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The first ruler to issue gold coins on a large scale in India was the Kushana king:
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Answer: Option B — Vima Kadphises
Detailed Solution
The Kushana king Vima Kadphises (late 1st century CE) is regarded as the first ruler to issue gold coins on a large scale in India.
About Vima Kadphises:
- He was the third Kushana ruler, according to the Rabatak inscription (discovered in Afghanistan in 1993), and the father of Kanishka.
- He expanded the Kushana empire into north-western India and the Ganga plains.
His gold coins:
- His gold coins were of high purity, and were based on the weight standard of the Roman gold coin ("aureus").
- They show the king in Central Asian dress, seated or standing, sometimes riding an elephant or a chariot.
- On the reverse, many coins show the god Shiva with his bull Nandi, and describe him as a devotee of Mahesha (Shiva) ("Maheshvara").
- The large quantity of gold may have come from trade with the Roman empire, which paid in gold for Indian goods.
NCERT notes that the first gold coins were issued around 2,000 years ago by the Kushanas, and that these were virtually identical in weight with those issued by the contemporary Roman emperors and the Parthian rulers of Iran.
Gold coins in India:
- The Kushanas issued gold coins in large numbers.
- The Guptas issued the most numerous and artistic gold coins.
- Gold coins were used mainly for large transactions, such as land sales and long-distance trade.
Other Kushana rulers and their coins:
- Kanishka: issued gold and copper coins with images of Greek, Iranian and Indian gods, and the Buddha.
- Huvishka: issued coins with a wide variety of deities.
- Vasudeva I: issued coins with Shiva and Nandi; his name shows the adoption of Indian culture.
About the Kushanas:
- They were a branch of the Yuezhi people of Central Asia.
- They ruled from about the 1st to the 3rd century CE.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Kanishka, Huvishka and Vasudeva I were later Kushana rulers who also issued gold coins.
Quick tip
Remember: first large-scale gold coins = Vima Kadphises (Kushana; father of Kanishka; Shiva and Nandi on coins; Rabatak inscription); gold coins matched Roman weight standards.
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This question tests your understanding of Post-Mauryan & Gupta Age, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the period after the Mauryas: the Shungas, Satavahanas, Indo-Greeks, Shakas and Kushanas, followed by the Gupta Empire, often called the classical age of India, and the reign of Harshavardhana. It includes art, literature, science and administration in these periods. Exams test the rulers and their achievements (Kanishka and the fourth Buddhist council, Samudragupta's Allahabad Pillar inscription, Chandragupta II and Fa-Hien), the Gandhara and Mathura schools of art, and Gupta scholars such as Kalidasa, Aryabhata and Varahamihira. Harsha's reign is usually tested with Hiuen Tsang and Nalanda University. Practise the post-Mauryan and Gupta age questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.