The Archaeology of Sindh and Las Bela Revised

This book covers the research carried out by the Italian Archaeological Mission in Sindh and Las Bela (Balochistan), Pakistan, during the last 35 years. The volume is divided into chapters covering the various periods during which archaeological work was carried out with different local institutions involved in the surveys and excavations. It begins with the research conducted in the 1990s, during which surveys and excavations were carried out in the Rohri Hills and the first Mesolithic sites were discovered in the Thar Desert (Upper Sindh, Pakistan). Chapters include the team’s work done in the prehistory Karachi region, surveys at Ongar, Jhimpir, Ranikot and the problem of chert mining during the Copper and Bronze Ages of Sindh, as well as archaeology of Lake Siranda, Cape Gadani and Daun in Las Bela and a complete set of 162 dates so far obtained from this region that is currently the best radiocarbon dated coastal area of the entire Arabian Sea. A final chapter presents all the radiocarbon dates obtained from the prehistoric sites of Sindh and Las Bela during the last 35 years, to try to define a reliable radiocarbon chronology of this part of the Indus Valley, and Arabian Sea prehistory. This book appeals to readers of prehistory and archaeology of South East Asia.