Category 2 · Art & Culture

Sculpture & Numismatics

14 micro topics in Art & Culture for UPSC Prelims, in book order: Sculptures of Harappan Civilisation; Sculptures of Mauryan Age; and 12 more.

2.1

Sculptures of Harappan Civilisation

Harappan sculpture is the small-scale art of the Indus Valley Civilisation, about 2600 to 1900 BCE, made in stone, bronze, terracotta, faience and steatite. The best known pieces are the steatite bearded man (the so-called priest-king)…
2.2

Sculptures of Mauryan Age

Mauryan sculpture is the first monumental stone art of historic India, made from about 321 to 185 BCE and marked by a lustrous surface called Mauryan polish. It has two streams: court art, seen in the…
2.3

Post-Mauryan Period Sculpture (Gandhara, Mathura, Amaravati Schools)

Post-Mauryan sculpture, from about 200 BCE to 300 CE, is the period of three great schools: Gandhara in the north-west, Mathura in the Gangetic plain and Amaravati in the Krishna-Godavari region. Gandhara art blended Greco-Roman and…
2.4

Jain Sculptures

Jain sculpture centres on the 24 Tirthankaras, shown either standing in the kayotsarga posture or seated in padmasana, with a Shrivatsa mark on the chest and a distinct emblem called lanchhana for each. Early examples include…
2.5

Buddhist Sculpture

Buddhist sculpture in India developed in two phases: an aniconic phase until about the first century CE, when the Buddha was shown only through symbols such as the wheel, footprints, bodhi tree, empty throne and stupa,…
2.6

Gupta Sculpture

Gupta sculpture, from about the fourth to the sixth century CE, is regarded as the classical phase of Indian sculpture for its balance, restraint and spiritual calm. Its main centres were Mathura and Sarnath, both in…
2.7

Medieval School of Sculpture (Chola Bronzes – Nataraja)

The medieval school of Indian sculpture, from about the 7th to the 13th century, is best known for the Chola bronzes of Tamil Nadu, cast by the lost-wax (cire perdue) method in panchaloha, a five-metal alloy.…
2.8

Modern Indian Sculpture

Modern Indian sculpture is the sculptural art that began in the late colonial period and moved from academic realism to experimental forms after independence. Early leaders include Devi Prasad Roy Chowdhury, who made the Triumph of…
2.9

Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP)

Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP) is a Bronze Age and early Chalcolithic ceramic of the upper Ganga-Yamuna doab in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan, dated broadly to about 2000 to 1500 BCE. The ware is wheel-made, thick…
2.10

Black and Red Ware (BRW)

Black and Red Ware (BRW) is the most widely distributed pottery of ancient India, found from about 2000 BCE into the early historic period across Rajasthan, the Gangetic plain, Gujarat, Maharashtra and south India. It is…
2.11

Painted Grey Ware (PGW)

Painted Grey Ware (PGW) is a fine, thin, wheel-made grey pottery decorated with black painted designs, found in the upper Ganga plain, Haryana, the Sutlej-Ghaggar plain and eastern Rajasthan, dated broadly to about 1200 to 600…
2.12

Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW)

Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW) is a fine, glossy, metallic-looking black pottery of early historic India, dated to about 700 to 200 BCE and linked with the Mahajanapada cities and the Mauryan empire. It is wheel-made…
2.13

Glazed and Unglazed Pottery

Glazed pottery is ceramic coated with a glassy layer that makes it waterproof and shiny, while unglazed pottery has no such coat and stays porous, like a clay water pot. In India unglazed terracotta goes back…
2.14

Numismatics/Coinage (Punch-marked, Indo-Greek, Kushana, Gupta, Sultanate, Mughal)

Numismatics is the study of coins, and Indian coinage begins with punch-marked coins (karshapana or purana), issued in silver from about the 6th century BCE by the Mahajanapadas and the Mauryas. Later series are the Indo-Greek…

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Frequently asked questions

Which topics are in Sculpture & Numismatics?

Sculpture & Numismatics has 14 micro topics in Art & Culture: Sculptures of Harappan Civilisation; Sculptures of Mauryan Age; Post-Mauryan Period Sculpture (Gandhara, Mathura, Amaravati Schools); Jain Sculptures; Buddhist Sculpture; Gupta Sculpture; Medieval School of Sculpture (Chola Bronzes – Nataraja); Modern Indian Sculpture; Ochre Coloured Pottery (OCP); Black and Red Ware (BRW); Painted Grey Ware (PGW); Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW); Glazed and Unglazed Pottery; Numismatics/Coinage (Punch-marked, Indo-Greek, Kushana, Gupta, Sultanate, Mughal).

Is Sculpture & Numismatics important for UPSC Prelims?

Sculpture & Numismatics is a part of the UPSC Prelims Art & Culture syllabus map on MaargX UPSC. Each of its 14 published topics has key terms, a Mains angle and practice questions.