Discuss coinage, art, and iconography between 2nd B.C.E and 4th C.E. (a) Coinage (b) Art (c) Iconography

(a) Coinage: 

• The flow of gold coins was constantly coming in India. 
• The portraits of kings and images of deities were inscribed on the gold coins of the Bactrian Greeks. 
• There was a great impact of the Greek and Roman coins on the coins of Shaka and Kushana rulers. 
• The Kharoshthi script is seen on the Shaka coins. The coins indicate the mixed impact of Greek, Indian and Persian cultures. 
• The Kushana kings depicted Indian cities on coins. The image of Shiva has been found on gold and copper coins. 
• Kushana coins are found in the border regions of India and China. 
• The legends on the Kushana coins found in Central Asia are in the Prakrit language in the Kharoshthi script.

(b) Art:

• The Gandhara region had become a melting pot of Indian, Greek, Roman, Persian, and Shaka cultures. 
• A new style of art developed in the cities of Pushkalavati, Taxila, Purushpur, etc. It is known as ‘Gandhara style’. 
• The theme was Indian but the style was Greek. 
• The Mahayana sect of Buddhism gave an impetus to this style of art 

(c) Iconography: 

• In the icons of the Gandhara style, there was more emphasis on physical beauty.
• During the same time, Mathura and Varanasi’s styles of art developed. 
• The images of Gautama Buddha were completely Indian in nature. 
• Mathura was an important center of Indian art of sculpture. 
• Portrait sculpture is the feature of the Mathura Style of art. 
• The statues of Kushan kings, Vima Takshama, and Kanishka are examples of portrait sculptures. 
• Similarly, images of Saraswati, Vishnu, Surya, Shiva, and Kartikeya saw the innovation in sculptural art.