2015/07/07 by Pankaj Tandon · 1 citation
Social Sciences · Arts and Humanities · #Eurasian Exchange Networks #Indian and Buddhist Studies #Ancient Near East History
paper · doi:10.1017/s1356186315000346
openalex publication_date 2015/07/07 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Abstract One of the enduring open questions in ancient Indian history is the identity of the king who identifies himself on the reverse of his gold coins as prakāśāditya . Most authors have assumed that he was a Gupta king. This paper reviews the various proposals on the identity of Prakāśāditya, arguing why we can be quite sure, as suggested by Robert Göbl, that he was in fact a Hun king and not a Gupta. Then, by presenting a near-complete reading of the obverse legend, it is shown that it is virtually certain that he was in fact the Hun king Toramāṇa, as Göbl had speculated. Implications of this finding are then considered.