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130
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA.
[ VOL. XXVI.
10 - - 0 - - Toe staat? OTHİNT - - 11 af 2 - - - - 12 h -- TH -* vreifafauaa 13 area meilfalutare alw[a] 14 – Acaiyaar CAT , - - - - - - 15 - - - OTT - - - - - - amet
- - - - - ufan? .... aetatea - # - - - - - o - - - -
[#caya (CTI) - - - - - - - - _8
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No. 17.-BIHAR KOTRA INSCRIPTION OF NARAVARMAN'S TIME : [MALAVAT
YEAR 474.
By S. N. CHAKRAVARTI, M.A., BOMBAY. The stone bearing the subjoined inscription, which is edited here for the first time, was discovered at Bihar Kotra in the Rajgadh State, Malwa, and is now exhibited in the Archæological Section of the Prince of Wales Museum of Western India, Bombay.
The document consists of six lines of writing engraved on a stone slab measuring 1' 4"x1'2" xy" and is well preserved. The characters belong to the Central Indian variety of the Southern alphabet which in its simplest form closely agrees with the Western variety of the same alphabet. 10 The following palæographical peculiarities may be noticed. The most important common characteristics of the Southern alphabet are found in the open top of the letters gh, p. sh, and s and also in the retention of the tripartite y and of the long stroke on the right of 1. The letter m does not show the ancient form. It has a straight base-stroke in all cases, which indicates the influence of the Northern alphabet.
The language is Sanskrit. The orthography suggests the following remarks. A conBonant is doubled before and after r as in puttrēna (1.4), châturddisar and sarvva (1.5). The final m of a word remains unchanged and is denoted by the sign of final m, in siddham (1.1) and dvitīyāyām (1. 3).
1 The reading may be vishaye. + [Reading may be dri-jhēpa.-N. L. R.) Reading doubtful.
Letters illegible. * This letter is defaced. • Illegible.
Though some letters are legible, sense cannot be made out. The whole line is illegible.
Jt was noticed by Mr. G. V. Acharya in the Annual Report of the Prince of Wales Museum for the year 1938-39, p. 12 and pl. facing p. 12. [This inscription has been noticed by me in An. Rep. A. 8. R. 1938-39 where I have discussed in detail the question of Naravarman's successors including Vishnuvardhana.-Ed.1
10 Bühler's Indian Palæography, Eng. ed., pp. 61-2.
