Indian Antiquary Vol 21

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 50

THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[FEBRUARY, 1892.
None of the above inscriptions goes beyond the year 600 A. D.; hardly beyond the middle of the sixth century. The year 600 may, therefore, be taken as the extreme final limit of the use of the Gupta alphabet.
LIST II. - Inscriptions in the Post-Gupta variety of the North-Western alphabet.
Serial No
Publication.
Name of Inscription.
Name of King, etc.
Sanhv. A.D.
269 588
do.
.....
588
590 600 610
681
.
655 660
do.
Fleet's No. 71. Bodhgaya ............ Mahanaman .. . . No. 72 ......
do. ... .. . No. 76 ...... do. ...... .. Epigr. Ind, I, p. 10 ... Madha ................ Fleet's No. 52 ...... Sônpat (seal) ......... Harsha Vardhana (606-648) Epigr. Ind., I, p. 67 ... Madhuban ....
do. Bhagwanlal's No. 11... Katmandu ... Jishnu Gupta ............ Fleet's No. 42 Aphsad................ Adityasena (640-675)
, No. 43 ...... Shahpur ............. Bendall's No. 3 ...... Patan ....*******
(Udayadeva) ........................... Fleet's No. 79 ...... Sárndth
Prakațdditya ............................. No. 46 ......... Débaranårk ......... Jivita Gupta II... Bhagwanlal's No. 13 ....
Katmandu ...........
Sivadêva II. ....................... No. 14 ......
(Jayadeva II.) ................. Bendall's No. 4 do.
******** Bhagwanlal's No. 15.... do. ............ Jayadeva II. .......... Ada.
Horiuzi MS. ........ Add................
Cambridge MS., No.
1049.
690 725 748
do.
750
151 756 153 758
530 252 571
None of the above inscriptions goes back much beyond the year 600 A. D.; the earliest is of 588 A. D. The year 550, may, therefore, be taken as the extreme initial limit of the PostGupta alphabet. The latest inscription of the Gupta variety is of about 565 A.D. This shows that in the middle of the sixth century the Gupta and Post-Gupta alphabets were used simultaneously, the Post-Gupta coming into fashion, the Gupta going out of fashion. The process of displacement of the Gapta alphabet was going on through the sixth century. Although, therefore, an inscription, showing the Gupta variety, may not be placed after 600 A. D., one showing the Post-Gupta variety need not necessarily be placed after that date, but it may not be placed before 550 A. D.
To these remarks there is a double proviso. Firstly, they only apply to inscriptions; for manuscript writing the two limits should be placed probably about 100 years earlier. This is shown by the Horiuzi MS, which is written in a Post-Gupta variety and dates from abont 530 A. D. Secondly, they only apply to India proper, not to Nepal.
With regard to India proper, the following list shows that the North-Eastern alphabet ceases to occur towards the end of the fifth century; the latest inscription is of 467 A. D. (No. 15). At the same time, List I. shows the occurrence of the North-Western alphabet within the North. Eastern aren in the early part of the sixth century; the earliest is the Jaunpur inscription of about 525 A. D. (No. 28). The year 500 A. D., therefore, may be taken as the epoch of the displacement of the North-Eastern alphabet in India proper. It was the Gupta variety of the North-Western alphabet that displaced it. Soon afterwards, however, about the middle of the sixth century (cf. No. 28 of List I. with Nos. 1, 2, 3 of List II.) the Gupta variety itself was displaced by the Post-Gupta variety. This shows that there never was a Post-Gupta variety
The Bhitart inscription of about 160 A. D. (No. 9, List I.) would be a still earlier instance, but it is too badly preserved to be safely used.