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EPIGRAPHIA INDICA.
[VOL. XII.
The slab bears nine lines of writing, each containing a verse and a half or forty-eight syllables. There are thirteen verses and a half on the slab, and the record is not complete. Chisel marks are to be found on all sides of it except at the bottom, where it has split. The inscribed surface measures 1' 6" by 7" and the size of the characters varies from " to ".
The following orthographical peculiarities may be noticed. All consonants with a superscript r have been doubled, e.g., Jayavarmma-, 1.4; pārtthirē, 1. 5, ete., but consonants with a gubscript r bavo not always been doubled; cf. vikrānta-, 1. 5; but - Sakkrasya, 1. 2; -vikkramë, 1. 4. In some cases the anusvára has been used in places where there ought to have been sandhi, e.g., -alamkrita and painchamyāma, 1. 3 ; -sambhāra-, 1. 6; i has been used thrice in the place of the anusvara, vie., in Sirihavarmmaņas, and =sinihavikranta", 1.5, and saranari-gatah, 1. 7. The word sri, whenever used in Sanskrit as the first part of a compoond word, either in inscriptions or in literature, is used without vibhakti. Sometimes it is used as a separate word with the third also-ending, meaning saha or yukta, hut in the present inscription it is used in tho first case-ending, as in frir-Mmālava-, 1. 1; frir-mmahāraja-, 1. 5. In the last case, however, its use is optional.
The language is Sanskrit and the whole of it, with the exception of the word siddham at the beginning of line 1, is in verse. There are a few mistakes due to the nason's carelessness, e.g., -vidduddipa- for -vidyudstipa- in 1. 6; prāvrik-kalē for prāvrit-kālē in l. 2; Jayamit[rlayah for Jayamitrāyāh in 1. 9, aud svakulasy-atha for svakulasy-atha in l. 8.
The characters of the inscription belong to the Central Indian variety of the Southern alphabet which is said to have closely agreed with the Western variety of the same alphabet in its simplest form. The most important common characteristics of the Southern alphabut are to be found in this inscription :(1) Pa, pha, sha and sa are open at the top. Ma always has tho ancient form. The ya
is tripartite in all cases, with the exception of prak-puny-opachay., 1. 4, where it
is bipartite. (2) The long vertical stroke of the right limb of la is always retained and moreover it is
in all cases, bent towards the left. (3) The medial ri is shown by a carled curvo to the left. Besides these, the following particulars are to be observed :(1) A, which occurs once, has a loop at the bottom, cf. Āfröja- in l. 3. The medial a is
placed somowhat lower down than usual in two cases, tic. Afroja., 1. 3, and
-mardhuśrāram, 1. 7. (2) Medial i is expressed both by a loop and a curve to the left. (3) Initial 7 occurs only once in idrik-in 1. 4. The medial form is expressed by a double
curve; cf. srir., 1. 1. (4) Medial u is expressed in three different ways, (a) The usual one consisting of a hook turned towards the left and attached to the
bottom of letters, e.g. in-samudra-, 1. 1; -pushpair, 1. 3. (6) A curve to the right attached to the bottom of the letter, which ends in a
vertical line rising to the fall height of the letter, e.g. in -suklasya, 1. 3, and 1 duhitur-, 1. 9. (c) A curve to the left attached to the bottom of ra, rising upwards and intersect.
ing the vertical limb of the consonant; e.g. in .ckūru, 1. 7; -kärunikah, 1.9. The only exception is the form in purushay-, 1. 1.
füble's Indian Palcography, Ind. dal., Vol. XXXIII, Appendix, p. 62.
