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324
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
(NOVEMBER, 1994
“The round coin (P) of the glorious Avanipabókhara (i. e. the ornament of princes)."
No. 9. MH.
(Elliot, No. 189). Obv. A standing figure, facing the right.
Rev.
SåņA.
Rev. du ko(Tamil.) Ladan.
“He who conquered the Chola country."l1 The correct reading and explanation of this legend is due to my First Assistant, Mr. Venkayya,
No. 10. MH. Obv. Same as No. 9. Rev. Two fishes; between them, the Tamil legend :
El
nta
laiye
No. 11. M.
(Elliot, Nos. 137 and 160). Obr. Same as Nos. 9 and 10. Rev. Two fishes, surrounded by the Tamil legend Ellántalaiyá.
No. 12. MA.
(Elliot, No. 136). Obv. Same as Nos. 9 to 11, with the addition of the Tamil syllable Su on the right side, Rev. A fish between two lamps, surrounded by the same legend as on No. 11.
No. 18. MH. Obv. Same as Nus. 9 to 11.
ElRev. lân (Tamil.) talai.
yå. The legends of Nos. 11 to 13 appear to be abbreviations of the longer legend of No. 10. which on some specimens is further shortened into Ellántalai. Mr. Tracy, p. 2 f. pointed out that Sir W. Elliot's reading Samarakaláhala is impossible, and muggested Elidnagaraiydlan instead. But the syllable which he reads rai, is clearly lai on all the coins. The preceding syllable might be ka, ga or ta, da; the sense requires the second alternative. The last syllable is distinctly nán on No. 10. Ellan-talaiy-apán means "he who is the chief of the world" and appears to be the Tamil original of the Sanskrit epithets visváttarakshmdbhrit, saroðttara. kshmábhrit, and sarvottirnamahibhrit, "the king who is the chief of the world," which occur in verses 7, 8 and 15 of an unpublished inscription of Sandara Pandya on the East wall of the Second prákára of the Ranganaths temple at Srirangam. I would accordingly attribute the issue of the coins Nos. 10 to 18 to Sundara-Pandya, who ascended the throne in Saks-Sachvat
11 SonAdu is a contraction of landu, a Malda of MalainAdu; see below, p. 94, and South Indian Inscriptions, Vol. II. p. 167, note 5, and p. 229, note 2.
