The Coinage of the Gupta Empire and its Imitations c13.s1.9

c13.s1.9

In class II, the goddess on the reverse is always feeding a peacock; she is never represented alone. We can distinguish four varieties in this class, as disclosed by the legends. In variety A, (Pl. XI. 2-5) the legend is ‘*Guptakulavyomaśaśi jayatyajeyo’jitamahendraḥ*,’ (Pl. XXII. 26); ‘The unconquered and invincible Mahendra, who is a moon in the sky of Gupta family, is victorious.’ The metre is Upagīti. In this variety, the king always faces right and carries a bow in the left hand, and the goddess on the reverse is seen offering to the peacock a bunch of grapes, in which fruits are more prominent than the twig to which they adhere. The reverse has no symbol. The coins are all issued to the 127 grains standard.