which site is associated with a fossilized ploughed field?
[SSC 2017]
A. Kalibangan
B. Mohenjo-daro
C. Harappa
D. Lothal
Answer: A. Kalibangan
Explanation: The preserved field surface at Kalibangan contains intersecting furrows, providing unusually direct archaeological evidence for Harappan cultivation methods and possible mixed cropping.
43. Which region contained Dholavira?
[SSC 2017]
A. Rann of Kutch
B. Kashmir Valley
C. Ganga Delta
D. Malwa Plateau
Answer: A. Rann of Kutch
Explanation: Dholavira occupies Khadir island within the Rann of Kutch, where limited water availability stimulated the development of exceptional hydraulic engineering.
42. Harappan seals typically contain:
[SSC 2017]
A. Animal motifs and short inscriptions
B. Long Sanskrit poems
C. Quranic verses
D. Gupta royal genealogies
Answer: A. Animal motifs and short inscriptions
Explanation: Square steatite seals frequently combine one prominent animal with a brief line of Indus signs, probably serving administrative, commercial or identity-related functions.
41. Which animal motif occurs frequently on Harappan seals?
[SSC 2017]
A. So-called unicorn
B. Kangaroo
C. Polar bear
D. Giraffe
Answer: A. So-called unicorn
Explanation: The enigmatic one-horned “unicorn” is the most frequent seal motif, although its exact zoological or symbolic meaning remains uncertain.
