Archaeology at the Western Margins of Thar Desert: Recent Explorations in Khairpur’s Tehsil Faiz Ganj, Sindh

Abstract

This work attempts to identify and locate forty sites of different periods, explored as a result of recent field activities in the Tehsil Faiz Ganj, Khairpur District, Sindh. Further, an analysis of this data mainly contributes to understand the eastern limits of inhabitation towards the western margins of Thar desert in Sindh. In this connection, the study demonstrates a cultural chain of events dating back from the middle palaeolithic to the late historic periods, marking the highest concentration of Harappan site. There are thirteen sites of significant Harappan occupation, with diagnostic groups of the Hakra and Kot Diji periods, five large Mature Harappan settlements, and traces of their survival into the localisation (Jhukar) phase. More importantly, the discovery of Hakra-phase material at Taloor ji Bhit and other sites, such as Ronri with its kiln characteristics, indicates an uncharted early occupation and cultural direction between the regionalisation and cultural integration periods. One of them is the discovery of Painted Grey Ware at six sites, which provide a critical chronological interval between the decline of Indus urbanism and the emergence of the second urbanization in South Asia. Further, a spatial analysis reveals that the ancient population strategically exploited the ecotone between the Indus alluvial plains and the Thar Desert to utilize seasonal water sources and facilitate long-distance trade, as attested by the coastal materials. This paper finally conclusively confirms that the Thar Desert fringe was not a periphery but a vibrant cultural flow that reflects Faiz Ganj’s contribution to the continuing habitation, cultural exchange, and adaptation in Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sindh.