CAPF AC 2021 Q44: Ancient History – Mauryan Empire

CAPF AC 2021, Paper I (General Ability and Intelligence) · Ancient History

1. (a) Bulandibagh and Rajagriha
2. (b) Kumrahar and Mocharim
3. (c) Kumrahar and Bulandibagh
4. (d) Kumrahar and Jalalgarh

Answer: (c) Kumrahar and Bulandibagh

Explanation

Archaeological remains of Pataliputra

How to think: Pataliputra is modern Patna.

Two excavated localities of Patna hold the Mauryan remains: Kumrahar and Bulandibagh.

Remove any option with a place outside Patna.

Background: Megasthenes wrote that Pataliputra was protected by a wooden wall with many towers and gates.

The timber remains at Bulandibagh match his account.

Answer: (c) Kumrahar and Bulandibagh.

Why each option is right or wrong

• (a) Incorrect. Rajagriha was the earlier capital of Magadha, a different city.
• (b) Incorrect. Mocharim is not one of the two key Mauryan sites of Patna.
• (c) CORRECT. Kumrahar (pillared hall) and Bulandibagh (wooden palisade) are the remains of Pataliputra.
• (d) Incorrect. Jalalgarh is a fort in Purnea, unrelated to Mauryan Pataliputra.

Key point

Pataliputra (Patna): Kumrahar = eighty-pillared Mauryan hall; Bulandibagh = wooden palisade. Capitals of Magadha in order: Rajagriha → Pataliputra.

Remember

Pataliputra = Kumrahar (pillars) + Bulandibagh (wooden wall).

Common mistakes

• Marking the option with Rajagriha, the older capital, as part of Pataliputra.
• Remembering only Kumrahar and guessing the second site wrongly.
• Forgetting that the wooden wall was found at Bulandibagh, not Kumrahar.

Exam tip

Educated guess: three options contain Kumrahar, so it is surely right and (a) is out. The famous partner site of Kumrahar in every textbook is Bulandibagh.

Sources

• NCERT Class XI Fine Arts — An Introduction to Indian Art, Chapter 3: Arts of the Mauryan Period
• Archaeological Survey of India — Excavated site at Kumrahar, Patna

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