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No. 33.]
AN UNFINISHED VAKATAKA PLATE FROM DRUG.
207
5 hmanar-[enral sivabhrahmanar-enral Kanakkar1-enral vyaparigal-en[ral*] Vellalar
6 (r)enral marrumm-eppērppaṭṭa jätigall-enrum avvava-jätigal paṭṭa danḍam avva[v]
7 are pōkkaruppär-(r)ägavum brāhmaṇarai iṭṭa dandam brāhmaṇarē pōkkaruppārga]-[a]
8 gavum sivabrāhmaṇarai iṭṭa danḍam sivabr[ā]hmaṇarē pōkkaṛuppārgal-āgavum kā[ņa]........
TRANSLATION.
(Ll. 1-3). Hail! Prosperity! On the 158th day in the ninth year of (the reign of) king Rājarājakēsaripanmar, we, the Mahasabha of Uttaramēru-chaturvēdimangalam, assembled by day in the mukhamandapa of the sacred temple of the tulābhāra2, and made the following resolution:
(Ll. 4-8). Whether at the gate of the royal palace, or at the court of justice or in the (department of) revenue, or elsewhere, the Brahmanas, Sivabrāhmaṇas, accountants, merchants, Veļļāļas and any other castes of our village, shall be themselves answerable for the fines laid on the respective castes, the Brahmaņas being answerable for the fines laid on Brāhmaṇas, the Sivabrāhmaṇas being answerable for the fines laid on Sivabrāhmaṇas,--
No. 33. AN UNFINISHED VAKATAKA PLATE FROM DRUG.
BY PROF. V. V. MIRASHI, M.A., NAGPUR.
This plate was discovered some years ago at Mohalla, the headquarters of the Panabaras Zamindari in the Drug District of C. P. An impression taken at the time by Mr. M. A. Saboor of the Nagpur Museum was sent to the late Rai Bahadur Hiralal. As it was only a single plate, not containing the complete genealogy or even the name of the donor, Rai Bahadur Hiralal did not naturally consider it of sufficient importance and it is not, therefore, included in his list of inscriptions of C. P. and Berar published in 1932. I came to know of its existence in January 1934, from a casual reference in his letter. I requested him to give me more details, but he could not recollect any except that it was in the possession of a Zamindar in the Drug district. Later on while turning up old papers, he found an old impression of it which he kindly sent me. As Rai Bahadur Hiralal had fortunately jotted down at the time the name of its owner, I requested Mr. B. A. Bambawale, I.C.S., Deputy Commissioner of Drug, to procure the plate for me. He traced it to one Akbar Khan, a petition-writer of Drug, who held it on behalf of Nagshah of Sārōli. In the course of inquiries made by Mr. Bambawale it was elicited that the plate was originally found at Mohalla by one Bisambhar Raut who sent it to Nagshah. But for Mr. Bambawale's keen interest and active help this unique plate would not have again come to light. It is now deposited in the Nagpur Museum.
This plate was intended to be the first of a set of three or four plates recording the charter of a Vākāṭaka king. It is inscribed only on one side. It measures 8" by 3.75" and weighs 19 tolas. It is only" in thickness and is thus the thinnest of all Väkāṭaka plates discovered so far. About 1.9" from the middle of the proper right margin there is a hole, '35" in diameter, for a ring intended to connect it with other plates of the set. But no such ring has been discovered so far. The size of the plate and the position of its hole show that it does not belong to the same set as the Patna Museum third plate of the Vākāṭaka king Pravarasena II edited by Prof. A. S. Altekar.
1 Read Kanakkar.
No doubt the Sundaravarada Perumal Kōyil.
*The Patna Museum plate is 7.25" by 4.2". About 1" from the centre there is a hole about-35" in diameter. J. B. O. R. 8., Vol. XIV, pp. 465 ff.
