Practicing Success
Identify the scripts deciphered by James Prinsep. |
Bengali and Devanagari Sanskrit and Prakrit Brahmi and Kharosthi Greek and Indo-Greek |
Brahmi and Kharosthi |
The correct answer is Option (3) → Brahmi and Kharosthi James Prinsep is known for his significant contributions to the decipherment of ancient scripts, particularly the Brahmi and Kharosthi scripts. Some of the most momentous developments in Indian epigraphy took place in the 1830s. This was when James Prinsep, an officer in the mint of the East India Company, deciphered Brahmi and Kharosthi, two scripts used in the earliest inscriptions and coins. Early scholars studying ancient inscriptions often mistakenly assumed them to be in Sanskrit, when in reality, they were written in Prakrit, an earlier vernacular language. It was only after years of meticulous investigations by several epigraphists that James Prinsep succeeded in deciphering Asokan Brahmi in 1838. |