UPSC Ancient India – Chapter 1: Sources of Ancient Indian History (21 MCQs)

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UPSC Ancient India – Chapter 1: Sources of Ancient Indian History (21 MCQs) – 21 questions, subject: History. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

Kalhana's Rajatarangini is a history of:

Correct Answer: A [Kashmir]

Explanation:

Kalhana's Rajatarangini, completed in 1148–49, is a chronological history of the kings of Kashmir.

2.  

Megasthenes was the envoy of Seleucus Nicator to the court of:

Correct Answer: B [Chandragupta Maurya]

Explanation:

Seleucus Nicator sent Megasthenes as his envoy to Chandragupta Maurya's court at Pataliputra after their treaty; his Indica describes Mauryan India.

3.  

The Chinese pilgrim who visited India during the reign of Chandragupta II was:

Correct Answer: B [Fa-hien]

Explanation:

Fa-hien travelled in India in the early 5th century CE, during the reign of the Gupta king Chandragupta II.

4.  

The Kharosthi script was written:

Correct Answer: D [from right to left]

Explanation:

Kharosthi developed from the Aramaic script and, like Aramaic, was written from right to left.

5.  

The first long inscription in Sanskrit is the Junagadh inscription of:

Correct Answer: D [Rudradaman I]

Explanation:

Rudradaman I's Junagadh (Girnar) inscription of c. 150 CE, recording repair of the Sudarshana lake, is the first long Sanskrit inscription.

6.  

The Allahabad pillar inscription describing Samudragupta's conquests was composed by:

Correct Answer: A [Harishena]

Explanation:

Harishena, Samudragupta's court poet, composed the Allahabad (Prayaga) pillar prashasti listing the king's conquests.

7.  

The Aihole inscription records the victory of Pulakeshin II over:

Correct Answer: A [Harsha]

Explanation:

Ravikirti's Aihole inscription of 634 CE celebrates Pulakeshin II's defeat of Harsha on the Narmada.

8.  

The Hathigumpha inscription belongs to:

Correct Answer: D [Kharavela]

Explanation:

The Hathigumpha inscription at Udayagiri near Bhubaneswar gives a year-by-year account of the reign of Kharavela of Kalinga.

9.  

According to NCERT, the first gold coins in India were issued by the:

Correct Answer: A [Kushanas]

Explanation:

NCERT states that the first gold coins were issued about the first century CE by the Kushanas.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. Punch-marked coins are the earliest coins of India.
2. The Indo-Greeks issued coins bearing the names and portraits of rulers.
3. The Mauryas issued the largest number of gold coins.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Punch-marked coins are the earliest and Indo-Greek coins first carried rulers' names and portraits; the Guptas, not Mauryas, issued most gold coins.

11.  

Assertion (A): Copper-plate inscriptions are a major source for the agrarian history of the post-Gupta period.

Reason (R): Most copper-plate inscriptions record land grants.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Copper plates mostly record land grants, and these grants reveal land, revenue and agrarian relations, so R explains A.

12.  

The Besnagar pillar was erected by Heliodorus, who was an envoy of:

Correct Answer: B [Antialcidas]

Explanation:

The Besnagar pillar inscription calls Heliodorus of Taxila an envoy of the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas to the court at Vidisha.

13.  

The first head of the Archaeological Survey of India (1861) was:

Correct Answer: C [Alexander Cunningham]

Explanation:

Alexander Cunningham headed the Archaeological Survey of India when it was set up in 1861.

14.  

Who divided Indian history into Hindu, Muslim and British periods?

Correct Answer: C [James Mill]

Explanation:

James Mill's The History of British India (1817) divided Indian history into Hindu, Muslim and British periods.

15.  

Kitab-ul-Hind, an account of Indian society and sciences, was written by:

Correct Answer: D [Al-Biruni]

Explanation:

Al-Biruni of Khwarazm, who came with Mahmud of Ghazni, wrote Kitab-ul-Hind around 1030.

16.  

The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea is mainly a source for:

Correct Answer: C [Indian ports and maritime trade]

Explanation:

The Periplus, a 1st-century CE Greek sailor's guide, lists Indian ports and the goods traded through them.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Archaeological Survey of India set up
2. Asiatic Society founded
3. Excavation of Harappa
4. Decipherment of Brahmi

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [2-4-1-3]

Explanation:

Order: Asiatic Society founded (1784) → Decipherment of Brahmi (1837) → Archaeological Survey of India set up (1861) → Excavation of Harappa (1921).

18.  

Radiocarbon dating can be used to date:

Correct Answer: A [charcoal and bone]

Explanation:

Radiocarbon (C-14) dating works only on organic material that was once living, such as charcoal and bone, so stone, inscriptions and metal coins cannot be dated by it.

19.  

Ashoka's bilingual inscription in Greek and Aramaic was found at:

Correct Answer: C [Kandahar]

Explanation:

Ashoka's bilingual edict in Greek and Aramaic was found at Kandahar in present-day Afghanistan.

20.  

Arikamedu, which yielded evidence of Roman trade, is near:

Correct Answer: C [Puducherry]

Explanation:

Arikamedu, excavated by Mortimer Wheeler in 1945, lies on the coast near Puducherry and yielded Roman pottery and trade goods.

21.  
UPSC Prelims 2016

Who of the following had first deciphered the edicts of Emperor Ashoka?

Correct Answer: B [James Prinsep]

Explanation:

James Prinsep, secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, deciphered the Brahmi script in 1837, which made Ashoka's edicts readable for the first time.

➤ Full notes, maps, tables, a reason for every option and Mains PYQs – U01 · Ancient India (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-ancient-india

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