Mauryan & Gupta Empires Quiz — 7 Free Questions

Question 1

What was the main type of coinage in use in the Mauryan period, known from large hoards across the subcontinent?

Question 2

The Junagadh inscription of Skandagupta records the repair of the embankment of which artificial lake, first built in the Mauryan period?

Question 3

Which Buddhist rock-cut caves in Madhya Pradesh, close in style to Ajanta, also preserve important mural paintings of about the Gupta period?

Question 4

In his last years, Chandragupta Maurya is traditionally believed to have given up his throne and followed which religion, ending his life at Shravanabelagola?

Question 5

From which place near Varanasi was the fine sandstone for Ashoka's monolithic pillars mostly quarried?

Question 6

The other great Gupta school of Buddha images, working in spotted red sandstone and showing the robe as a series of looping folds, was centred at which city?

Question 7

Which category of high Gupta officials, whose name links them to the crown prince, staffed the most important posts and often issued their own seals?

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About Mauryan & Gupta Empires

This quiz is meant for students preparing for the IAS examination and other competitive tests, and for anyone who wants a firm grip on two of the most important periods of ancient Indian history: the Mauryan Empire and the Gupta Empire. It covers the rise of Magadha and the Nandas; Chandragupta Maurya, Kautilya and the war with Seleucus; Bindusara; Ashoka, the Kalinga War and the policy of dhamma; and the Buddhist councils and missions. It then deals with Mauryan administration from the Arthashastra, the account of Megasthenes, the economy, society, coinage and the famous Mauryan pillars, capitals and caves. The Gupta section covers Sri Gupta, Chandragupta I and the Lichchhavi marriage, Samudragupta and the Prayag Prashasti, Chandragupta II Vikramaditya and the defeat of the Shakas, Kumaragupta I, Skandagupta and the Huna wars, and the decline of the empire. It also covers Gupta administration, land grants, coinage, society and religion, the growth of temple architecture, the sculpture of Sarnath and Mathura, the paintings of Ajanta and Bagh, Sanskrit literature, and the science of Aryabhata and Varahamihira. When complete it will have one hundred and twenty carefully checked questions, arranged in five packs of twenty-four.

Every question has four options, and the correct option can be in any position. After each question there is a detailed explanation of more than five lines, in simple Indian English that a school student can follow. The explanation gives the important dates, names, inscriptions and technical terms, and the points that examiners like to test, such as the difference between the Sarnath and Mathura schools of sculpture or between the northern and southern policies of Samudragupta.

Every fact has been checked against standard reference books on ancient Indian history and against the wording of the inscriptions and texts themselves.