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Albrecht Wezler that it is much flatter and clearly big-bellied, covered by a lid and provided with a fat basé; in addition the spout is here straight, risingi at an angle of appr. 45° from the bottom a little beyond the level of the lid; but it evidently alsó tapers off towards the top to some extent at least, and it is in this respect that it, too, is, or could be regarded as, similar to the trunk of an elephant, but perhaps in another regnea also, viz. when the trunk is stretched out straight in spouting wateki It is, hence, certainly possible, nay even highly probable that what Buddhaighósa had in mind was a vessel of this type which can thus be identified as the ancient) bhrigåra.
Whether this teapot-like vessel represents the direct) or one of the historical precursors of the 'carafe' of the roll painting from Nepal remains to be seen. It is anyway not possible to pursue this problem further in the course of the present study: The pictorial testimonies-of which there is obviously no dearth-call for an independent treatment. In the present context it is, however, important to repeat by way of summary that thanks to a particular textual information about the vessel called bhrigara a bridge can be thrown across the gap between text and picture, and that pictorial testimonies confirm what is stated in the Yukti Ka., viz. that the bliagara is indeed used at the coronation of a king."
3.2. But this. vessel was not only used in such an abhiseka ceremony. Obviously there is more to it. For it is noteworthy that the bhrrigároddefit section of the Yukli Ka. is quoted in the
21
80. It may be noted here that the golden bhrigöra (which king Jalauka throws into
the Sodara spring according to Kalhana's Rajafarang/y! 1.128 in order to carry out what could be styled an anticipation of modern underground water tesli) is not only sufirodara (for which M. A. Stein's (cf. fn, 18. p. 25j "empty" is
perhaps too colourless), but also sapidhandnanal, "closed at is mouth with a lid. 81. Which would also have to examine the relation between the blurigara or 10
general the abhisekapala, bod the pinaghaja as a symbol of prosperity. In: passing only attention may be drawn to the fact that according to the Padaca drika (of In, 39, 11, p. 571) on Amarok, 2.8. 32: dve '.c.bhadrukumbha and
pirnakumbha rajyabhisekaya nanatirthadijalek anak aglajasya (scil.ndman). 82. This conclusion is tiot of course, reversible: not each and every vessel that
happeos to be used at the coronation of a king, or an abhiseka ceremony (ultimately) modelled on it, can be identified as bli gara-may also be seen from B. N. Sharma's article on "Abhiseka in Indian Art" to: 101, Baroda; XXI. 1971-72. pp. 108-113; cf. also fn, 120.
Illustration No. 2 Source: A. K. Coomaraswamy, La Sculpture de Bharhur, Paris 1956,
Plate XXVI (Fig. 67)
