Coin with Figure of an Archer (obverse)
Unknown Artist
c. 400 CE
Medium
gold
Dimensions
diam. 1.9 cm
Classification
Coins
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Cornelia Blakemore Warner Fund
Accession Number
1977.62.a
About this artwork
The rulers of the Gupta dynasty unified northern India under native rule for the first time since the Maurya empire (323-185 bc). The Guptas named themselves after Chandragupta, the founder of the Maurya dynasty. This coin of Chandragupta II, who ruled from around ad 380 to 415, depicts a divine archer holding a bow and arrow. On the reverse is the Indian goddess of good fortune, Shri, seated on a lotus.