Q1.
While working on the timeline, did you notice the transition from BCE to CE? Remember what you learned in the Grade 6 chapter ‘Timeline and Sources of History’ about how time is measured in history.
Answer
Yes — and it is the one place on the timeline where you must slow down.
- BCE means Before Common Era; CE means Common Era. The two eras meet at a single point, and there is no year 0 between them: 1 BCE is followed directly by 1 CE.
- BCE years count backwards. 200 BCE is earlier than 100 BCE. So Puṣhyamitra Śhunga (185 BCE) comes before Khāravela (c. 1st century BCE), even though 185 is the bigger number.
- CE years count forwards in the ordinary way — Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi (c. 100 CE) comes before Kaṇiṣhka (c. 150 CE).
To find a gap that crosses the divide: add, do not subtract.
From 185 BCE to 150 CE = 185 + 150 = 335 years
(Subtracting would give 35 years — badly wrong.)
From 185 BCE to 150 CE = 185 + 150 = 335 years
(Subtracting would give 35 years — badly wrong.)
Why it happens: BCE and CE are two ladders leaning against the same point, one climbing away from it backwards and one forwards. Crossing from one ladder to the other means adding the two heights, not taking the difference.
Did you know? India also uses era counts of its own. The Śhaka Samvat you will meet on page 135 begins in 78 CE — so a Śhaka year is 78 less than the Gregorian year (79 from January to March).