The notion of kinship projected by the Kushana rulers is best evidenced through which of the following?

The correct answer is Option 4. While Kushana rulers utilized various methods to legitimize their authority, their specific notion of kinship—characterized by the divine origin of kingship—is most tangibly evidenced through coins and sculpture.

• Coins: Kushana coinage frequently depicted the ruler with divine attributes, such as flames issuing from the shoulders or a nimbus around the head. They adopted titles like Devaputra (Son of God), mirroring Persian and Chinese imperial traditions.
• Sculpture: The construction of devakulas (royal galleries) at Mathura (Mat) and Surkh Kotal featured colossal statues of kings like Kanishka. By placing royal statues alongside deities, they projected themselves as god-like figures worthy of veneration.

While identification with deities (Option 1) is the underlying concept, it is evidenced specifically through the physical mediums of coins and sculpture. Inscriptional panegyrics and religious grants were common across many dynasties, but the distinct "Kushana style" of projecting kinship as divine is uniquely preserved in their numismatic and iconographic legacy.