was less top-heavy than that of the Mauryans, and featured several levels of feudatories: Rajan, the hereditary rulers Rajas, petty princes who struck coins in their own names Maharathis, hereditary lords who could grant villages in their own names and maintained matrimonial relations with the ruling family Mahabhojas Mahasenapati (civil administrator under Pulumavi II; governor of a janapada under Pulumavi IV) Mahatalavara ("great watchman") The royal princes (kumaras) were appointed as viceroys of the provinces. The appears to have been the largest geographical subdivision of the Satavahana polity. Several inscriptions refer to named after the governors appointed to rule them (e.g. Govardhanahara, Mamalahara, Satavanihara and Kapurahara). This suggests that the Satavahanas attempted to build a formal administrative and revenue collection structure. The inscriptions of Gautamiputra Satakarni suggest the existence of a bureaucratic structure, although it is not certain how stable and effective this structure was. For example, two inscriptions from Nashik Cave 11 record donations of agricultural land to ascetic communities. They state that the ascetics would enjoy tax exemption and non-interference from the royal officials. The first inscription states that the grant was approved by Gautamiputra's minister Sivagupta on the king's verbal orders, and preserved by the "great lords". The second inscription records a grant by Gautamiputra and his mother, and mentions Syamaka as the minister of the Govardhana . It states that the charter was approved by a woman named Lota, who according to archaeologist James Burgess' interpretation, was the chief lady-in-waiting of Gautamiputra's mother. The Satavahana-era inscriptions mention three types of settlements: nagara (city), nigama (market town) and gāma (village). According to Sastri, "the Satavahanas were described as 'lords of the three oceans' and promoted overseas colonization and trade. Under them, Buddhist art attained the superb forms of beauty and elegance preserved to this day in the cave-temples of western India and the survivals from the stupa of Amaravati, Goli, Nagarjunikonda". This tradition was followed by successors of Satavahana in the eastern and western Deccan. Economy The Satavahanas participated in (and benefited from) economic expansion through intensification of agriculture, increased production of other commodities, and trade within and beyond the Indian subcontinent. During the Satavahana period, several large settlements emerged in the fertile areas, especially along the major rivers. The amount of land under agricultural use also expanded significantly, as a result of forest clearance and construction of irrigation reservoirs. The exploitation of sites with mineral resources