CUET History MCQs Unit II Political and Economic History How Inscriptions tell a story

Question : Which one of the following is the author of Arthashastra?
(a) Kalhana.
(b) Kalidasa.
(c) Kautilya.
(d) Bāṇabhaṭṭa.

Answer : C

Question : King Ashoka sometimes mentioned as ‘Piyadassi’, in the inscription. The meaning of ‘Piyadassi’, is ....................
(a) Beloved of the gods
(b) Pleasant to behold
(c) Beautiful eyes
(d) Beloved of nature

Answer : B

Question : Megasthenes mentions a committee with six subcommittees of military, of which the fifth looked after
(a) chariots.
(b) foot-soldiers.
(c) horses.
(d) transport.

Answer : A

Question : In which of the following languages have the earliest inscriptions been recorded?
(a) English
(b) Prakrit
(c) Pali
(d) Sanskrit

Answer : B

Question : The first gold coin was issued in the first century CE by:
(a) Mauryas
(b) Mughals
(c) Kushanas
(d) Rajputs

Answer : C

Question : Who was the first ruler to inscribe his messages to his subjects and officials on stone surfaces – natural rocks as well as polished pillars?
(a) Kanishka
(b) Bimbisara
(c) Chandra Gupta Maurya
(d) Ashoka

Answer : D

Question : Ventures of which of the following traders were risky but highly profitable?
(a) Peddlers
(b) Seafarers
(c) Merchants with caravans of bullock carts and pack-animals
(d) All of the above

Answer : B

Question : Which one of the following statement is incorrect regarding the word, ‘Gahapati’?
(a) They are the owner, master or head of a household.
(b) They are the owner of the resources – land, animals and other things – that belonged to the house-hold.
(c) They are the officials of the king.
(d) They belonged to the urban elite, including wealthy merchants.

Answer : C

Question : Ashoka is mentioned by which titles in his inscriptions?
(a) Ashoka, Piyadassi
(b) Masattuvan, Ashoka
(c) Devanampiya, Piyadassi
(d) Devaputra, Piyadassi

Answer : C

Question : The spectacular gold coins which facilitated long distance transactions were issued by
(a) Kushanas
(b) The Mauryan rulers
(c) The Saka rulers
(d) The Gupta rulers

Answer : D

Question : Rajagaha which was a capital of Maghadha, was a fortified settlement, located amongst hills. Later, in the fourth century BCE, the capital was shifted to Pataliputra, present-day Patna. Idenify the incorrect reason about choosing the city of Patliputra in this aspect.
(a) Patiliputra is situated at the bank of the river Ganga which was a commanding route of communication along the Ganga.
(b) It’s central location in northeastern India led rulers of successive dynasties to base their administrative capital here.
(c) It is Situated at the confluence of the Ganges, Gandhaka, and Son rivers, Pataliputra formed a "water fort or jaldurga.
(d) Pataliputra is the capital of Nandas, Mauryans, Sungas and the Guptas down to the Cholas.

Answer : D

Question : Sangam is a literature of _______ language.
(a) Tamil
(b) Malayalam
(c) Sanskrit
(d) Marathi

Answer : A

Question : According to a rock inscription in Sanskrit, composed around second century CE, the Sudarshana lake was repaired by a king of the
(a) Indo-Greeks.
(b) Kushanas.
(c) Satavahanas.
(d) Rudradaman I

Answer : D

Question : The term 'Sovanika' was used in ancient India as reference to
(a) carpenter.
(b) goldsmith.
(c) potter.
(d) sculptor.

Answer : B

Question : Identify the best reason for considering King Ashoka as ‘Devanampiya’ or ‘Piyadassi’ by his subjects. 
(a) Asoka commissioned the edicts himself.
(b) He adopted the title of ‘Devaputra’.
(c) Epigraphists have concluded him as Devanampiya.
(d) He worked for the well being of society through Dhamma.

Answer : D

Question : Magadha was the most powerful Mahajanapada from sixth to fourth century BCE. Historians offered different kinds of explanations for the growth of Magadha. Which of the following statement is incorrect regarding the growth of Magadha?
(a) Magadha was a region where agriculture was epecially productive.
(b) Iron mines were accessible and provided resources for tools and weapons.
(c) Magadha’s proximity to the sea makes it a business hub. Many foreign traders used to come here for trading purposes.
(d) Elephants, an important component of the army, were found in forests in the region.

Answer : C

Question : Who composed the Prayag Prashasti in praise of Samudragupta?
(a) Prabhavati Gupta
(b) Harisena
(c) Kautilya
(d) Banabhatta

Answer : B

Question : ______ was the owner, master or head of a household.
(a) Pannai.
(b) Mahamatta.
(c) Dhamma.
(d) Gahapati.

