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HOME :
Asian Art :
Indus Valley Vessels : Kulli Painted Terracotta Jar///published 9406
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Kulli Painted Terracotta Jar///published 9406 - LO.509
Origin: Pakistan/Baluchistan
Circa: 2500
BC
to 2000
BC
Dimensions:
6.75" (17.1cm) high
Collection: Asian
Style: Kulli, Southern Baluchistan
Medium: Terracotta
Condition: Fine
Location: Great Britain
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| Description |
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Around 2600 BCE, most sites in northern and
central Baluchistan were abandoned, as a
consequence of the expansion of the Indus
Civilisation into their territory. Nevertheless,
southern Baluchistan continued to be
inhabited by a people labelled "Kulli."This
cultural complex is named after a site in
Kolwa, discovered by Aurel Stein. Since then,
several other sites became known from
Makran to southern Kalat and Nindowari, to
Nausharo in the Kachi plain, and to the
eastern foot of the Kirthar Range in
southwestern Sindh. Some motifs and vessel
shapes found in southeastern Iran and on the
Arabian Peninsula, are sometimes also linked
to the Kulli and seen as indications for long-
distance contacts. The lay-out of some sites
resemble the plan of Harappan sites: rows of
houses are built along lanes and streets,
which are sometimes paved. Sometimes,
stairs provide access to upper terraces.
Building materials were large ashlars or
boulders, and the houses are often preserved
to a considerable height. Many of these sites
are located in strategic positions, on top of
mountains or terrace hills, overlooking the
valleys and controlling the plains and passes .
Other sites are small hamlets built in the open
plain. Although they have no defenses, they
are of a very compact appearance. Most sites
are associated with dams.
Ceramic vessels from the Kulli phase have
been unearthed at Nindowari, Nausharo and
other small sites in Baluchistan. Their surface
often painted with reddish-brown slip
designs, one of the most common being the
ensemble of vertical strokes depicted on the
neck, as in the case of a small fragment
unearthed at Bakkar Buthi, a small Harappan
site located in the Kanrach Valley, a remote
area bordered by the Mor and Pab Ranges. All
the motifs fetaured on this jar would seem to
indicate its appurtenance to the Kulli culture
of southern Baluchistan, possibly dated to the
late 3rd Millennium BCE.
Comparable works are to be found in: G.
Possehl, Kulli: An Exploration of an Ancient
Civilization in South Asia, Durham, 1986.
IV 9406
- (LO.509)
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