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UPSC Prelims 2026 GS Paper 1, question 3

Topic: Ancient history

Q3

Consider the following statements :

I. Pali texts contain the first definite references to coins, e.g., kahapana, nikkha, kamsa, and kakanika.

II. The literary evidence from Pali texts is corroborated by archaeological evidence of punch-marked coins from many sites, most of them made of silver.

The above statements have been associated with which of the following ?

  1. Emergence of urban life

  2. Transition to money economy

Select the answer using the code given below :

  1. (a) 1 only
  2. (b) 2 only
  3. (c) Both 1 and 2Correct answer
  4. (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Solution.

Answer: (c) Both 1 and 2

  1. Statement 1 is correct: the appearance of punch-marked silver and copper coins around the 6th century BCE coincided with the Second Urbanization and the rise of cities across the Gangetic plains.
  2. Statement 2 is correct: early Pali Buddhist texts referring to kahapana, nikkha, kamsa, and kakanika, corroborated by hoards of silver punch-marked coins, mark the transition from barter and cattle-wealth to a monetized trade economy.