\n– The **Mauryas** (c. 322\u2013185 BCE) issued punch-marked coins, which were typically pieces of silver or copper with symbols punched onto them. These coins did not carry the names or portraits of rulers.
\n– The **Indo-Greeks** ruled parts of northwestern India from around the late 3rd century BCE to the early 1st century CE. Influenced by Hellenistic numismatic traditions, they introduced coins featuring realistic portraits of the rulers along with their names, often in Greek and Brahmi or Kharosthi scripts. This marked a significant departure in Indian coinage.
\n– The **Guptas** (c. 320\u2013550 CE) later issued a wide variety of sophisticated gold, silver, and copper coins. Their gold coins, in particular, featured images of the rulers (e.g., Samudragupta playing the Veena, Chandragupta II with a lion) and their names, continuing and evolving the tradition introduced by the Indo-Greeks.
\n– The **Pushyabhutis** (or Vardhana dynasty, 6th and 7th centuries CE) ruled in parts of northern India much later than the Indo-Greeks and Guptas. Their coinage included types like those of Harshavardhana, which were influenced by earlier Gupta styles but were not the *first* to bear rulers’ names and images.
\n<\/section>\n