SSC Selection Post 2025 PYQ — Question 25

Correct Answer

Temples and monasteries

Explanation

The famous Katra mound (also known as Katra Keshavdev) in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, is a highly prominent archaeological and historical site renowned for housing the stratified remains of ancient temples and monasteries.

Excavations conducted by pioneer archaeologists, including Alexander Cunningham, revealed that the Katra mound was a thriving multi-religious center for centuries. Architecturally and spiritually, the site holds immense significance across various Indian traditions:

For Buddhist Monasteries, the site yielded structural remnants of the Yasha Vihara, a renowned Buddhist monastery that flourished extensively during the Kushan and Gupta periods between the 1st and 6th centuries CE. One of the most famous artifacts recovered from this mound is the iconic 'Katra Buddha' statue carved from red spotted sandstone, representing one of the earliest anthropomorphic forms of Gautama Buddha.

For Hindu Temples, traditionally revered as the birthplace (Janmabhoomi) of Lord Krishna, the Katra mound contains deep structural foundations of multiple grand Hindu temples built, expanded, and destroyed across successive historical eras, including dynasties like the Shurasenas, the Kushans, the Guptas, and medieval rulers.

The other options listed do not reflect the true archaeological profile of the Katra mound:

Forts and palaces are secular or military structures, whereas Katra was primarily a sacred religious precinct.

Modern buildings and Colonial structures represent much later historical developments, whereas the true archaeological value of the mound lies in its ancient antiquities dating back past 1000 BCE.

Key Points

The archaeological layers of the Katra mound reveal a long sequence of human habitation, beginning as early as the Painted Grey Ware culture around 1100 BCE.

The site is an artistic benchmark for the Mathura School of Art, yielding numerous sandstone reliefs, votive shrines, and early Brahmanical, Buddhist, and Jain iconographies.

Today, the archaeological complex comprises the modern Sri Krishna Janmasthan temple structures along with the seventeenth-century Shahi Idgah mosque built atop the raised ancient plinth.

Important Questions and Answers

Question: Which specific style of ancient Indian art is the seated Buddha sculpture discovered at the Katra mound categorized under?

Answer: The Mathura School of Art (Kushan Period).

Question: During the reign of which prominent Gupta emperor was a magnificent, sprawling Vishnu temple constructed at the Katra site?

Answer: Emperor Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya).