Flint mining trenches along the southern edge of JMP-21

Until recently the only prehistoric flint mining area in Sindh to be exploited during the Indus civilisation was thought to be the Rohri Hills (Allchin 1979; Starnini & Biagi 2006; Biagi & Starnini 2008). However, recent discoveries made at Ongar and Daphro, south of Kotri, revealed that these hills also show evident traces of flint mining, although most of the prehistoric extractive structures have been destroyed by ongoing industrial activities (Biagi 2008; Biagi & Franco 2008). Now surveys carried out by the Italian Archaeological Mission in January and February 2010 have discovered good- quality flint sources, mining areas and workshops in the neighbourhood of Jhimpir, in Lower Sindh (Figure 1).