History which means knowledge acquired by investigation, is the study of the past as it described in written documents. It is an umbrella term that related to the events. The culture and civilisation, which were prevalent in the past and documented are studied in the book of history. It gives us the accounts of the rulers, traders, peasants, craftmen, artists, musicians or scientists etc of the past time and also about their behaviour and how they used to live their day-to-day life. It can be said that history presents the evidence from the past to the present and future.
Secondary Sources of History
Archaeological Sources
Another pertinent question is how we can authenticate the originality of archaeological sources with reference to their time period. The archaeologists have some processes through which the chronology of any source can be identified. This process is known as radiocarbon dating, which is based on scientific inquiry. We are aware of the fact that throughout a period, many monuments had got buried due to various reasons. To know and reveal about these time periods, we have to excavate these buried areas. This is a work of professional excellence and skill, where everything is procured carefully. The process of excavation helped us to known about Mohenjo-Daro (see Figure 1.3) and Dholavira (see Figure 1.4). Many other such facts of history have been and can be unrevealed with the help of archaeology.
Figure 1.3 A street of Mohenjo-DaroFigure 1.4 Reservoir at Dholavira
Inscriptions are a kind of archaeological source. These inscriptions are considered as the most valuable historical sources, because inscription gives us written information about a time period. These inscriptions are old and their language is not known to the people in present time. If the languages of these inscriptions are unknown, then how one can read and make sense of these inscriptions is an important question. With the help of epigraphy, these inscriptions can be read and analysed. We should also know that the writing on inscription is known as palaeography. The inscriptions are usually available on rocks, pillars, stones, slabs, walls of buildings, different kinds of seals, and copper plates. Mostly these inscriptions are related to royal proclamations and commandments.
Figure 1.6 Ashokan inscription, Kandahar, Afghanistan
Other inscriptions are related to religious activities such as the ones found in temple walls, pillars, stupas, and monasteries. These inscriptions and their location not only provide valuable information but also help us to understand the sociocultural, religious, and political aspects of contemporary life, such as King Ashoka’s inscriptions (see Figures 1.5 and 1.6) help historians to understand the outer boundaries of Ashokan empires.
Numismatic
Coins are a part of our daily life but have you ever thought about the study of coins? This study is known as numismatics. Coins are another source of historical information. There were different types of coins in different eras such as the coins of 500 BC are known as punch-marked coins. There was no fixed shape on the punch-marked coins; these are pieces of metal that are punched by sign or symbol, and that is why these coins are called punch-marked coins. In the era of Kushans, gold coins were introduced first time in India. Gupta period is known for their silver coins. Now you can see that various kinds of metals are used to make coins in different areas. Is there any difference in using different types of metals to make coins? Metals used in the coins actually represent the economy of the time or kingdom, for example, when gold was sued for coin making, it shows that the economy was in better conditions, and if silver was used, the economy is less prosperous in comparison to the gold economy. Coin shapes also help to understand the metal melting technol- ogy of a particular time period. Coin inscriptions are also important because they help us to know about the ruling person of that era. Some examples of coins are shown in Figures 1.8–1.10.
Literature is important because it is the mirror of a society. Literature gives insight to understand about society, political structure, economy, and their religious rituals of a particular time. There are different types of literature available like religious literature, secular literature, accounts of for- eigners, state chronicles, and so on. The religious accounts are available in a large range and are commonly divided into two main categories: Brahmanical and Non-Brahmanical literary sources. Brahmanical literature includes Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, and the great epics (Ramayana and Mahabharata). The religious literature of Jains and Buddhist are known as Non-Brahmanical liter- ary sources of history.
Figure 1.8 Punch-marked coins
Figure 1.9 Gold coins of Kushans
There are some literatures that are not related to any particular ideology. These sources are called secular literatures such as Kautilya’s Arthashastra, Patanjali and Panini writings, dramas of Kalidas, and Kalhana’s Rajatarangini. All these historical texts have great value.
Figure 1.10 Gupta’s coins
Time to time foreigners visited India. Some of them wrote some valuable accounts of their travels like Megasthenes’ Indica, Ptolemy’s Geography, and Al-Beruni’s Kitab Al-Hind. These are some of the well-known accounts written by foreigners. Accounts of foreigners are important because they provide information related to contemporary time and also validate the other contemporary texts.
There are other types of literature sources such as state chronicles. State chronicles are impor- tant because they provide systematic and authentic information about state affairs, such as revenue records. They also represent the state’s perspective about certain issues. Especially in medieval era, state-sponsored chronicles were prepared at large scale. The British also prepared such chronicles which are known as gazette. There are some examples of state-sponsored chroni- cles such as Ain-i-Akbari, Revenue Records, and Bengal Gazette (see Figures 1.11 and 1.12).
Figure 1.11 Ain-i-Akbari
Figure 1.12 Bengal Gazette
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1. What are inscriptions and how do they help us understand our past? |
2. What types of literary sources can be used to learn about history? |
3. How can we verify the authenticity of inscriptions and literary sources? |
4. Why are inscriptions considered more reliable than some literary sources? |
5. How do CTET and State TET incorporate the study of history through inscriptions and literary sources? |
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