Question

How were the Historians able to provide new insights into the subsistence strategies of the Harappan Culture, analyse.

Answer 1

Mature Harappan culture developed in some of the areas occupied by the Early Harappan cultures. These cultures also shared certain common elements including subsistence strategies. 

• The Harappans ate a wide range of plant and animal products, including fish. Grains found at Harappan sites include wheat, barley, lentil, millets, chickpea, and sesame. Archaeologists have been able to reconstruct dietary practices from finds of charred grains and seeds. 
• Representations on seals and terracotta sculpture indicate that the bull was known, and archaeologists extrapolate from this that oxen were used for ploughing. 
• Animal bones found at Harappan sites include those of cattle, sheep, goat, buffalo and pig. Studies done by archaeo-zoologists or zooarchaeologists indicate that these animals were domesticated for sustenance.