<P> Sir John Marshall reacted with surprise when he saw the famous Indus bronze statuette of a slender - limbed dancing girl in Mohenjo - daro: </P> <P> "When I first saw them I found it difficult to believe that they were prehistoric; they seemed to completely upset all established ideas about early art, and culture . Modeling such as this was unknown in the ancient world up to the Hellenistic age of Greece, and I thought, therefore, that some mistake must surely have been made; that these figures had found their way into levels some 3000 years older than those to which they properly belonged...Now, in these statuettes, it is just this anatomical truth which is so startling; that makes us wonder whether, in this all - important matter, Greek artistry could possibly have been anticipated by the sculptors of a far - off age on the banks of the Indus". </P> <P> Many crafts including, "shell working, ceramics, and agate and glazed steatite bead making" were practised and the pieces were used in the making of necklaces, bangles, and other ornaments from all phases of Harappan culture . Some of these crafts are still practised in the subcontinent today . Some make - up and toiletry items (a special kind of combs (kakai), the use of collyrium and a special three - in - one toiletry gadget) that were found in Harappan contexts still have similar counterparts in modern India . Terracotta female figurines were found (ca . 2800--2600 BCE) which had red colour applied to the "manga" (line of partition of the hair). </P> <P> Seals have been found at Mohenjo - daro depicting a figure standing on its head, and another sitting cross-legged in what some call a yoga - like pose (see image, the so - called Pashupati, below). This figure, sometimes known as a Pashupati, has been variously identified . Sir John Marshall identified a resemblance to the Hindu god, Shiva . If this can be validated, it would be evidence that some aspects of Hinduism predate the earliest texts, the Veda . </P>

The first to discover the traces of the harappan civilization -