The Demise of Utopia: Contexts of Civilizational Collapse in the Bronze Age Indus Valley

Chris J.D. Kostman

Since the discovery of the Harappan Civilization in the greater Indus Valley some 100 years ago, there has been considerable discussion as to the cause of its demise in the mid second millennium B.C. This paper investigates all of the major factors suggested to have contributed to the end of the Harappan Civilization and also considers whether it declined or collapsed at all. The paper concludes that although the Harappans did fall prey to several potentially devastating "acts of god," their legacy continues to this day. The Harappan Civilization never collapsed: it simply transformed over time.

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