Epigraphia Indica Vol 21

Author(s): Hirananda Shastri
Publisher: Archaeological Survey of India

Page 96

No. 12.)
THE CLAY SEALS OF NALANDA.
were excavated at Nalanda and are all broken or fragmentary. The one reproduced here, marked B on the plate, consists of two fragments which, when put together, seem to form a complete seal, excepting some letters about the middle of almost every line of the legend and the proper right portion of the upper field, containing the device together with the head of the recumbent bull. Owing to the transverse cut the specimen is broken in twain. The geal appears to have been oval in shape, the axes being about 45" and 570", measuring the surface encompassed by the first curve going round the written portion and the emblem. The legend consists of twelve lines of which the five lines at the end are written in letters smaller than those seen in the rest. Evidently, the engraver found that he would not be able to manage the whole legend in the limited space and had to reduce the size of the aksharas after writing out the first seven lines. Like the inscription on the Sonpat seal the legend in this specimen is written in the flowery script of the seals of Sarvavarmman. The Sonpat seal is larger and the legend is written in bigger letters. Possibly that also had twelve lines of writing, though they are not distinct on the facsimile given in the Corpus. According to the transcript given by Fleet they also ended like the lines in the present specimen. The legend on the seal under notice is, practically, a genealogical table of the family of Harsha or Harshavardhana, the pedigree being identical with what is given in the Madhuban' and the Banskhera copper-plates of this potentate.
TEXT.
1 Symbol[Il*] Mahārāja-śrī-Nara varddhanas-ta]*[sya] puttrastat-pād-anudhyāta[h*]
Sri-Vajriņa2 dēvyām=utpannaḥ paramādityabha[kto Mah]óārāja-śri-Rājyavarddhanaḥ[l!*]Tasya
puttras=tat-pā3 d-ānudhyātaḥ śri-Apsarodēvyām'=utpannash para)'ınādityabhakto Mahārāja-srimad
. Aditya4 varddhanaḥ[ll*] Tasya puttras=tat-pād-ānudhyātaḥ śri-[Ma]"[hā]sēnaguptādēvyām:
utpa*l-nnah chatuḥsamu6 dr-ätikkrānta-kīr[ttih] pratāp-anurāg-opa[nat-ānyal-rājo varņņāśrama?-vyavasthāpana
pravritta6 chakkra ēkachakkraratha iva prajānām=arttiha[rah]" paramādityabhakta[h] parama
bhattāraka7 Mahārājādhirāja-sri-Prabhākaravarddhanash!*] Tasya puttras-tat-pad-änudhyātab.
atiśayita8 pūrvvarāja-charito dēvyām=amala-yaśāmatyām [Arīl-Yasomatyām=utpanna[h] paraula
saugataḥ Suga
1 See above, Vol. I, pp. 72 f. See above, Vol. IV, pp. 210-11.
On or siddhih. • Such letters are taken from the Madhuban and the Banskhera copper-place inscriptione.
6 Fleet gives Mall)a(P)deryan instead, but the question marks would show that he was not sure of his reading. The name is clearly Apsarödēvi.
• Possibly the length mark was shown in two ways: by a stroke above the top line, and by projeoting the top line onwards and giving a small bend to its end.
Fleet gives sarv[ja-varanao in his reading of the Sonpat seal. • The Madhuban and the Banakhera records show sandhi here-wibao.