Mohenjo-daro
Explore Mohenjo-daro — the largest city of the Indus Valley Civilization, famous for its Great Bath, grid streets, and sophisticated water management.
Mohenjo-daro, meaning "Mound of the Dead" in Sindhi, was the largest city of the Indus Valley Civilization and one of the world's earliest major urban centers. Located along the Indus River in modern Pakistan, the city at its height around 2500 BCE may have housed up to 40,000 people — making it one of the largest cities in the ancient world.
The city's most famous structure is the Great Bath — a large, waterproofed pool that was likely used for ritual purification. This emphasis on water management runs throughout Mohenjo-daro: virtually every house had a bathroom connected to a citywide drainage system that ran beneath the streets. The sophistication of this infrastructure suggests a civic authority capable of planning and maintaining public works on a massive scale.
Like other Indus cities, Mohenjo-daro shows little evidence of the monumental temples, palaces, or military fortifications found in contemporary civilizations. This has led some archaeologists to hypothesize a more collective or mercantile form of governance — though without deciphered texts, such theories remain speculative. The city was abandoned around 1900 BCE as the Indus civilization declined.