This volume of the A People's History of India series deals with the period spanning c. 700 and c. 350 BC. During this important period of Indian history, iron technology diffused, transforming and multiplying tools, cities arose and commerce spread, the caste system assumed practically all its essential features, powerful states were formed, with armies and bureaucracies, and, finally, Jainism and Buddhism brought about a veritable religious revolution. All this is described in four chapters with clarity and precision, but with no attempt to conceal points of controversy. Special notes are furnished on punch-marked coinage, the Northern Black Polished Ware, problems of chronology, and the arrival of writing. Nine extracts from sources give the reader a taste of the textual sources. There are twelve illustrations and seven maps, and a chronological table at the end. Each chapter includes a bibliographical note, indicating sources and suggesting further reading.