How were copper and bronze used in the Indus civilization?

In the Indus civilization, copper and bronze served as the primary metals for creating a wide array of tools and implements, including flat oblong axes, chisels, knives, spears, arrowheads, small saws, and razors. These items were typically produced through simple casting, hammering, and chiseling techniques.1

Beyond practical tools, these metals were used to create high-quality vessels by hammering sheets of metal. Artisans also utilized the lost-wax process to cast intricate figurines of humans and animals, demonstrating a high level of technical skill. While bronze was used, it was notably less common than copper, particularly in the lower archaeological levels.1

The civilization utilized four main varieties of these metals: crude copper lumps, refined copper containing trace elements of arsenic and antimony, a copper-arsenic alloy, and bronze, which was an alloy of copper and tin. Although their metalworking was technologically advanced, it is generally considered to have been less developed than that of contemporary Mesopotamia.1