The Harappan “Port” at Lothal: Another View¹

Abstract

Excavations at one of the southern‐most sites of the Harappan Culture have revealed a large artificial basin adjacent to the settlement area. This has been interpreted to be a mooring station for merchant vessels and the settlement itself has been considered an entrepôt for trade with Mesopotamia. In this article, the author argues that there is little substantive support for either of these claims. The settlement in general and the basin in particular do not, in the author's view, appear to meet the requirements of a port. As an alternative, he suggests that the basin could have served as an irrigation tank for a moderately‐sized but still rural village.