South Indian Inscriptions

EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

NANDSA YUPA INSCRIPTIONS

date is also given both in words and in numerals. Inscription B appears to be engraved later. If such is the case, and if the inscription B was nothing more than a copy of the inscription A, it is likely that it may have been subsequently engraved to make the task of the reader easier. Inscriptions written in vertical lines, six or seven feet in length, are difficult to read ; those written in horizontal lines, about three feet only in length, are easier to scan. I have, however, to admit that both the above explanations about the existence of two apparently identical copies of the same record on the same pillar are not quite convincing.

The length of the extant portions of the vertical lines of the inscription A is five feet. But ten to twelve letters of each line have been completely destroyed. So originally its lines must have been about six feet in length, covering approximately half the height of the pillar. Letters at the ends of its lines have been considerably damaged. The damage is most extensive in the last line, nearly half of which is completely peeled off, resulting in the loss of about 34 letters, supposing of course that originally it was of full length. The extant lines on the average contain about 72 letters each, the number of the letters in the first three lines being about ten less than those in the last three. The average height of a letter without a vertical is ¾ inch, that of a letter with a vertical or a subscript being about twice as much.

The inscription B is written in horizontal lines, commencing at the same height of the pillar as the inscription A, and covering practically the whole of the remaining portion of the surface of the pillar. The two recordr, have, however, been neatly and carefully separated from each other by a blank space of nearly four inches at one end and six inches at the other. The length of each line is about three feet, and each line on the average contains about 22 letters. The height of the extant portion of the record is about five feet ; but there is space for two lines more at the end, which have been probably peeled off. Considerable portion of the first half of each line has been damaged, the damage being more extensive in later lines. The letters of this record are larger than those of inscription A ; those without verticals are about l.1 inch in height, those with verticals and subscripts having about twice that dimension.

The engraving of both the records has been done fairly carefully ; mistakes like purvvāyā for pūrvvāyāṁ (B, l.1) and paitāmahim for paitāmahīm (A, l.2 ; B, l.4) are really few. If there is a solecism in the record after the end of the series of absolute clauses, the mistake is probably of the drafter and not of the engraver.

These records are the earliest inscriptions dated in the Kṛita, i.e., Vikrama era, and so, we may note the peculiarities of their characters rather carefully. The letters ka, ra and ña have developed tails at the ends of their verticals ; cf. guruṇā in A, l.1 and B, l.2 ; -rātra in A, l.2 and B, l.3 ; yajña in A, l.4 and B, l.10. Ya has a loop on the left ; cf. Kṛitayōr- in A, l.1, māyām=iva in A, l.3 and B, l.7. The subscript ya is usually bipartite ; cf. samuddhṛitya in A, l.2 and B, l.4. In a few instances, however, the cursive form of the later period makes its appearance ; cf. niravakāśasya in B, l.9. The letters ma and va have a triangular base and the horizontal bar of śa does not yet reach the other side : cf. māyām=iva in A, l.3 and B, l.7, śakti in A, l.1 and B, l.2. Letters pa, sha, ha, gha, and ba have an indent in their left limb ; cf. mahatā and pūrṇṇamāsī in A and B, l.1, -shashṭi- in A, l.2 and B, l.3, Brahm-ēndra- and kām-augha- in A, l.3 and B, l.8 and l.7. The vertical line of la has developed a curved ornamental tail ; cf. suvipulaṁ in A, l.2 and B, l.5, Mālava in B. l.3., etc. The form of the letter ḍa, resembling the reversed form of the modern Dēvanāgarī letter ṭa, is rather peculiar ; cf. taḍāka in A, l.4 and B, l.10.

The medial ā is usually denoted by a small horizontal stroke to the right, but in the case of mā, ṇā, dhā, śā, and thā this stroke is attached to the centre of the letter on the right ; cf. pūrṇṇamāsī in A and B, l.1, guruṇā in A, l.1 and B, l. 2, -dhārāṁ in A, l. 3 and B, l.7, yath-ārttham-in A, l. 5 (but not in B, l. 13), vaiśvānarēshu in A, l. 3 and B, l. 8, etc. In the case of mē the