RAS question
Which Rajasthan site yielded evidence of a 'decorated floor' made of burnt clay during the Harappan period?
Correct answer: (C) Kalibangan.
Kalibangan in Rajasthan yielded Harappan-period evidence of a decorated floor made with kiln-fired terracotta tiles.
Explanation
The site is Kalibangan. The ASI excavation report on Kalibangan's Harappan levels describes a house that appears to have belonged to a well-to-do person, with flooring made of kiln-fired terracotta tiles decorated with intersecting circles. Ordinary floors at Kalibangan were usually mud or mud-brick, so the decorated terracotta floor marks a more elaborate architectural feature. Kalibangan's Harappan context is also associated with fire altars and ritual platforms, showing that the settlement had planned domestic and ritual spaces rather than simple hut-level occupation. The specific combination of Harappan-period Rajasthan and decorated burnt-clay flooring points to Kalibangan.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Ahar is associated with Chalcolithic culture, not the Harappan Kalibangan evidence for decorated kiln-fired terracotta flooring.
- (B) Ganeshwar is a copper-age site, not the Harappan-period Rajasthan site with decorated-floor evidence.
- (D) Sothi belongs to the pre-Harappan context, while Kalibangan provides the Harappan-period decorated burnt-clay floor from Rajasthan.
Concept
Harappan sites in Rajasthan include distinctive excavation finds from Kalibangan. Site-specific material evidence helps separate Harappan, pre-Harappan, Chalcolithic and copper-age cultures in Rajasthan history.