Rakhigarhi or Rakhi Garhi is a village and an archaeological site in the Hisar District of the northern Indian state of Haryana, situated about 150 km northwest of Delhi.

[3][4][5][6][7][1][note 1] The discovery of two more mounds (in addition to the seven that were already known) in 2014 made Rakhigarhi the largest-known site of the Harappan civilisation.

[9] DNA-tests by Shinde et al. (2019) on a single skeleton show that the DNA did not include any traces of steppe ancestry, in line with the Aryan migration theory, which says that Indo-Aryans migrated to India from the steppes after the Harappan civilisation had started to disintegrate.

[web 4] According to Jane McIntosh, Rakhigarhi is located in the valley of the prehistoric Drishadvati River that originated in Siwalik Hills.

[6][5][3][7][1][4][note 1] According to Nath et al. (2015), "[a]rchaeological remains at Rakhigari extend over a radius of [300 hectares (3.0 km2)] encompassing a set of seven mounds of which 1 to 5 are integrated while a few are removed from each other.

The 2014 excavation discovered two more mounds, RGR-8 and RGR-9, situated east and west of the main site, and largely destroyed for cultivation.

[web 9] RGR-7, which is a cemetery or a burial site from Mature Harappan Phase, dates back to 4600 BP.

The important ones among those are the Bhirrana (4 phases of IVC with earliest dated to 8th-7th millennium BCE) 86 km northwest,[14][15] Kunal (belonging to Kunal cultural which is the cultural ancestor of Rehman Dheri site) 75 km northwest,[16][17] Siswal (belonging to Sothi-Siswal culture dated to 3800 BC, contemporaneous to Early-Harappan Phase) 75 km west,[18][19] and Kalibangan (another large regional IVC city with several phases starting from Early harappan phase) 235 km west,[20] and few more.

There are many other important archaeological sites in this area, in the old river valley to the east of the Ghaggar Plain.

There are 11 mounds in Rakhigarhi which are named RGR-1 to RGR-11, of which RGR-5 is thickly populated by establishment of Rakhishahpur village and is not available for excavations.

[24] In 1997–98, 1998–99 and 1999–2000, ASI team began to excavate the site again, which was led by its director Dr. Amrender Nath who published his findings in scholarly journals.

From 2011 to 2016, Deccan College carried out several substantial excavations led by its then Vice-Chancellor and archaeologist Dr. Vasant Shinde, several members of the team published their findings in various academic journals.

Central University of Haryana and Dr Vasant Shinde also expressed interest in commencing excavation.

[web 9] Findings confirm both early and mature Harappan phases and include 4,600-year-old human skeletons, fortification and bricks.

[web 3] The ASI's detailed excavation of the site revealed the size of the lost city and recovered numerous artefacts, some over 5,000 years old.

[citation needed] Jewellery, including bangles made from terracotta, conch shells, gold, and semi-precious stones, have also been found.

[29] Digging so far reveals a well planned city with 1.92 m wide roads, a bit wider than in Kalibangan.

In addition semi precious stones have been found lying near the head, suggesting that they were part of some sort of necklace.

[web 7][dead link‍] Cotton cloth traces preserved on silver or bronze objects were known from Rakhigarhi, Chanhudaro and Harappa.

Bone remains of secondary burials were not charred hence ruling out the possibility of cremation practices.

[33][34] Parasite eggs which were once existed in the stomach of those buried were found in the burial sites along with human skeletons.

Results announced in September 2018, and a paper published in Cell Magazine in 2019, show that the DNA did not include any traces of steppe ancestry, which is in line with the Aryan migration theory, which says that Indo-Aryans migrated to India from the steppes after the Harappan civilisation had started to disintegrate.

[44] In May 2012, the Global Heritage Fund declared Rakhigarhi one of the ten most endangered heritage sites in Asia facing the threat of irreparable loss and destruction due to development pressures, insufficient management and looting.

[47] ASI has commenced the plan to remove encroachments from the site, including 152 houses on the R4 and R5 mounds.

[web 3] Rakhigarhi, which is an Indus Valley civilisation site, also has a museum developed by the state government.

[49] Jahaj Kothi Museum, named after George Thomas, is located inside Firoz Shah Palace Complex and maintained by Archaeological Survey of India.

[51] The traditional ghats represent the past scenario when paleo-Drishadvati river use to flow through Rakhigarhi which had ghats for transporting goods for trade, via Lothal port and Dholavira, as far as Mesopotamia (ancient cities of Elam and Sumer).