Writing & Scripts
Ashokan edicts
c. 3rd c. BCEEmperor Ashoka's administrationRock and pillar edictsPan-Indian / unspecified
300 BCE
The earliest deciphered Indian inscriptions, proclaiming ethics and policy across the empire.
- Dated
- 300–201 BCE
- As scholars put it
- c. 3rd c. BCE
- Originator
- Emperor Ashoka's administration
- Source text
- Rock and pillar edicts
- Region
- Pan-Indian / unspecified
- Discipline
- Writing & Scripts
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- High
- Verification
- Reference-cited
Meanwhile in the West
Comparable to other ancient royal inscriptions.
Fair to say
A historical/epigraphic corpus.
Path to modern innovation
Primary sources for Mauryan history and early Indian writing.
Transmission
Deciphered by James Prinsep in 1837, unlocking early Indian history.
Primary sources
- 4Inscriptions of Asoka. New Edition by E. HultzschUnreviewed
- 5Inscriptions of AsokaUnreviewed
References
- 1Salomon
- 2ASI epigraphy
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-197 on GitHub.