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JANUARY, 1884.7
GRANT OF VIKRAMADITYA II.
inscription. They are 84 to 8 inches long, off where it was on the point of being debeing slightly narrower at the ends than in the scribed. middle, 31 inches wide, and to inch thick. It begins with two benedictory verses; the Their edges are slightly raised. They are first of them in the name of Siva ; and the strung on a seal-ring of copper wire inch second in the name of Vishņu in the form of thick, and 49 inches in outside diameter. This Narayana. The genealogy of the donor of the ring has been cut in the middle for the removal grant then follows in verses 3 to 14 ; and a of the plates.
laudatory description of him occupies the 15th The seal upon this ring is 13 inches inverse and the earlier part of the prose portion. diameter. It projects 14 inches above the It concludes with the effective part of the ring, upon which it is firmly soldered. It grant, in the remaining fragmentary portion. bears upon the centre of its face a recumbent The odd plate which is strung on the ring bull facing the proper right, reclining on & with the three plates of the above inscription, flat ornamented pedestal, and supported by a is of the same size and description as those lamp on each side. A small umbrella is raised three in all respects. It commences with words above the bull with a fly-whisk on its right which are also found near the end of the second and left sides, between it and the lamps.
line of the third plate of the foregoing inscripThe inscription occupies the inside of the tion. It is thus shown to be the third plate of first plate, and both sides of each of the other
another similar inscription; the introductory plates, including the odd plate of the second portions of which were copied from the same grant. Each side has from nine to eleven lines precedent; and, not improbably, the missing of writing. The lines are not straight; nor last plate of the above grant has been interis the engraving otherwise neatly executed.
changed with this odd plate by mistake. The character is an antique form of the This inscription is of peculiar antiquarian Tamil-Grantha. The deed is composed in importance, inasmuch as it helps to place an Sanskrit metre, with the exception of the ancient dynasty of kings, bearing a very concluding unfinished portions, which are in famous and illustrious name, but hitherto very Sanskrit prose.
little heard of, in their proper position, both It is a grant of land to certain learned local and chronological, amongst the old rulers Bral: ans of Uda y en dumangala by of the Southern Dakhan. It is also additionally Vikramaditya II, of the Bâņa dynasty : interesting as being the oldest inscription in but the description of the matter of the dona- the Tamil-Grantha character which has hitherto tion is not found here, the inscription breaking been discovered.
Transliteration.
Plate I. ['] Svasti Sri | Yattatva[ttva]prakatikritâvatitaram vedopi nê!am yatah (') SticSthi]tyatpattilayâssamastajagatâm
yanmanvate ['] ginah [1]
Såtshana kshanna]mrasurendrabsindamakutavyålinaratnava[ ] 11 SonA[ Jáuvrajaraõjitanghriyugalo
bhůtyai
Si[°] vasso stu vah [ll] Kshirodammathitam
manobhiratulam [°] dovasurairmmandaram
Hitvakshipta
iväñjanâdririva y a[] staträdhikaṁ râjate . [l] Yo bhogi[gi]ndranivishtamurttirani[] baṁ bhủyomritasyâptaye Rakshevah[dvah] surabrindavanditapata[da]dva[°) ndvah ssa[sa] Nårêyaṇaḥ [ll] Yaḥ pradâdasurâdhipo makhavare datvå[") rggha[rgghya]mma[ma]dyâya gâm Sadvipam sacharacharåmma[ma]dhimudâ de
Plate II a. [°] vậya daityadvishe [1] Sobhůd Vamanardpine Baliriti khya['] taḥ suropadrava Vyâpaspådraikarataḥ śivâmghrikamaladvad vå[ndva]rchcha['] naikavrataḥ [ll] Tasmadabhật gunanidhirbala vârstajo[stanujo] Yatrâdhya[ ] vadva[rta]tamahậnamalah prasadah [0] Sambhos Śaśâmkasaka[la][°] dyutira jimauler
bBânah
kripåņanibatåriba
yo
