Question

The earliest surviving extant,i.e still standing temples date from the _____ period.
(A) Gupta
(B) Sunga
(C) Vedic
(D) Maurya

Answer 1

Hint: This period is also known as the Golden Age of India or the Classical Age of India. Many developments in terms of art, architecture, painting, and literature took place during this time.

Complete Answer:
The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire. It began during 320 A.D and ended in the 6th century. Gupta period's temples are still in existence. Chandra Gupta, I is known as the first great king of the Gupta dynasty.
Some of the temples constructed during the Gupta Period are as follows:
1. The Vishnu Temple of Tigawa Jabalpur, Shiva Temple of Bhumara, Parvati Temple of Nachria Kathura, and Mukund Darra Temple of KotaKota, etc.
2. During the Gupta period art became more creative and started portraying Hindu gods and goddesses. It is mainly famous for its delicate workmanship and especially for its variety of designs which you can see in Gupta coins.
3. If we talk about the administration of the Gupta period kingdom was divided into provinces and further divided into smaller units known as Pradesh. Members of the royal family used to govern the province.
4. The fall of the Gupta dynasty was because of the Huna people in 550 CE when the whole kingdom was disintegrated into regional kingdoms.
5. The origin of Gupta is still not known. But some scholars think that they came from Bengal, while some say from Uttar Pradesh.
So, the correct answer is Option A.

Note: In the Gupta period rock-cut architecture accelerated very much and marked the beginning of a single standing temple. This can be observed in the architectures made by the rulers of the Gupta period. One important point to be remembered is that the Gupta dynasty did not start with Chandragupta Maurya. People often get confused and consider him to be from the Gupta dynasty. Actually, he founded the Mauryan Empire.