North Indian Inscriptions

RECORDS OF THE SOMAVAMSI KINGS OF KATAK.

writing ; and the inscription is in state of perfect preservation almost throughout.— The ring, on which the plates are strung, is about ⅝” thick and 4” in diameter. It had not been cut when the great came under my notice. The seal, in which the ends of the ring are secured, is circular, about 1¾” in diameter . It is partly broken ; and the surface of it is so much worn that there are now no traces of any emblems or legend on it.─ The weight of the three plates is 4 lbs. 4 oz., and of the ring and seal, 1 lb. 11½ oz. ; total, 5 lbs. 15½ oz.— The characters are of precisely the same type with those of B. and C.; the virâma, and the final forms of t, n, and m, are used almost exactly as in B. The average size of the letters is about 5/16”. The engraving is good and deep ; but the plates are too substantial for the letters to show through on the reverse sides. The interiors of them shew the usual marks of working the engraver’s tool.— There are the same peculiarities of orthography as in B.

TEXT OF B.¹

First Plate.

1 Ôm² Svasti | Śrîmad-ârâma-samâvâsina(ta)ḥ³ ârîmatô vijaya-Kaṭakât | paramabhaṭṭâ-
2 raka-mahârâjâdhirâja-paramṛâvara-śrî-Śivaguptadêva- p â d - â n u d h y â t a - paramamâhêśva-
3 ra-paramabhaṭṭâraka-mahârâjâdhirâja-paramêśvara - S ô m a a k u l a t i l a k a - triKaliṅgâdhipati-
4 mahârâjâdhirâja⁴-śrî-Mahâ-Bhavaguptadêvaḥ kuśalî | Kôśa(sa)la-dêśê Pôvâ⁵-viśa(sha)yîya-⁶
5 Raṇḍâ-grâmê | tathâ Alâṇḍalâ-grâmê |⁷ vrâ(brâ)hmaṇân saṁpûjya tad-viśa(sha)yîyân⁸ yathâkâl-â-
6 dhyâsinaḥ samâhartṛi-sannidhâtṛi-niyuktak-âdhikârî(ri)ka⁹-dâṇḍapâśika-châṭa-
7 bhaṭṭa(ṭa)-piśuna-vêri(tri)k¹⁰-âvarôdhajana-râṇaka-[râjaputra*]¹¹-r â j a v a l l a b h- âdîna(n)¹² sarvvân sa-
8 mâjñâpayati | Viditam=astu bhavatâm [|*] yath=âsmâbhir=ayaṅ=grâmaḥ sha(sa)-nidhis=s-ô-
9 panidhis=sa-daśâparâdhas=sarvva-vâ(bâ)dhâ-vivarjjitas=sarvv-ôparikakar-âd â n a- sahitaś=chatuḥ-

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......¹ From the original plates.
......² Represented by a plain symbol ; and in the same way in C. and D.
......³ C. line 1, and D. line 1, have samâvâsitaḥ, correctly.
......⁴ This is an unnecessary repetition,— occurring also in C. line 4. and D. line 4,— the title being given already in the preceding line.
......⁵ Babu Rangalala Banerjea read Yôdhâ ; and Mr. Beames identified the name with that of the modern Jôdh pargaṇâ a few miles to the north of Kaṭak. But the consonant of the second syllable is undoubtedly v, not dh ; and in the first syllable we seem to have p, not y.
......⁶ D. line 5 also has viśayîya for vishayîya.
......⁷ C. lines 4, 5, has Kôśa(sa)la-dêśê Tulumva-khaṇḍtya-Arkigrâmâ-grâmî ; and D. line 5 has Kôśa(sa)la- dêśê Sandânâ-viśa(sha)yîya-Tû(îtrû)lêḍâ-grâmê.
......⁸ C. line 5, and D. line 6, also have viśayîyân for vishayiyân.
......⁹ C. line 6, and D. line 7, have °âdhikârika, correctly.
......¹⁰ C. line 7, and D. line 7, have vêtrik°, correctly.
......¹¹ This word is supplied from C. line 7, and D. line 8, which both have râṇaka râjaputra-râjavallabh-âdîna(n).
......¹² C. line 7, and D. line 8, also have âdîna, for âdin.