Scholars have made innumerable efforts to solve the puzzle called ancient writing. But the writing system of the Indus Valley civilization, even today remains a mystery.
Attempts to decipher it failed, and this was the reason why it is known as the earliest civilization of antiquity. Writings were found in pottery, amulets, carved stamp seals, on weights and copper tablets. Over 2000 stone seals have been found in the Indus valley, which were quadrangular in shape.
The Harappan writing consists of short strings of symbols. Some say that each symbol represents a picture or Idea; others say it represents a sound.
Some experts believe that these writings were slightly earlier than the writings of the Sumerians. These marking have similarities to what later became the Indus Script. Clay and stone tablets unearthed at Harappa, which were carbon dated 3300-3200 BC, contain trident-shaped and plant-like markings.
