Exploitation, Transport, and Circulation of the Rohri Hills Chert (Sindh, Pakistan) during the Indus Period
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe paper discusses circulation and transport of chert raw material and artefacts in the Rohri hills, Pakistan during the Indus period (3rd millennium BC). It describes the environmental setting of the Rohri hills in general and four exemplifying find spots. These descriptions are meant to provide the basis to answer further questions regarding the specific mode of transportation of chert material.
The questions asked in the article are in principle very relevant for the field, sadly though none of them is actually answered. Therefore, it is not possible to test any expressed hypothesis.
The reader expects answers at least to some of the questions formulated in the abstract. But there seems to be too little information available to answer them properly. I would suggest to re-formulate the aims of the paper to give it more focus on aspects that are actually discussed in the text.
Regarding the methodology it would be good to include more scientific analyses in the considerations. A transport radius of any raw material or good can be analyzed by determining the provenance of raw materials such as rocks. Similar investigations were undertaken for gold mines of the Caucasus by N. Erb-Satullo. On this basis, much more specific analyses of the landscape are possible. GIS applications (e.g. least-cost-past analyses) should be used as investigation tools to answer questions of transport and distribution.
p. 8, second passage: ..." a balance struck between production and transportation costs". We know of several examples from Europe and Meso America that the cost of transporting goods or raw materials must have exceeded their actual value. The strictly economic concept of "balance" is very modern should therefore should not be seen as granted for prehistory. There should be at least a discussion, where the author argues for his position.
There is a spelling mistake at reference No. 98. It should be Nessel, B.; Uhnér, C., Transportation...
The text structure is decent. The relevance for the field is not very high. Although the author states, that there is.
Almost all cited references were published more than five years, but this is not unusual in archaeology and significant references are mentioned. The amount of self-citations is low.
The article presents mainly a summary of the research history of the region and four sites.
The pictures do illustrate the aspects mentioned in the text.
No statistical analyses included.
As conclusions the author formulates very general statements. It is mentioned that the problem of transportation is not solved in any way, but the study did nothing to improve this.
The paper contains in general only very few reliable statements. This will most probably not change, even if the authors implement all the reviewers’ suggestions. The topic needs much further exploration in the region.
Author Response
Dear Colleagues, thank you for reviewing the manuscript. Please see the attachment
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe submitted paper addresses important issues in the current scenario of archaeological research on the Indus Civilization, providing a comprehensive bibliographical survey (with notable exceptions) to further deepen the questions raised by the author throughout the text. In fact, the most valuable contribution of this work lies more in the critical questions raised than in the answers provided, paving the way for future research along the lines indicated by the author. In fact, concluding that "lithic material transportation and distribution towards the Indus centres located around the Rohri Hills was made either by land or water, or both" is a rather logical and simplistic statement. However, this reviewer fully agrees with the author that there is currently a lack of sufficient data from different perspectives to propose more complex scenarios.
More in detail:
A larger-scale map showing the Hakra River would enhance the paper's detail. Readers would also be interested in an illustration of the most typical tools made from Rohri chert. If necessary, pictures of Kot Diki and Gamweriwala could be removed as they do not contribute to a better understanding of the issues discussed in the text.
On pg. 4, the author states that, "The available data show that the territory around the hills was very different from that of the present a few centuries ago". However, on pg. 8, we read that "the northernmost part of the hills, where the Indus flows close to the archaeological area, were easier to access." I suggest that the author expand the description of the palaeogeography of the area around the Rohi Hills to avoid confusion between interpretations based on the 3rd millennium and the contemporary geographical settings.
The paper would benefit from the author considering some relevant publications, most notably R.W. Law (2011) Inter-Regional Interaction and Urbanism in the Ancient Indus Valley, Chapter 6 (Chert acquisition networks). In fact, Law documented and discussed the distribution of Rohri chert in and beyond Upper Sindh, providing critical insights into the issues addressed in this paper. Whether or not the author agrees with Law's conclusions, ignoring them completely diminishes the scholarly value of the proposed work.
Some references to Indus weights and seals are also out of date, except for Bahata 2023, but these topics do not have the same impact as the absence of Law 2011. The following papers could be considered for inclusion at the will of the author:
Kenoyer J.M. 2010. Measuring the Harappan World: Insights into Indus Order and Cosmology. Pages 106–122 in I. Morley & C. Renfrew (eds.), The Archaeology of Measurement. Comprehending Heaven, Earth and Time in Ancient Societies. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Miller H.M.-L. 2013. Weighty Matters. Evidence for Unity and Regional Diversity from the Indus Civilization Weights. Pages 161–176 in S. Abraham, P. Gullapalli, T.P. Raczek & U.Z. Rizvi (eds.), Connections and Complexity: New Approaches to the Archaeology of South Asia. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press.
Frenez D. 2018. Private Person or Public Persona? Use and Significance of Standard Indus Seals as Markers of Formal Socio-Economic Identities. Pages 166–193 in D. Frenez, G.M. Jamison, R.W. Law, M. Vidale & R.H. Meadow (eds.), Walking with the Unicorn: Social Organization and Material Culture in Ancient South Asia: J. M. Kenoyer Felicitation Volume. Oxford, UK: Archaeopress.
Uesugi A., Jamison G. & Yamaguchi Y. 2023. Diversity, Complexity and Standardisation: The Significance of Seals in the Indus Archaeology. Pages 22–72 in S.V. Rajesh, G.S. Abhayan & P. Nayar (eds.), Research on Indus Civilization in the Wake of Hundred Years of Excavation at Harappa. Thiruvananthapuram: Department of Archaeology, University of Kerala.
A few typos and editorial issues have been identified:
Pg. 2, line 2: [9[]: 103. instead of [9]: 103.
Pg. 7, line 1: (Starnini and Biagi, 2006) instead of [56]
Author Response
Please see in the attachment here below. Thank you for reviewin!!
Author Response File: 
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