CAPF AC 2025 Q54: Ancient History – Post - Mauryan & Foreign Invasions
With reference to the Indo-Roman trade, who among the following referred to the drain of Roman gold into India?
1. Strabo
2. Pliny
3. Ptolemy
4. Dio Chrysostom
Select the answer using the code given below.
- (a) 1 and 2
- (b) 2 and 3
- (c) 2 and 4
- (d) 1 and 3
Answer: (c) 2 and 4
Explanation
Drain of Roman gold to India
How to think: the writers who complained that Rome was losing gold on Indian goods were Romans who found the trade costly.
| Writer | Known for |
|---|---|
| Strabo | Described the growth of the Red Sea trade, not the drain of gold |
| Pliny the Elder | Complained that India drained at least fifty million sesterces a year from Rome |
| Ptolemy | Geographer, mapped the Indian coasts |
| Dio Chrysostom | Named with Pliny among the classical writers on the outflow of gold to India |
The balance of trade was in India's favour: spices, pepper, muslin and gems for Roman gold coins.
Answer: (c) 2 and 4.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Incorrect. Strabo wrote about the trade's growth, not the drain of gold.
- (b) Incorrect. Ptolemy was a geographer, not a critic of the gold outflow.
- (c) CORRECT. Pliny and Dio Chrysostom referred to the drain of Roman gold.
- (d) Incorrect. Neither Strabo nor Ptolemy is the source of the complaint.
Key point
Pliny the Elder, Natural History: India drains 50 million sesterces a year (6.101), 100 million with China and Arabia (12.84). Roman gold coins found in south India; Arikamedu, Muziris. Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century CE).
Remember
Pliny (and Dio Chrysostom) lamented Roman gold flowing to India.
Common mistakes
- Choosing Strabo because he wrote about Indo-Roman contact.
- Treating Ptolemy's *Geography* as a trade complaint.
- Remembering only Pliny and picking an option without checking the second name.
Exam tip
Educated guess: Pliny is the famous complainer, so the option must contain 2. Only (b) and (c) have 2, and Ptolemy was a map-maker, not a critic, which leaves (c).
Sources
- Pliny the Elder, Natural History, Book 6.101 and Book 12.84 (the annual drain of coin to India)
- Romila Thapar, Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300 (Penguin), chapter on trade and the Indo-Roman exchange