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Sunday 2 October 2011

The Gupta Empire - Economy

The economy of the Gupta era continued to have agriculture as an important part but there was significant progress in industry and trade. The guilds that existed in the Mauryan period continued their work and remained centres of organization and were allowed to operate almost free from government control. They were major contributors in the manufactured goods industry. The guilds together formed a corporation of guilds which made a set of laws which all guilds were supposed to follow, and these laws were even respected by the government. Guilds also formed smaller corporations which were made of a particular types of guilds, for instance there were corporations of silk weaver guilds. Such corporations had tremendous resources at their disposal and were involved in various large scale projects like temples. An interesting development was that the Buddhist Church (the sangha) was very rich and participated in commercial activities. It often acted as a banker providing various services like lending money on interest. It was also involved in renting land, an extremely profitable proposition since they received significant grants of land from the kings. The rates of interest for money varied depending on the intended use of the money. Borrowing money for sea trade was no longer as expensive as it was under the Mauryan period
indicating an increased confidence in this sector. There was no restriction by the government and the rate of interest could exceed the prevailing levels provided it was agreeable to both parties. It was not however permitted for the interest to exceed the principal. The free availability of money at reasonable rates was a positive factor for industry and significant activity took place in this period.
One of the most important industries in the Gupta period was the textile industry. Not only was there significant internal demand, Indian textiles were sought after in many parts of the world. Silk, muslin, calico, linen, wool and cotton textiles were the major ones being produced. Other important industries of the period were ivory work, stone cutting and carving, metal work especially in metals like gold, silver, copper, iron, lead and bronze. Pearls were a flourishing industry and there seems to have been many fisheries which catered to the vast demand, with pearls commanding high prices in foreign markets. There was also a lot of work going on in the processing of precious stones like jasper, agate, carnelian, quartz, lapis-lazuli amongst many others. These were also exported to foreign countries. Pottery continued to remain an important industry with various qualities and styles being developed.
Goods were able to move easily throughout the country. Pack animals and ox carts were used to transport goods by road. Sea travel had developed significantly by this period and Indian ships were regularly moving around the Arabian sea, the China seas and the Indian Ocean. There is even evidence of trade with parts of East Africa.
The economy of the Gupta era continued to have agriculture as an important part but there was significant progress in industry and trade. The guilds that existed in the Mauryan period continued their work and remained centres of organization and were allowed to operate almost free from government control. They were major contributors in the manufactured goods industry. The guilds together formed a corporation of guilds which made a set of laws which all guilds were supposed to follow, and these laws were even respected by the government. Guilds also formed smaller corporations which were made of a particular types of guilds, for instance there were corporations of silk weaver guilds. Such corporations had tremendous resources at their disposal and were involved in various large scale projects like temples. An interesting development was that the Buddhist Church (the sangha) was very rich and participated in commercial activities. It often acted as a banker providing various services like lending money on interest. It was also involved in renting land, an extremely profitable proposition since they received significant grants of land from the kings. The rates of interest for money varied depending on the intended use of the money. Borrowing money for sea trade was no longer as expensive as it was under the Mauryan period indicating an increased confidence in this sector. There was no restriction by the government and the rate of interest could exceed the prevailing levels provided it was agreeable to both parties. It was not however permitted for the interest to exceed the principal. The free availability of money at reasonable rates was a positive factor for industry and significant activity took place in this period.
One of the most important industries in the Gupta period was the textile industry. Not only was there significant internal demand, Indian textiles were sought after in many parts of the world. Silk, muslin, calico, linen, wool and cotton textiles were the major ones being produced. Other important industries of the period were ivory work, stone cutting and carving, metal work especially in metals like gold, silver, copper, iron, lead and bronze. Pearls were a flourishing industry and there seems to have been many fisheries which catered to the vast demand, with pearls commanding high prices in foreign markets. There was also a lot of work going on in the processing of precious stones like jasper, agate, carnelian, quartz, lapis-lazuli amongst many others. These were also exported to foreign countries. Pottery continued to remain an important industry with various qualities and styles being developed.
Goods were able to move easily throughout the country. Pack animals and ox carts were used to transport goods by road. Sea travel had developed significantly by this period and Indian ships were regularly moving around the Arabian sea, the China seas and the Indian Ocean. There is even evidence of trade with parts of East Africa.

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