Livability ranks as the chief concept guiding the gifted architects and planners who designed our great city. Our main streets generally run north-south and east-west and are connected by smaller lanes. Mohenjo-Daro is divided into two major sections: the Mound to the west and the Lower Town to the east.

Click here to explore the Mound.

Click here to explore the Lower Town.

For information about our sanitation system, which has no equal in the world, click on Water and Sewer.

The Mound

The Mound, also called the Citadel, is the center of our community life. As tall as five men standing on top of one another, it was built on a mound of sun-dried bricks and rubble. The Citadel is surrounded by a wall of fired bricks. Timbers harvested from the vast forests of our realm fortify the wall. For security, watchtowers rise along parts of the Citadel wall.

• Great Bath

Atop the mound is the Great Bath, a structure 39 feet by 23 feet and 8 feet deep. The floor of the Great Bath consists of tightly fitted bricks sealed with tar. Here, citizens can purify themselves during religious ceremonies. A series of rooms used for private cleansings lie along the eastern edge of the Great Bath. Our priests reside in a large building next to the Great Bath.

• The Cemetery

Near the Citadel is our cemetery, where our dead are laid to rest in wooden coffins. Although we are a wealthy society, we do not waste our gold on fancy tombs. Nor do we bury our dead with anything other than a simple ornament and some pottery vessels. Instead, we pass our worldly goods on to our descendants so that our generosity may enrich them and give them pleasure.

• Craft Center

The Citadel also includes a crafts quarter, where workers produce beads, ornaments, and other fine goods from clay, shell, and stone.

The Lower Town

To the east of the Citadel is the Lower Town. Here, along the streets and lanes, are the dwellings of the people and the merchants’ shops. Such an orderly arrangement makes getting around in Mohenjo-Daro an easy business.

Water and Sewer

Our central drainage and water system contributes greatly to the quality of life of our citizens. Along our main thoroughfares, you’ll find brick drains to carry runoff water. This system serves the entire city, carrying wastewater away from every home and business through clay pipes. All citizens have access to fresh water from easily accessible wells. Many houses and businesses have their own well, though some wells serve a neighborhood.

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