________________
MARCH, 1898.)
MADRAS MUSEUM PLATES OF JATILAVARMAN.
57
MADRAS MUSEUM PLATES OF JATILAVARMAN.
BY V. VENKAYYA, M.A.; BANGALORE. THE original of the subjoined inscription belongs to the Government Central Museum at
1 Madras, and is referred to in Mr. Sewell's Lists of Antiquities, Vol. II. p. 24 (Madras Museum Plate No. 15). Two impressions prepared by Dr. Fleet, and the original copper-plates which had been lent to Dr. Hultzsch, have been kindly placed by him at my disposal for publication in this Journal
The inscription is engraved on seven copper-plates, each measuring 11" by 4\", strung on a ring, whose diameter is about 31" and which is thick. The weight of the seven plates is 328tolas and that of the ring 11; total 3394 tolas. The ring contains no traces of having borne a seal, and the copper-plates seem to bave been issued without it. Each of the plates is slightly folded at the extremities, so as to make rims on two of the opposite sides in order to protect the writing from defacement. The first and the last plates are engraved only on one side, and the remaining five on both sides.
The inscription contains two passages in the Sanskrit language and the old Grantha character. The first of these consists of six verses in the beginning (lines 1 to 19) and the second of four of the customary imprecatory verses at the end. The rest of the inscription is in the Tamil language and the Vatteluttu or Chera-Pandya alphabet, as it has been termed by Dr. Hultzsch, but is interspersed with a large number of Sanskrit words written in the Grantha character. The following is a list of the words and syllables in the Tamil portion of the inscription which are written in the Grantha character:Line 33. ka-bhumi.
Line 56. from Bharggava , 34. bhumi.
to sútra. 40 Skala-dhana.
57. Bahvrijan Sîhu-Misra. * Laravinda-mukha.
W Yajia-vidyai. , 44. Karavandapu.
58 S sastra. , 16f. évamadi-vikrama.
Sujjata-Bhatta. 48. Manu-darssita-margga.
60. Srivara-magala. 49 s garu-charitam.
brahma-dêya. kaņdaka-bodhanai.
61f. sarvva-parihara. Koe S from Pandya-nathan
72. Påndya. to paramavaishyavan.
72f.matamgajäddhyakshan, 52. rajya-varsha.
76. mra-sasana. » 53. ndharmma.
. 76f. vådya-gêya-samgita. karınma.
Vaidya-kula. Magadha.
79. mahå-sâmanta. I mahide.
80. Vira. Sabdaļi.
81. Dhirataran Mürtti. 55. gråma.
, 84. mra-sâsana. I Vidya-dêvatai.
» 92f. Arikësari, The historical introduction (11. 19 to 46) is in High Tamil and possesses one characteristic of Tamil poetry, vis. constant alliteration. The only inscriptions in the Vattelutta alphabet that have been hitherto pablished, are the Tirunelli plates of Bhaskara-Ravivarman which appeared in a former number of this Journal, and the three inscriptions mentioned by Dr. Hultzsch in the introductory remarks to his paper on those plates (ante, Vol. XX. p. 287).
49.
78.
1 ante, Vol. XX. pp. 285-292. Mr. S. M. Națêka Bistri has published his own version of this grant in the September number of Vol. IX of the Christian College Magazine. The following misreadinge in it may be noted as the most important:
Line 1. Sri Amachchar for frih - KÔ PÅkkaran.
, 9. irappattarâm , nálpputt-Arám.
