Historical person
James Prinsep
1799–1840
James Prinsep worked for the East India Company as an assayer and became secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. Alongside his scientific and numismatic work, he studied inscriptions and coins sent to Calcutta by antiquarians and surveyors across the subcontinent.
In the 1830s Prinsep deciphered the Brahmi script used on a series of ancient inscriptions. This breakthrough allowed scholars to read edicts issued by the ruler later identified as Ashoka and transformed the study of early Indian political and religious history.
Non Fiction
Non Fiction featuring James Prinsep (1 book)
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