With reference to the difference between the culture of Rigvedic Aryans and Indus Valley people, which of the following statements is/are correct ? 1. Rigvedic Aryans used the coat of mail and helmet in warfare whereas the people of Indus Valley Civilization did not leave any evidence of using them. 2. Rigvedic Aryans knew gold, silver and copper whereas Indus Valley people knew only copper and iron. 3. Rigvedic Aryans had domesticated the horse whereas there is no evidence of Indus Valley people having been aware of this animal. Select the correct answer using the code given below :

Lists the kinds of artefacts recovered (houses, pots, ornaments, tools and seals) showing that material culture is preserved and studied from archaeological finds.

A student could use this to argue that if armor or helmets were made and deposited, similar preservation/identification methods (typical for ornaments/tools) might detect them; so one should check published artefact catalogues from Indus sites for metal armor-like objects.

Explicitly states that archaeological material culture includes 'metal objects' for the Chalcolithic/Iron Age sequence and is a key source for reconstruction.

Combine this with basic metallurgical chronology (when iron/advanced metalworking arrived locally) to assess whether technology for mail (requiring iron/steel and linking methods) was available in the Indus period.

Notes that Indus seals were found in Mesopotamia, indicating long-distance contacts and trade in artefacts between the Indus and regions where metal armours are known.

A student could check Mesopotamian and neighbouring corpus for depictions or imports of armour that might have been traded to/from the Indus, using the trade link as a pathway for technological or stylistic transfer.

Mentions use of 'metal objects' in the megalithic culture and interactions with the Harappan civilisation, implying shared or transmitted metal-using practices in regions connected to Indus people.

One could map regions of megalithic–Harappan interaction and check regional metalwork assemblages for armor/helmet types to see if such forms existed in connected cultures.

Defines archaeological sources (sites, tools, metal objects, faunal/floral remains) as the basis for knowledge, stressing that absence/presence in the record depends on what is recoverable and identified.

Use this methodological point to frame searches: evaluate whether mail/helmets (organic vs. metal parts) would preserve at Indus sites and whether excavation reports explicitly record such finds.

States that in the Later Vedic age metals such as copper and gold were mentioned and smelted by specialised groups, and gives a time note for iron (~1200 BCE).

A student could use this pattern (explicit naming of metals in Vedic-period material) to look for parallel mentions in Rigvedic hymns or archaeological layers roughly contemporary with the Rigveda to test presence of copper/gold.

Notes that Late Vedic culture shows evidence of ornaments of metal, gold and copper, implying artisanal use of these metals in Vedic-era society.

One could map the 'Late Vedic' archaeological contexts and search for metal artefacts or linguistic terms in Rigvedic corpus to infer continuity or earlier use.

Says the earlier Harappan civilisation used copper and gold, providing a regional precedent for the use of these metals in South Asia before/around Vedic times.

Combine this continuity clue with geographic/chronological data (Harappan-to-Vedic contact zones) to judge plausibility that Rigvedic groups had access to copper and gold.

Mentions silver and copper as coin metals in later periods (punch‑marked coins), showing regional knowledge and use of silver/copper in monetary/ornamental contexts after Vedic times.

Use the later monetary evidence plus trade-route basics to assess whether silver/copper had been in regional circulation earlier and could have been known to Rigvedic people.

Describes Indian gold and silver deposits (e.g., gold in Karnataka; silver associated with lead/zinc), indicating local sources that could supply metals to ancient societies.

A student could combine known deposit locations with likely Rigvedic geographic range to evaluate whether access to gold/silver was feasible for Rigvedic communities.