Lohari Ragho
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  Lohari Ragho Shown within India | |
| Location | Hisar, Haryana, India |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 29°16′29″N 76°4′17″E / 29.27472°N 76.07139°E |
| Type | Settlement |
| History | |
| Periods | 3200–2600 BC |
| Cultures | Indus Valley Civilization |
| Associated with | farmer |
Lohari Ragho is a village and Indus Valley Civilization archaeological site, located in Hisar district of the Haryana state in India. It has 3 separate mounds, each 1 to 1.5 km apart within the peripheral suburban zone of Rakhigarhi city cite, where artifacts belonging to Mature Harappan and Sothi-Siswal cultural period (sub-culture of Late Harappan phase) have been confirmed based on filed visits.[1] These mounds, unprotected and under risk of encroachment and threat of obliteration, are yet to be excavated, fenced, protected or conserved.
It is 8 km southwest of its erstwhile urban center of Rakhigarhi, 60 km from its IVC cultural ancestor Siswal, 55 km northeast of district headquarter Hisar, 133 km northwest of national capital New Delhi, and 175 km southwest of state capital Chandigarh.
Site location of three mounds
Lahori Ragho can be reached from Hansi on Hansi-Jind State Highway SH-12[1] which runs in northeast direction from Hansi. At 15.2 km on SH-12 from Hansi bypass, where there is Bharat Petroleum's filling station near Majra Payau, another subsidiary road in northwestern direction off SH-12 goes to Lohari Ragho which is another 7 km.
Lohari Ragho has following three separate mounds near Lohari Ragho village, at least 1 km apart, hence each one must be treated as a separate site.[1]
- Lohari Ragho Mound-I: This one is the village in northwest corner of village lal dora near where the unpaved track to Datta village starts.
- Lohari Ragho Mound-II: This one is 950 m west of first one, it lies on the unpaved track which leads to Datta village.
- Lohari Ragho Mound-III: This one is 1.5 km southwest of the second one, it lies in the farms.
Lohari Ragho - an ancient outer suburb of Rakhigarhi city
Bolstering the status of Rakhigarhi as the largest Indus Valley Civilization metropolis on the banks of Drishadvati river (through whose paleochannel presently flows the Chautang river ), at least 23 other Indus Valley Civilization sites within 5 km (at 4 sites), 10 km (at least 10 sites) and 15 km (at least 9 sites) radius of Rakhigarhi have been discovered up to 2001. Some of the raw materials were procured from the nodal Rakhigarhi site and finished products were brought back to the nodal Rakhigarhi site for marketing.[2]
Within 5 km radius are early Harappan (4600 BCE - 2800 BCE) site of Gamra and mature Harappan (2600 BCE - 1400 BCE) sites of Budana, Haibatpur and Lohari Ragho 3.[2]
Within 5 km to 10 km radius, early Harappan sites are Lohari Ragho 1, Lohari Ragho 2 and Kheri Lochab-Kheri Jalab. Mature Harappan small farmstead sites are Milakpur and Gunkali. Small farmstead sites of Kinnar, Nara and Mirchpur have material from both mature and late Harappan period. late Harappan (after 1400 BCE) sites are Sotha and Gandaswala Khera.[2]
Within 5 km to 10 km radius are early, mature and late Harrpan sites. To the north-west of Rakhigarhi are Panhari, Gyanpura, Sotha, Kagsar, Sulchani and south-west of Rakhigarhi are Sisai 1, 2 and 3, Rajpura 2, Pali and Masudpur.[2]
History of excavation
There has been no excavation but visits by several archaeologists who have confirmed the presence of two phases of Harappan culture.
These mounds were first reported by Dhoop Sing and Chanderpal Sing of Haryana Department of Archaeology (HAD) (IAR-1980-8:16) as Late Harappan site which was written about in an article by J.P. Joshi (1984) which attributed these mounds to Sothi-Siswal period (a sub-culture of Late Harappan phase). Tejas Garge, Director of Maharashtra Archaeology department, who visited these sites also confirmed presence of additional Mature Harappan phase as well.[1]
