How a Mohenjo-daro figurine became a 'dancer' — and a challenge to 'modesty', Pg11

Key Highlights:

• The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) recently restored the original image of the "Dancing Girl" figurine in a Class 9 textbook after it was previously shaded over.
• This follows a 2024 incident where a fully clad version of the "Dancing Girl" was unveiled as the mascot for the International Museum Expo, drawing criticism from historians.
• The interpretation of the bronze figurine as a "nautch girl" was largely attributed to archaeologist John Marshall without conclusive evidence.
• Post-Partition, India and Pakistan disputed the ownership of Harappan artifacts, including the "Dancing Girl" and the "Priest King" from Mohenjo-daro.
• Pakistan chose the Priest King over the "Dancing Girl" during the 50:50 division of artifacts to avoid religious backlash over the naked figurine.

Detailed Insights:

• The "Dancing Girl" is a 10.5 cm tall bronze statuette discovered at Mohenjo-daro, one of the major sites of the Indus Valley Civilization.
• John Marshall, then Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), identified the figurine as a "nautch girl" in the early 20th century.
• Critics argue that Marshall's interpretation was influenced by colonial perceptions of Indian dancers, rather than archaeological evidence.
• The International Museum Expo mascot, a modern adaptation, depicted the "Dancing Girl" with a lighter complexion and clothing, deviating from the original artifact.
• Mohenjo-daro and Harappa, key urban centers of the Indus Valley Civilization, are located in present-day Pakistan.
• The Indus Valley Civilization, also known as the Harappan Civilization, was a Bronze Age civilization flourishing from approximately 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE.
• While the "Dancing Girl" was controversially interpreted, many other nude terracotta female figurines from Harappan sites were identified with the Mother Goddess cult.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan Civilization): A Bronze Age civilization (c. 3300–1300 BCE) in the northwestern regions of South Asia, known for its urban planning.
• Mohenjo-daro: One of the largest and most well-known urban settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization, located in present-day Sindh, Pakistan.
• Archaeological Survey of India (ASI): An Indian government agency responsible for archaeological research and the conservation of cultural heritage.
• Nautch Girl: A historical term for a professional female dancer in India, often associated with court entertainment during the Mughal and colonial eras.