Dholavira (Gujarati: ધોળાવીરા) is an archaeological site at Khadirbet in Bhachau Taluka of Kutch District, in the state of Gujarat in western India, which has taken its name from a modern-day village 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) south of it. This village is 165 km (103 mi) from Radhanpur. Also known locally as Kotada timba, the site contains ruins of an ancient Indus Valley Civilization/Harappan city.[1] Dholavira’s location is on the Tropic of Cancer. It is one of the five largest Harappan sites[2] and most prominent archaeological sites in India belonging to the Indus Valley Civilization.[3] It is also considered as having been the grandest of cities[4] of its time. It is located on Khadir bet island in the Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary in the Great Rann of Kutch. The 47 ha (120 acres) quadrangular city lay between two seasonal streams, the Mansar in the north and Manhar in the south.[5] The site was thought to be occupied from c.2650 BCE, declining slowly after about 2100 BCE, and to have been briefly abandoned then reoccupied until c.1450 BCE;[6] however, recent research suggests the beginning of occupation around 3500 BCE (pre-Harappan) and continuity until around 1800 BCE (early part of Late Harappan period).[7]
Dholavira
DHOLAVIRA SITE (24).jpg
Part of the excavated site
Dholavira is located in IndiaDholavira
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Location
Khadirbet, Kutch district, Gujarat, India
Coordinates
23°53′18.98″N 70°12′49.09″E
Type
Settlement
Area
47 ha (120 acres)
History
Periods
Harappa 1 to Harappa 5
Cultures
Indus Valley Civilization
Site notes
Condition
Ruined
Public access
Yes
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name
Dholavira: A Harappan City
Criteria
Cultural: (iii)(iv)
Designated
2021 (44th session)
Reference no.
1645
The site was discovered in 1967-68 by J. P. Joshi, of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and is the fifth largest of eight major Harappan sites. It has been under excavation since 1990 by the ASI, which opined that "Dholavira has indeed added new dimensions to personality of Indus Valley Civilisation."[8] The other major Harappan sites discovered so far are Harappa, Mohenjo-daro, Ganeriwala, Rakhigarhi, Kalibangan, Rupnagar and Lothal.
It is named as the UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name
