The Brahmi script of the Ashokan inscriptions was deciphered in 1837 by
- A.Alexander Cunningham
- B.James Prinsep
- C.John Marshall
- D.William Jones
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, James Prinsep. Prinsep, an official of the mint at Calcutta and secretary of the Asiatic Society, worked out the values of the Brahmi letters in 1837 and so made Ashoka's edicts readable. Until then the inscriptions were known but silent, and the identification of Devanampiya Piyadasi with the Ashoka of Buddhist tradition followed from this work.
Option A, Alexander Cunningham, was the first Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India and surveyed many of the sites, but he came later and used the readings Prinsep had established. Option C, John Marshall, headed the Archaeological Survey in the early twentieth century and is associated with the announcement of the Harappan discoveries, not with Brahmi. Option D, William Jones, founded the Asiatic Society in 1784 and showed the kinship of Sanskrit with Greek and Latin, but he died long before the script was read.
Read the full article: Mauryan Empire: Ashoka, Edicts and Administration
Practice Questions
View allWho was sent by Seleucus Nicator as his ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya?
- A.Deimachus
- B.Megasthenes
- C.Dionysius
- D.Ptolemy
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After the treaty of about 305 BCE between Chandragupta Maurya and Seleucus Nicator, the Greek ruler sent Megasthenes to Pataliputra as his ambassador.
Read the full explanation →The Kalinga war and its aftermath are described in which of Ashoka's inscriptions?
- A.Major Rock Edict XII
- B.Major Rock Edict XIII
- C.Pillar Edict VII
- D.Minor Rock Edict I
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It is the longest of the fourteen major rock edicts and the only source in Ashoka's own words for the war on Kalinga, the number of people killed, deported and dead of other causes, and the remorse that turned him from conquest by arms to conquest by Dhamma.
Read the full explanation →The Lion Capital adopted as the State Emblem of India was originally erected by Ashoka at
- A.Sanchi
- B.Sarnath
- C.Vaishali
- D.Lauriya Nandangarh
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The Sarnath capital has four lions standing back to back on an abacus that carries an elephant, a bull, a horse and a lion separated by wheels, the whole resting on an inverted lotus.
Read the full explanation →In Mauryan administration, the officer described as the chief collector of revenue was the
- A.Sannidhata
- B.Samaharta
- C.Rajuka
- D.Pradeshika
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In the Arthashastra the Samaharta is the officer in charge of assessing and collecting the revenue of the realm from land, mines, forests, trade routes and city dues, and of keeping the accounts of income and expenditure on which the state ran.
Read the full explanation →Ashoka's personal name is found in which of the following inscriptions?
- A.The minor rock edict at Maski
- B.The major rock edict at Girnar
- C.The pillar edict at Sarnath
- D.The Barabar cave inscription
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Almost all of Ashoka's inscriptions call him only Devanampiya Piyadasi, the beloved of the gods, of amiable appearance.
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