Answer : D

Question : The first ever ruler to propagate the principles of Dhamma was
(a) Bimbisara.
(b) Chandragupta II.
(c) Chandragupta Maurya.
(d) Ashoka.

Answer : D

Question : James Prinsep was able to decipher Asokan Brahmiin the year
(a) 1835
(b) 1838
(c) 1856
(d) 1738

Answer : B

Question : The early Tamil Sangam literature mentions slaves known as
(a) adimai.
(b) pannai.
(c) vellalar.
(d) uzhavar.

Answer : A

Question : Scholars from the mid-twentieth century onwards, were primarily interested in the histories of ....................
(a) Kings
(b) Issues such as economic change, different social groups, etc.
(c) Religious beliefs of people
(d) Marginalised groups.

Answer : B

Question : Which of these archaeological sources occupy a significant place in the reconstruction of the ancient Indian history?
(a) Vedas
(b) Coins
(c) Inscriptions
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Answer : D

Question : Periplus in Greek means:
(a) Act of bread making
(b) Sailing around
(c) Bead Making
(d) Ships

Answer : B

Question : What were the guilds of the merchants and craftsmen called?
(a) Shrenis
(b) Ur
(c) Adimai
(d) Uzhavar

Answer : A

Question : The first issue of Epigraphia Indica was published in
(a) 1885.
(b) 1886.
(c) 1887.
(d) 1888.

Answer : D

Question : Which of these archaeological sources occupy a significant place in the reconstruction of the ancient Indian history?
(a) Vedas
(b) Coins
(c) Inscriptions
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Answer : D

Question : Who were a clan of nomadic people living in China?
(a) Greeks.
(b) Kushanas.
(c) Aztecs.
(d) Maya.

Answer : B

Question : Which one of these became the most powerful Mahajanapada between the sixth and the fourth centuries BCE?
(a) Magadha
(b) Kashi
(c) Chedi
(d) Kuru

Answer : A

Question : The __________ describes the plight of the subjects of a wicked king; these included elderly women and men, cultivators, herders, village boys and even animals.
(a) Gandatindu Jataka
(b) Panchtantara
(c) Jataka
(d) Vayushastra

Answer : A

Question : The Prayaga Prashasti was composed in
(a) Sanskrit.
(b) Pali.
(c) Prakrit.
(d) Brahmi.

Answer : A

Question : Which of the following problems do the archaeologists face while deciphering the inscriptions?
(a) Damaged letters
(b) Faint letters
(c) Exact meaning of the words used in inscriptions
(d) All of the above

Answer : D

Question : Scholars in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were primarily interested in the histories of:
(a) kings
(b) travellers
(c) inventions
(d) None of the Above

Answer : A

Question : _______ were elaborate stone structures in central and south India in first millennium BCE.
(a) Pannai.
(b) Megaliths.
(c) Dhamma.
(d) None of the above.

Answer : B

Question : Which of these was Asoka reign?
(a) c. 268–231 BCE
(b) c. 600–500 BCE
(c) c. 606–647 CE
(d) c. 200–100 BCE

Answer : A

Question : Name the languages in which the Ashokan inscriptions were written.
(a) Pali, Prakrit, and Greek
(b) Pali, Sanskrit, and Aramaic
(c) Prakrit, Aramaic, and Greek
(d) Pali, Sanskrit, and Greek

Answer : C

Question : The Arthashastra was composed by
(a) Banabhatta.
(b) Kautilya.
(c) Ravikirti.
(d) Ashvaghosha.

Answer : B

Question : Who was Dhamma Mahamatta?
(a) Special revenue officers appointed by Ashoka for tax collection
(b) Special officers appointed by Ashoka for maintaining law and order in the kingdom
(c) Special officers appointed by Ashoka to spread the message of dhamma
(d) Special officer appointed by Ashoka to stop the spread of dhamma

Answer : C

Question : According to the rock inscription in Sanskrit, composed around second century CE, Sudarshan lake, an artificial reservoir was repaired by
(a) Kushana king Kanishka
(b) Saka king Rudradaman
(c) Kannauj ruler Harsha
(d) Chandragupta II

Answer : B

Question : Which one of the following was the first capital of Magadha?
(a) Rajagaha
(b) Ujjain
(c) Taxila
(d) Gandhara

Answer : A

Question : Tamil Sangam literature mentions slaves as R
(a) Pannai
(b) Adimai
(c) Uazhavar
(d) Velar

Answer : B

Question : The Prayaga Prashasti (also known as the Allahabad Pillar Inscription) was composed in Sanskrit by Harishena. Harishena was the court poet of which of the following kings?
(a) King Samudragupta
(b) King Ashoka
(c) King Chandra Gupta Maurya
(d) King Kanishka

Answer : A

Question : Alexander Cunningham published a set of Asokan inscriptions in
(a) 1874.
(b) 1875.
(c) 1876.
(d) 1877.

Answer : D