Mehrgarh Archaeological Site
Mehrgarh
Pakistan · Balochistan, Kachi
In brief
The mounds near the Bolan Pass are one of the key sites for studying the development of farming and village life in South Asia. Excavations have uncovered mudbrick buildings and cemeteries; older chronologies and new measurements differ on the dating of the early phases.
What was found?
- 1Compartmented mudbrick structures
Groups of structures made from hand-shaped mudbricks and divided into small compartments. Their functions are uncertain; according to researchers, a substantial proportion may have been used for storage.
- 2Neolithic graves
Human remains were documented in the excavated cemeteries. New radiocarbon measurements on tooth enamel enabled a reassessment of the site's early chronology.
- 3Remains relating to barley and cattle domestication
Plant and animal remains provide evidence concerning the processes of barley cultivation and cattle domestication. They are fundamental to understanding the settlement's economy based on food production.
What does it point to?
Mehrgarh allows the development of early food production, storage and crafts to be traced together. Its starting date is being reassessed: according to a 2025 study, the aceramic Neolithic cemetery examined may have begun to be used between 5200–4900 BCE.
What did it teach us?
- It documented the development of food production and craft specialisation before the Indus cities.
- It showed that successive mudbrick structures built on top of one another formed a settlement mound over time.
- According to researchers, dates obtained from human tooth enamel showed that the early cemetery began later than previous chronologies had indicated.
Images
Latest news / selected archive
Human tooth enamel dating published in 2025 reassessed the previous chronology by placing the beginning of the Aceramic Neolithic cemetery in the range of 5200–4900 BCE.
Record
- Culture
- Mehrgarh culture
- First modern dig
- 1974
- Team / historical
- Pakistan Fransız Arkeoloji Misyonu
- Coordinates
- 29.2125°, 67.6708°
Sources
Nearby excavations
- Mohenjo-daro 214 km
- Harappa 525 km
- Mes Aynak 583 km
- Shahr-i Sokhta 630 km
- Dholavira 644 km
- Takht-i-Bahi 694 km
- —
- —
- 12.000
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Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook
All excavation sites (395)
Türkiye
- Acemhöyük
- Aizanoi
- Alabanda
- Alacahöyük
- Amos
- Ani
- Aphrodisias
- Arslantepe Mound
- Aspendos
- Assos
- Ayanis Fortress
- Aşıklı Höyük
- Barcın Höyük
- Blaundus
- Boncuklu Höyük
- Can Hasan I
- Carchemish
- Claros Sanctuary
- Clazomenae
- Domuztepe
- Ephesus
- Euromus
- Gordion
- Göbekli Tepe
- Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia
- Hattusha
- Hierapolis
- Iasos
- Kaman-Kalehöyük
- Karahantepe
- Karatepe-Aslantaş
- Kaunos
- Kibyra
- Knidos
- Kültepe-Kanesh
- Laodicea on the Lycus
- Letoon Sanctuary
- Limyra
- Magnesia on the Maeander
- Medieval City of Beçin
- Metropolis in Ionia
- Miletus
- Myra
- Nemrut Dağ
- Nysa on the Maeander
- Olympus in Lycia
- Oymaağaç Höyük — Nerik
- Patara
- Pergamon
- Perge
- Phaselis
- Priene
- Sagalassos
- Sanctuary of Apollo at Didyma
- Sanctuary of Labraunda
- Sapinuwa
- Sardis
- Sayburç
- Side
- Stratonikeia
- Tell Atchana – Alalakh
- Teos
- Tripolis on the Meander
- Troy
- Uluburun Shipwreck
- Xanthos
- Yenikapı – Theodosian Harbour Excavations
- Yeşilova Höyük
- Yumuktepe
- Zerzevan Castle
- Zeugma
- Zincirli Höyük — Sam'al
- Çatalhöyük
- Çavuştepe Fortress
- Çayönü
- Çukuriçi Höyük
