The Coinage of the Gupta Empire and its Imitations c11.4

c11.4

Vikrama either by itself or in combination with other words like *ajita*-, *simha*- and *chakra*- is the invariable epithet of Chandragupta II on his coins. Thomas briely refers¹ to a coin in the Stacy collection, which he regards as a cast from a genuine one. It is a coin of the Lion-slayer type, on the obverse of which he reads the legend as *Samhavikrama Kumara (Guptaparidhi) samhamahendra*, and suggests that Vikrama and Mahendra were both the *birudas* of Chandragupta II. The coin appears to be a forged one and its legend is far from clear. We have thus no evidence to show that Chandragupta bore the *biruda* of Mahendra also. His *biruda* was Vikrama and we have already shown how it is extremely doubtful as to whether it had ever been adopted by his father Samudragupta.