The Age of the Imperial Guptas c10.4

c10.4

Samudragupta issued coins in which the obverse type of the late Kuṣāṇa coinage, e.g., the Standing King was copied, but he introduced many other variations into it like Jalāl-uddīn Muḥammad Akbar and Nūruddīn Jahāngīr. These are also coins but were struck as memorial medals on certain occasions. “The commonest coins of Samudragupta, the son and successor of Candragupta I, are of the type to which Vincent Smith has given the name Spearman or Javelin, but which may more correctly be called the Standard type. It is evident that Samudragupta's Standard type is a close copy of the later coins of Kushan type, such as have been described by Cunningham (Num. Chron., 1893, Pl. VIII, 2–12 and Pl. IX); practically the only alterations, apart from the legends are on the obverse, where the Kushan peaked camp is replaced by a close-fitting cap, while the trident on the left gives place to a Garuḍa standard (garuḍadhvaja), the emblem of Viṣṇu. The king's name is still written vertically; this custom, which was to survive till the end of the dynasty, is to be traced back through the later Kushan coinage to Chinese influence in Central Asia.”¹ Along with the ordinary Standard type of his gold coins Samudragupta also issued gold coins of the Archer type, the Battle-axe type, Tiger type, Lyrist type, Aśvamedha type and the Kāca type. Allan attributes the coins bearing the names of Candragupta I, and his wife Kumāradevī to Samudragupta. He considers that these coins were issued by Samudragupta, and not by his father Candragupta I, to commemorate his father and mother.¹ His arguments are:—