July 2007
If you are a lover of archaeology and fond of visiting archaeological sites, then Moenjodaro is a place you should go to.  It’s one of the most spectacular and developed urban civilizations of the world that flourished from the third to the middle of the second millennium B.C.  This civilization is 5000 years old and is located in Pakistan on the west bank of the River Indus.  When you stand at the highest point of the remains, with an aerial view of this great site, you have the strange feeling that you are a part of this civilization.

Before moving further, let’s first peep into the history of this great era.  Thereafter, I will give you some practical information for visiting and staying at the site.

The meaning of Moenjodaro is “The Mound of the Dead.”  It was discovered in 1922.  The Indus River civilization, which is the civilization of the area, flourished for about 800 years before it ceased to exist.

The ruins at the site indicate that Moenjodaro used to be an organized and planned city, architecturally sophisticated.  The inhabitants of the area were highly artistic and innovative.  It’s interesting to note that, while inspecting the remains at the site, bathrooms of that era, which were constructed to keep complete privacy for the users, are visible.  Special consideration was given to the design of the buildings to offset the effects of heat. 

Once you have a view of the excavated streets, you find that the streets were set in a grid system. There were halls, galleries and rooms at the back and a large bathing pool probably used for religious or ceremonial purposes.  It had covered drainage system and soaked pits with disposal bins. It also had an administrative, domestic and commercial areas.

There used to be a college for the priests and a hall with verandahs on all  four sides, a large palace and a fortress mound.  The buildings were generally made of mud and baked bricks.  From closer inspection, it is interesting to note that care was taken to make the buildings earthquake-proof, ensuring that during a tremble, the structures collapsed outwards. 

Evidence of the existence of a public treasury has been found that indicates that in those days, taxes were collected from the public; stone weights and measures point towards stringent civic regulations which were in vogue at that time.  Excavations have also unearthed earrings, necklaces, beads and pearls.

In 1875, a seal was found during excavations at another site called Harappa which is 1287 km from Moenjodaro. This site also belongs to the Indus civilization. The seal aroused curiosity amongst the archeologists who were convinced that it belonged to some ancient civilization.  A picture of a bull without a hump and an inscription comprising six characters which could not be decoded, were engraved on the seal.  These engraved pictures were also on seals found later and lead us to believe that these pictures and characters were indigenous to the Indus civilization.  This seal finally led to the discovery of another archaeological site called Harappa in 1923.

After reaching Moenjodaro and visiting the area around the site, you would be startled to see the similarity that exists between various objects used in the area 5000 years ago and those being used today in the existing settlements of the area. The examples are bullock carts, boats, drinking mugs, toys, etc. All these items are still in use in areas adjoining Moenjodaro. The strong resemblance of these items tells us how great the impact of that ancient civilization was.  Some other objects found in Moenjodaro include models of birds, a small dancing girl made of bronze and a priest king.  

In Moenjodaro, there’s a museum that’s located adjacent to the site itself. In this museum, invaluable relics are available which include engraved seals, ornaments, utensils, pottery, weapons and toys.  

By studying the coins and potteries, you can get an idea about the trade and cultural links that existed at that time between Moenjodaro and Egypt besides other civilizations.  There is also evidence of the existence of dams which were used for storing river water.  The cultivation was carried out manually with the help of ploughs driven by bullocks - a system that still exists in Pakistan.  Large godowns were built for the storage of food.

For the readers who have by now become curious about Moenjodaro, I will give some practical information on how to reach the place and where to stay. You can easily reach Moenjodaro from anywhere in the world.  The best way is to get to  Pakistan first, landing at Karachi Airport. Moenjodaro is 400 KM away from Karachi and is connected by air, road and rail.

Obviously air travel is quickest - the flying time from Karachi to Moenjodaro is 55 minutes.  The air ticket (Karachi-Moenjodaro-Karachi) is US $ 65 and  there’s a daily flight which leaves Karachi in the evening and also returns the same evening.  The archeological site is adjacent to the Moenjodaro Airport.

If you opt to visit this site by bus, you can board a coach named Blue Lines, which takes about 6 hours from Karachi to Moenjodaro.  The fare is only $5.
Traveling by bus would gives you an opportunity to have a look at the  interior Sindh province. The same is the case with the railway journey.
If you stay overnight, it’s recommended that you stay in one of the hotels at Larkana which is the nearest town to the site -  25km from Moenjodaro Airport.  You can get there by hiring a taxi - fare is $5.  The city of Larkana has the distinction of producing two Prime Ministers of Pakistan i.e. Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and his daughter Ms. Benazir Bhutto.

Though, there are many hotels at Larkana, Hotel France is the best - clean and air-conditioned.  It costs only US $10 per night. You may add another $10 per day for food, laundry and miscellaneous expenses.  The hotel serves all types of food, even fried fish if you like.  There’s a motel also available at site.  As far as drinking water is concerned, it would be advisable to drink mineral water which is available everywhere and costs less than half a dollar per large bottle. 

There’s a museum at Moenjodaro  open to the general public from 9am to 4pm.  As Pakistan observes a floating exchange rate system, the existing conversion rate of dollar to rupee (the local currency) is US $1 = Rs. 60.  Regarding time zone, Pakistan Standard Time is GMT plus 5 hrs.  It gets dark at about 5 p.m. in winters and at 7:30 p.m. in summers. 

A souvenir shop is available at the site.  The Sindhi language is spoken in the area but educated people understand and speak English as well.  The climate is very hot so the best time to visit Moenjodaro is December/January.

There are many types of fruit available in Larkana;  guava is most popular, grown locally and exported to other cities in Pakistan. 

A piece of advice for the prospective visitors: Once you are at Moenjodaro, you shouldn’t lose this opportunity to visit some other archaeological sites as well in. These sites would be a source of immense delight for the tourists.

In the end, after seeing all these magnificent sites, you should conclude your journey by visiting a hill resort in Pakistan, called Muree.  It’s 65km from the capital of the country, Islamabad, which, though not an archeological site, is full of captivating scenic beauty.  You can go there by Daewoo Luxury Bus Service in the morning and return the same evening.  The bus takes 1-1/2 hours to reach the resort and its return fare is only US $3.50.  The resort has a Pearl Continental hotel, a golf course, a commercial area and other places of interest for the tourists.

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