John Marshall's Mohenjo-Daro and the Indus Civilization, published by Arthur Probsthain in 1931, is the official excavation report by the director of the Archaeological Survey of India who led the original dig. Its authority is that of the primary excavation record, written by the person who actually uncovered the site and its finds. Its limit, which this atlas notes directly, is that Marshall's own identification of the seated horned seal figure as a prototype of the Hindu god Shiva, first proposed in 1928, is a report-era interpretive claim that later archaeology and Indology have not confirmed. Cite it for the excavation and the finds themselves, and treat the Shiva identification as this report's own contested reading rather than settled fact.
Facts
Assessment
Reliability Tier2
John Marshall's Mohenjo-Daro and the Indus Civilization, published by Arthur Probsthain in 1931, the middle tier reflecting that it is the official excavation report by the director of the Archaeological Survey of India who led the original dig, authoritative for the excavation and the finds themselves, notwithstanding that Marshall's own 1928 identification of the seated horned seal figure as a prototype of the Hindu god Shiva is a report era interpretive claim that later archaeology and Indology have not confirmed, and should be treated as this report's own contested reading. NotesWhere Marshall set out at length the identification of the seated horned seal figure as a prototype of Shiva, first proposed in 1928. Tier 2: a foundational excavation report whose religious identifications have not survived later scrutiny.
Citation
AuthorJohn Marshall
PublisherArthur Probsthain
London, 1931, three volumes, the official account of the 1922-1927 excavations; per the Internet Archive and Dominic Winter auction-catalogue descriptions of the same edition. Publication Year1931
Source TypePrimary excavation report
Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names India directly: "of the Archaeological Survey of India who led the original dig."
Shiva, Deities This source names Shiva directly: "figure as a prototype of the Hindu god Shiva, first proposed in 1928, is a report-era interpretive claim that later archaeology and Indology have not confirmed."
Claims Backed By This Source (14 claims)
This source backs 14 claims across the atlas. As facts: 7 well-attested. As cited relationships: 3 holds, 1 connected. Plus 3 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.
Disposition By Topic
- Sources, 9 claims: 7 well-attested, 2 holds.
- Deities, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.
- Bodies of Water, 1 claims: 1 general references.
- Open Questions, 1 claims: 1 connected.
- Regions, 1 claims: 1 general references.
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