Post-Mauryan Period (Indo-Greeks, Sakas, Kushanas, Western Kshatrapas): Contact with outside world; growth of urban centres, economy, coinage, development of religions, Mahayana, social conditions, art, architecture, culture, literature and science.
PYQs: Post-Mauryan Period (Indo-Greeks, Sakas, Kushanas, Western Kshatrapas) – [1985-2026]
- Write short essay of not more than 200 words on; The role of guilds in the economic life of India from c. 200 B. C.to c. A. D. 300. (1986)
- Bring out the salient features of the religious developments in the Post-Maurya period. How was contemporary art influenced by it? (1988)
- Write short essay of not more than 200 words on: Indian participation in the silk trade through Central Asia. (1990)
- Write brief essay on Origins, chronology, characteristics and geographical spread of Gandhara art. (1991)
- Write brief essay on Buddhist writing in Sanskrit in the post – Maurya period. (1993)
- “The centuries between c. 200 B.C. and c. A.D. 300 constitute a landmark in the socioreligious history of India.” Analyse the proposition. (1995)
- Furnish a critical and comparative account of various schools of art in the PostMauryan period (c. 200 B.C.-c. 300 A.D.) (1998)
- How justified are we in characterizing the post-Mauryan five centuries as the “Dark Period” of Indian History? Give reasons in support of your answer. (2008)
- Examine the significance of the deities depicted on the coins of the Kushanas. (2010)
- Justify Pliny’s statement that Rome was being drained out of its gold by India during the first century of the Christian era. (2012)
- Review critically the evolution of different schools of art in the Indian subcontinent between the second century BCE and the third century CE, and evaluate the socioreligious factors responsible for it. (2014)
- How does the numismatic evidence of the period reflect the political and economic outlook of the Kushanas and the Satavahanas? (2016)
- The period of Indian History from 3rd century B.C.E. to 5th century C.E. was the period of innovation and interaction. How will you react? (2017)
- What was the impact of trans-regional and trans-continental trade in the post Mauryan period on social and cultural life of India? (2018)
- “The development of art and architecture during the Sunga period belies the belief that they were anti-Buddhist.” Discuss. (2019)
- The flourishing international trade during the Kushana period gave tremendous impetus to the development of art.Discuss. (2019)
- Evaluate the significant political features of the Post Mauryan Northern India. What are the main sources of it? (2020)
- Analyze the significance of external influences and indigenous develop-ment on post-Mauryan art. (2021)
- Western Kshatrapas are known for their socio-economic contribution, particularly in trade, agriculture, and urbanization. Examine the statement. (2024)
- Examine the nature and impact of India’s contacts with Central Asia during the 1st to 3rd century CE. How did these interactions influence India’s political, cultural and economic spheres? (2025)
- Cross-listed: “Evaluate the political and socio-cultural changes occurred in North India after the decline of the Mauryan Empire under the Shunga and Kanva dynasties. (2026)”
