Previous Year Question

(a) Ishwarverman — Jaunpur Stone Inscription: This pair is correct. Ishwaravarman was one of the early Maukhari rulers. Indian archaeological epigraphic catalogues record the Jaunpur inscription as an inscription associated with Ishwaravarman. It provides information relating to the early political position and genealogy of the Maukhari dynasty.

(b) Sarvavarman — Gaya Copper Plate: This pair is incorrect. The Gaya Copper Plate is catalogued in the name of Samudragupta, not Sarvavarman. It purports to record a land grant of a village in the Gaya Vishaya. An important fact is that epigraphists also regard this copper plate as a spurious or later-produced record, because its script is considered considerably later than the actual period of Samudragupta. Nevertheless, in epigraphic catalogues it is recorded as the ‘Gaya Copper Plate of Samudragupta’. Therefore, associating it with Sarvavarman is incorrect.

Sarvavarman was a Maukhari ruler, and clearer epigraphic evidence relating to him includes the Asirgarh copper seal and the Nalanda seals.

(c) Jivitagupta II — Deo-Baranark Inscription: This pair is correct. The pillar inscription discovered at Deo-Baranark in Bihar is associated with the reign of Jivitagupta II. It records the continuation of an earlier land grant and is an important source for the study of Later Gupta history.

(d) Ishanavarman — Haraha Stone Inscription: This pair is also correct. The Haraha inscription, discovered in the Barabanki region of Uttar Pradesh, is an important source for the reign and achievements of Ishanavarman. The inscription is also associated with Suryavarman, a son of Ishanavarman; for this reason, modern epigraphic databases sometimes catalogue it both as the Haraha Inscription of Suryavarman and, alternatively, as the Haraha Inscription of Ishanavarman. It is dated to approximately 554 CE.