DAILY CLASS NOTES

NCERT: Ancient History

Lecture -06
Sources of Ancient History
(Part - II)
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Sources of Ancient History (Part - II)

❖ Various sources of studying history

➢ Barter System
➢ Coins
➢ Inscriptions
➢ Literary Sources

Various Sources of Studying History:

Barter System:
❖ In ancient times, people used a barter system to fulfill their requirements. Before the

hard currency came into existence, the most common form of trade was bartering.

When goods and services of equal value are exchanged between two or more parties

without using any form of monetary exchange, this transaction is called the Barter

System. For example: Ram barters a few kgs of rice in return for a few kgs of grains

from Shyam.

➢ However, this system had its own drawbacks as it would not always be possible to

get goods that an individual wants or needs in return for the goods he is exchanging.

Hence, his/her needs would remain unfulfilled.

➢ So, to avoid such difficulties, people decided to introduce the usage of coins with

which it would be easy for all to complete their transactions and also fulfill their

requirements. Thus, eliminating the issue of the Double Coincidence of Wants.

✓ Double Coincidence of Wants is a situation where both parties hold an item

needed by the other to fulfill their demand. So, they exchange items without

any monetary medium, which leads to barter trade.

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Coins:
❖ The minting of coins started around the 6th century BCE and was termed as ‘Punch
marked coins.’ In the period from when minting started, the government had no role
to play in the process. The responsibility to trade and complete transactions was versed
upon the traders.
➢ The term used for a group of traders or merchants in ancient India was ‘Guilds.’
Guilds were formed to mint the coins in the ancient period and were backed by
the government.
➢ After a few decades when coins became the base of the economy, the king decided
to intervene and take over the minting powers. The coins then began to be minted
in gold, silver, copper, and brass. There is also evidence of coins made out of clay
(burnt clay). Cowries were also used as basic coins.
➢ The kings embedded their own images along with images of several gods and
goddesses (reflecting religious beliefs), the year of minting, the place of minting,
their hobbies (playing Veena), etc. The value of these coins was equal to the value
of the metals they were minted in.
➢ After the archaeologists started exploring hoards of coins, they studied those
(numismatics) and gave us information about the economic history of that period.
✓ Numismatics is the study and collection of coins, tokens, and other coin-like
objects that people used as currencies throughout history.
➢ The Largest number of coins were minted during the post-Mauryan period. The
largest number of gold coins were minted during the Gupta era. This tells us how
rich and glorious the Gupta period was.
Inscriptions:
❖ Inscriptions are ancient texts carved on hard surfaces like seals, stone pillars, rocks,
copper plates, temple walls, etc. The study of inscriptions is called epigraphy, and the
study of the ancient writing system used in inscriptions and other old records is called
paleography.
➢ Inscriptions carved on huge boulders and stones are termed rock edicts, and
inscriptions carved on pillars are termed pillar edicts.
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➢ The earliest inscriptions were

written in Prakrit and the
timeline goes back to the 3rd
century AD. Later on, Sanskrit
was adopted as an epigraphic
medium in the 2nd AD.
Furthermore, after a few
centuries, inscriptions began to
be composed in local languages in the 9th and 10th AD.
❖ Ashokan inscriptions were written in Brahmi script. This script is written from left to
right whereas the Kharosthi script is written from right to left. All of Ashoka’s
inscriptions have been deciphered by the historians. Through his inscriptions, he gave
his decrees on following dhamma (dharma), condemned killing animals, state
administration, etc
❖ The present-day area of Pakistan and Afghanistan had Ashokan inscriptions written
in Greek and Aramaic scripts. The Aramaic language likely developed sometime in the
11th century B.C.E. among a group of people who resided in the regions known today
as Syria, Israel, and Palestine.
❖ The oldest inscription belongs to the Indus Valley Civilisation. However, these
inscriptions have not been deciphered yet.
❖ During the 14th century, Feroz Shah Tughlaq excavated two of Ashoka’s inscriptions,
one from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh and the other from Topra in Haryana. He was so
fascinated after the excavations that he decided to carry those pillars and decipher the
inscriptions. Unfortunately, the Brahmins were unable to interpret what was inscribed
on those pillars.
➢ Only after the British came to India, did James Princep finally deciphered the
Ashokan inscriptions.
➢ After being deciphered, it was found that the inscriptions talk about the decrees of
the kings and victories of kings. Example: Allahabad Inscriptions
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Literary Sources:
❖ Excavating and studying the material remains mostly turns out to be exhausting and
difficult and often the excavated items are not found in good condition. This problem
is alleviated through the study of literary sources.
❖ Scripts written manually are called manuscripts. These were written on soft surfaces
like flattened leather of sheep, birch barks, wooden tablets, and palm leaves, so they
did not last for long.
❖ The most ancient form of literary source consists of Vedic literature. This literature was
composed between 1500 BCE - 1000 BCE. During this period, Rigveda was composed.
➢ Between 1000 BCE - 500 BCE, Samveda, Yajuryeda, and Atharvaveda were
composed. Along with the Vedas, Brahmanas, Arayankas (literally means forests),
and Vedangas were composed too. In total, there were 6 Vedangas.

❖ Panini composed Ashtadhyayi. The book has been named after the eight chapters of
the book, contextualizing Sanskrit grammar.
❖ Puranas were compiled around 400 AD (Gupta period).

❖ Samveda: The Sama Veda consists mainly of hymns about religious rituals
❖ Yajurveda: The Yajur Veda contains instructions for religious rituals
❖ Atharvaveda: The Atharva Veda consists of spells against enemies, sorcerers, and
diseases.
❖ Aranyakas: The Aranyakas are a set of texts that form part of the Vedas. The
Aranyakas explain the philosophy behind the ritual sacrifice sections of the Vedas

❖ Brahmanas: Brahmanas is a ritualistic text containing the explanation of sacred

knowledge or doctrine.
❖ Vedangas: Vedangas talk about the phonetics and grammar used in Vedas. They
literally mean the limbs of the Vedas.
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❖ Famous historian R.S Sharma was of the opinion that the famous war of Mahabharata
was fought around the 10th century BCE.

➢ However, as per popular belief, Mahabharata was composed around 5200 years
ago. In the beginning, the epic had 8800 verses and was then known as Jaya.
➢ Later when the number of slokas increased to 24000, the text came to be known
as Bharata and then finally, when the number of slokas reached a lakh, the text
came to be termed as Mahabharata.
❖ The Ramayana of Valmiki originally consisted of 6000 verses which were raised to
12,000, and eventually to 24,000. However, it was compiled post Mahabharata.

Allahabad Pillar Inscription or the Prayag Prashasti:

❖ The Allahabad pillar inscription is an Ashoka Stambha, constructed by Ashoka,
Emperor of the Maurya dynasty who flourished in the third century BCE.
❖ It is an Ashokan Stambh, however, there are four different inscriptions on it:
➢ Typical Ashokan inscriptions in Brahmi script.
➢ The Queen's edict lauding Ashoka's wife Kaurwaki's charitable deeds.
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➢ Inscriptions of Samudragupta (335–375 AD) written by Harisena in Sanskrit

and Brahmi script. It discusses Samudragupta's conquests and the boundaries of
the Gupta Empire.
➢ Jahangir’s Persian inscriptions.

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