A detailed examination of the Indus script. It presents new analysis based on an expansive text corpus using revolutionary analytical techniques developed specifically for the purpose of deciphering the Indus script.

Epigraphic Approaches to Indus Writing is a comprehensive look at one of the last undeciphered Old World scripts. It has defied decipherment for 90 years because of the terse nature of the texts and the lack of a comprehensive corpus and detailed sign list. This book presents the analysis of a comprehensive, computer-based corpus using the most detailed sign list yet compiled for the Indus script. Custom computer programs allowed the verification of the sign list and the compilation of statistics regarding sign distribution and use. Among the questions addressed are: How do you create an epigraphic database? How do you define a sign? What is the Indus number system like? Where did the Indus script come from? and What is the Indus language(s)? Bryan Wells is an archaeologist, epigrapher, and geographer who has excavated on the west and east coasts of North America and in Baluchistan (Pakistan). Wells has studied the Indus script since 1992, and holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from Harvard University.

This work is a revealing study of the enigmatic Indus civilization and how a rich repertoire of archaeological tools is being used to probe its puzzles. The Ancient Indus Valley: New Perspectives takes readers back to a civilization as complex as its contemporaries in Mesopotamia and Egypt, one that covered a far larger region, yet lasted a much briefer time (less than a millennium) and left few visible traces. Researchers have tentatively reconstructed a model of Indus life based on limited material remains and despite its virtually indecipherable written record. This volume describes what is known about the roots of Indus civilization in farming culture, as well as its far-flung trading network, sophisticated crafts and architecture, and surprisingly war-free way of life. Readers will get a glimpse of both a remarkable piece of the past and the extraordinary methods that have brought it back to life.

The Indus Civilization of India and Pakistan was contemporary with, and equally complex as the better-known cultures of Mesopotamia, Egypt and China. The dean of North American Indus scholars, Gregory Possehl, attempts here to marshal the state of knowledge about this fascinating culture in a readable synthesis. He traces the rise and fall of this civilization, examines the economic, architectural, artistic, religious, and intellectual components of this culture, describes its most famous sites, and shows the relationships between the Indus Civilization and the other cultures of its time. As a sourcebook for scholars, a textbook for archaeology students, and an informative volume for the lay reader, The Indus Civilization will be an exciting and informative read.

This dissertation reflects the following five research goals: (1) to create a database of all published inscribed Indus artifacts (Electronic Corpus of Indus Texts or ECIT); (2) to create an interactive computer program to aid in the analysis of the texts (Interactive Concordance of Indus Texts or ICIT); (3) to create a comprehensive sign list for the Indus script; (4) to analyze the Indus texts in order to discover their structures and patterns of sign use; (5) to determine as closely as possible the identity of the Indus Language. The ECIT database lists 5643 artifacts with Indus texts and/or iconography. As far as possible each record gives the details (size, find spot, material, design etc.) and photographs for every item. From the ECIT 3835 artifacts with at least one recognizable Indus sign were transferred to the ICIT. These texts are the basis of the analysis found in this dissertation, especially for the sign list (Chapter 3 and Appendix I). Counts for each sign by site, artifact type, and associated iconography were generated using the ICIT program (v1.59). A subset of the ICIT containing only the complete texts were used for the initial, medial and terminal counts. The structural analysis revealed that the Indus texts may have a Verb initial syntax and that word construction proceeded using a variety of prefixes, infixes and affixes. The morphological patterns do not match those of either Indo-Aryan or Proto-Dravidian. Proto- or Para-Munda could not be ruled out, but could not be verified. Language X still remains a possibility. Two tests of possible decipherments are offered in the final pages.

In this book writer used a different technique to decipher Indus script via phonetic values of basic Indus signs, vowel diacritics ,letters used to mention quantity (number, volume and weight) etc. He has gone through the pottery inscriptions first and tablets thereafter and then discussed about the names and other words found in Indus seals and inscribed on other items. Out of 4000 inscriptions found so far , of which 2000 are still readable, Rajat was able to read 1,296 Sarasvati Scripts, it took 15 years. Now all his methods and the journey to decipher the Script has been put into this book.