WARRIOR :

Samudragupta was a great warrior - this is well proved by the account of Harisena in Allahabad Pillar inscriptions although the description is poetic "whose most charming body was covered over with all the beauty of the marks of a hundred confuse wounds caused by the blows of battle axex, arrows, spears, pikes, swords, lances, javelines". At least three types of coins - Archar Type, Battle - Axe and Tiger type - represent Samudragupta in martial armour. The coins bearing the epithets like 'parakramah' (valour), 'kritanta-parashu', vyaghra parakramah', prove his being a skilful warrior.

Thatd Samdudragupta was brilliant commander and a great conqueror is proved by Harisena's description of his conquests. He mentions that Samudragaupta exterminated nine north Indian states, Subdued eithteen Atavika kingdoms near Bajalpur and Chhota Nagpur, and in his blitz - like campaign humbled the pride of twelve South Indian Kings, Nine borderstribes, and five frontier states of Smatata, Devaka, Karupa, Nepal and Krtripur 'paid taxex, obeyed orders and performed obeisance in person to the great Samudragupta'. The conquests made him the lord - paramount of India. Fortune's child as he was, he was never defeated in any battle. His Eran inscription also stresses his being 'invincible' in battle. Samudragupta's Asvamedha type of coins commeorate the Asvamedha sacrifices he performed and signify his many victories and superemacy..