The Coinage of the Gupta Empire and its Imitations c9.4

c9.4

It is not possible to determine with certainty the relative chronology of the different types issued by Samudragupta. The Standard type, which is most common, was probably the earliest; it seems to have been continued throughout the reign. The Archer type may be slightly later; it shows a greater degree of originality than its predecessor. The Battle-axe type presupposes considerable numismatic experience and may be the third in the chronological order. The Tiger-slayer type shows very high artistic merit and may be the fourth in order of time. The Lyrist and the Aśvamedha types are artistically of very high order and seem to be interconnected by the use of the letter *si* on the obverse. And since the Aśvamedha sacrifice was performed towards the end of the reign, we may well assume that both these types were issued at that time. We must add before concluding that the above relative chronology of the types is purely tentative.