Editing Lothal (section)

===Economy and urban culture===
[[File:Pot furnace lothal.jpg|thumb|Pot furnace at Lothal]]
[[File:Lothal - ancient well.jpg|thumb|An ancient well, and the city drainage canals]]
The uniform organization of the town and its institutions make it evident that the Harappans were very disciplined people.<ref name="Rao1A">{{cite book
| title = Lothal
| publisher = [[Archaeological Survey of India]]
| author = S. R. Rao
| author-link = S. R. Rao
| page = 8
| year = 1985
}}</ref> Commerce and administrative duties were performed according to standards laid out. Municipal administration was strict – the width of most streets remained the same over a long time, and no encroached structures were built. Householders possessed a [[sump]], or collection chamber to deposit solid waste in order to prevent the clogging of city drains. Drains, manholes, and cesspools deposited the waste in the river which was washed out during high tide maintaining the cleanliness of the city. A new provincial style of Harappan art and painting was pioneered. The new approaches included realistic portrayals of animals in their natural surroundings. Metalware, gold and jewellery and tastefully decorated ornaments attest to the culture and prosperity of the people of Lothal.

Most of their equipment: metal tools, weights, measures, seals, earthenware and ornaments were of the uniform standard and quality found across the Indus civilization. Lothal was a major trade centre, importing ''en masse''{{citation needed|date=January 2022}} raw materials like copper, [[chert]] and semi-precious stones from [[Mohenjo-daro]] and [[Harappa]], and mass distributing to inner villages and towns. It also produced large quantities of bronze [[celt (tool)|celts]], fish-hooks, chisels, spears and ornaments. Lothal exported its beads, gemstones, ivory and shells. The stone blade industry catered to domestic needs—fine chert was imported from the [[Larkana]] valley or from [[Bijapur, Karnataka|Bijapur]] in modern [[Karnataka]]. [[Bhagatrav]] supplied semi-precious stones while ''chank'' shell came from [[Dholavira]] and [[Bet Dwarka]]. An intensive trade network gave the inhabitants great prosperity.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}} The network stretched across the frontiers to [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]], Bahrain and [[Sumer]].<ref name="RaoY"/> One of the evidence of trade in Lothal is the discovery of typical Persian gulf seals, a circular button seal<ref>[[Bridget Allchin|Bridget]], [[F. Raymond Allchin]], ''The rise of civilization in India and Pakistan'', p.&nbsp;187</ref>