Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below: List I A) Gandhar Art B) Junagarh Rock inscription C) Milindapanho D) Taxila inscriptions List II a) Menander b) Patika c) Kushanas d) Rudradaman I

Gandhara art belongs to the Kushanas (c), whose patronage under Kanishka I gave the school its mature form, blending Hellenistic and Indian motifs in Buddha images. The Junagarh rock inscription of Rudradaman I (d), dated to about 150 CE, is an early long inscription in Sanskrit recording the repair of the Sudarshana lake. The Milindapanho is a Pali dialogue between the monk Nagasena and the Indo-Greek king Menander (a). The Taxila copper plate inscription records a grant by Patika, a donor of the Kushana period (b).

Why the others fail: option A links Gandhara with Menander and Milindapanho with the Kushanas, both wrong. Option B gives Junagarh to Patika and Taxila to Rudradaman, reversing both. Option D links Taxila to Rudradaman and Junagarh to Menander, which is mismatched.

Core concept: attributing art, inscriptions and texts to their ruling dynasties and dates. This matters for Mains answers on the Kushana contribution to art and the rise of Sanskrit epigraphy.

Trap: Aspirants recall Milindapanho and Menander correctly but then guess the Taxila pair, which is where the matching breaks down.