THE INDUS: LOST CIVILIZATIONS
Book ID/图书代码： 14932915B80340
English Summary/英文概要： When the Greek army of Alexander the Great invaded the valley of the
Indus river in the fourth century bc, it was wholly unaware that this region
of northwest India had once been the centre of a civilization worthy of
comparison with those of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. The Indus
civilization flourished for half a millennium from about 2600 to 1900 bc,
when it mysteriously declined and vanished from view. It remained
invisible for almost four thousand years, until its ruins were discovered in the
1920s by British and Indian archaeologists. Today, after almost a century
of excavation, it is regarded as the beginning of Indian civilization and
possibly the origin of Hinduism.
More than a thousand Indus settlements covered at least 800,000 square
kilometres of what is now Pakistan and India: it was themost extensive urban
culture of its age, with a vigorous maritime export trade to the Persian Gulf
and cities such asUr. The two largest Indus cities,Harappa andMohenjo-daro
– a unescoWorldHeritage Site – boasted street planning and house drainage
worthy of the twentieth century ad, including the world’s first toilets, along
with complex stone weights, finely drilled gemstone necklaces and an
exquisite part-pictographic writing system, which was carved on seal stones
and has defied numerous attempts at decipherment. Astonishingly, there is
no evidence for armies or warfare.
The Indus: Lost Civilizations is an accessible introduction to every
significant aspect of an extraordinary and tantalizing ‘lost’ civilization, which
apparently combined artistic excellence, technological sophistication and
economic vigour with social egalitarianism, political freedom and religious
moderation. The book also discusses the vital legacy of the Indus civilization
in modern India and Pakistan.
Chinese Summary/中文概要： 当亚历山大大帝的希腊军队在公元前4世纪入侵印度河流域时，他们完全没有意识到这一印度西北部地区曾经是可与古埃及、美索不达米亚平原文明相提并论的文明中心。印度河文明从公元前2600年至公元前1900年繁荣发展了半个多世纪，然后便神秘地衰落并从人们的视线中消失，直到数千年后的20世纪20年代由英国和印度考古学家发现了它的遗迹才再一次被人们所知晓。现在，在经历了近百年的挖掘之后，它被认为是印度文明的源头，也有可能是印度教的起源。
一千多年间，印度河定居点覆盖了现在的巴基斯坦和印度地区至少800,000平方公里的面积：是当时占地最广的城市文化，海上出口贸易非常繁荣。两座最大的城市哈拉帕和摩亨佐-达罗（联合文教科文组织世界遗产地）因其街道规划和房屋排水系统而著称，还有世界上最早的厕以及复杂的石坠、精致的宝石项链和精密复杂的半象形文字系统——这些文字被雕刻在石头上，耗费了人们大量的精力进行解读。令人震惊的是，没有发现军队和战争的证据。
本书浅显易懂，介绍了这一非凡而迷人的“失落的文明”的各个重要的方面，涵盖了杰出的艺术、成熟的科技、繁荣的经济以及平等的社会、自由的政治和适度的宗教。本书还讨论了当代印度和巴基斯坦的印度河文明留下的重要遗产。（LYR）
Awards/获奖情况：“内容翔实、极具说服力的作品……Robinson通过各个章节探讨了这一伟大文明的方方面面，包括宗教、社会、艺术、毛衣、农业等，研究了它们的起源、消失和重新发现……详细记录了印度河流域的人民，将内容高度浓缩于本书，确实是一本好书。”——《Current World Archaeology》
“Robinson为这一世界上最神秘的早期文明创造了一幅画里的画卷。在本书中，他凭借丰富的学识轻松得游走于各个不同的学术领域。这部作品详细记录了印度河文明，包括其文字、宗教信仰和复杂的传承，将这个活力的都市社会在恰当的历史环境中进行分析。每一个对古代文明感兴趣的读者都应该阅读这部讲述印度河流域人民的极具说服力、论证严密的传记作品。”——Brian Fagan，作家
“本书文笔优美，浅显易懂……Andrew Robinson公正、公平地探讨了各类悬而未决的问题……是宝贵的关于印度河文明的文献资料。”——Iravatham Mahadevan
’[A] wonderfully eloquent and informative new book . . . Robinson examines by chapter every aspect of this deliciously intriguing civilisation, from religion, society, art, trade, and agriculture, to their origins, disappearance and rediscovery . . . a comprehensive account of the Indus people, condensed into a highly accessible volume - and a very good read indeed.’ --Current World Archaeology
’Robinson creates a brilliant portrait of one of the world s most enigmatic early civilizations. In doing so, he crosses the boundaries between different academic disciplines with effortless panache and high learning. This succinct account of the Indus civilization, its script, religious beliefs, and its complex inheritance, places a vigorous, urban society in its rightful historical context. Everyone interested in ancient civilizations should read this eloquent, closely argued biography (it is nothing less) that brings the Indus people in from the historical shadows.’ --Brian Fagan, author of The Great Warming and Elixir: A History of Water and Humankind
’The Indus is very well written and eminently readable . . . Andrew Robinson deals with all the unsolved problems in a fair manner and with balanced judgement . . . a valuable contribution to the literature on the Indus Civilization.’ --Iravatham Mahadevan
About the Author/作者介绍： Andrew Robinson，已经出版了涉及包括科学、科学历史、古代文字、文字系统、考古解密、印度历史和文化等多个领域的25本图书，其中包括6本名人传记。本书融合了他在考古、历史、印度、科学等多个领域的研究兴趣。他的下一部作品名为《地震、国家和文明》，涉及广泛的历史和一系列重大事件。个人网站：http://andrew-robinson.org/
Andrew Robinson has written more than twenty-five books in a wide range of subjects: science and the history of science; ancient scripts, writing systems and archaeological decipherment; and Indian history and culture. They include six biographies: of the physicist Albert Einstein and the polymath Thomas Young; of the decipherers Jean-Francois Champollion (Egyptian hieroglyphs) and Michael Ventris (Minoan Linear B); and of the Indian writer Rabindranath Tagore and the Indian film director Satyajit Ray. His latest book, The Indus: Lost Civilizations, combines his interest in archaeology, history, India and science. His next book is a wide-ranging history, Earth-Shattering Events: Earthquakes, Nations and Civilization. See http://andrew-robinson.org/
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Rights Status/版权销售情况：Simplified Chinese/简体中文：SOLD(非我们代理）
Complex/Traditional Chinese/繁体中文：AVAILABLE
Sales in other countries/其他国家销售情况：Rights sold: Arabic, Simp. Chinese, Marathi, Indian Subcontinent
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