James Prinsep
E520846
James Prinsep was a 19th-century British scholar and antiquary best known for deciphering ancient Indian scripts, which unlocked the historical understanding of Emperor Ashoka and early Indian epigraphy.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
British scholar
ⓘ
antiquary ⓘ person ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Asiatic Society of Bengal
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
British India NERFINISHED ⓘ Calcutta Mint NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| birthDate | 1799-08-20 ⓘ |
| contributedTo | Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| deathDate | 1840-04-22 ⓘ |
| educatedAt | Benares School of Sanskrit (informal studies) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| employer | East India Company NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| era | 19th century ⓘ |
| father | John Prinsep NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| field |
epigraphy
ⓘ
numismatics ⓘ philology ⓘ |
| inferredFrom | 19th-century British scholar and antiquary best known for deciphering ancient Indian scripts ⓘ |
| influenceOn |
development of South Asian epigraphy as a discipline
ⓘ
study of Mauryan history ⓘ understanding of early Indian Buddhism ⓘ |
| knownFor |
deciphering Ashokan inscriptions
ⓘ
decipherment of Brahmi script ⓘ decipherment of Kharosthi script ⓘ foundational work in Indian epigraphy ⓘ research on Indo-Greek coinage ⓘ studies of Indian coins ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| legacy |
enabled historical reconstruction of Emperor Ashoka’s reign
ⓘ
laid groundwork for modern decipherment of early Indian inscriptions ⓘ |
| memberOf | Asiatic Society of Bengal NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mother | Sophie Prinsep NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| name | James Prinsep NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| nationality | British ⓘ |
| occupation |
antiquarian
ⓘ
mint official ⓘ scholar ⓘ |
| placeOfBirth |
London, England
ⓘ
surface form:
London
|
| placeOfDeath |
London, England
ⓘ
surface form:
London
|
| position |
Assay Master of the Calcutta Mint
ⓘ
Secretary of the Asiatic Society of Bengal ⓘ |
| researchedLanguage |
Pali
ⓘ
Prakrit ⓘ Sanskrit NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| sibling | Henry Thoby Prinsep NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| significantEvent |
deciphered major Ashokan pillar inscriptions in the 1830s
ⓘ
identified the name and titles of Emperor Ashoka in inscriptions ⓘ |
| spouse | Harriet Aubert NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| workLocation | Calcutta NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (3)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.