Indian Antiquary Vol 59

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 187

SEPTEMBER, 1930 1
THE OULTURE OF MEDIEVAL INDIA
171
The swords are limited to three types: Firstly, and most commonly, there is a type directly comparable with the modern kukri, incurved with the cutting edge on the inner side. Secondly, there is the typical Indian long sword (kirich) with straight, pointed blado, and thirdly, the leaf-bladed pattića.31 The curved talwar blade is not found, nor are the Mughal knuckle-guard and shaped quillons. In the case of arms it is easy to divide Mughal types from older kinds of weapons. All the Ajanta types of blade have survived to-day, while kirich and pattića blades have been found in the Tinnevelly urn-burials. With all these types there appears only one type of hilt, with an angular V-shaped guard and disc-like pommel, the blade usually being strengthened by long processes running up it either in the middle or along the reverse. This is necessitated by the peculiar properties of Indian steel, which, although tough and of fine quality, lacks flexibility. The modern flexible blades mounted in Indian style are one and all firingis. Modern Singhalese knives have the same reinforcement. The oldest existing Indian swords, very few of which, however, are as early as the seventeenth century, have hammered iron hilts, or occasionally hilt and blade are forged in one piece, in which case the hilt is usually chiselled. Damascening is not used, nor brass nor Bidari ware on the hilt, although inset jewels and jade sometimes are so found, as at Ajanta. Many of these modern swords are fitted with the spiked pommel which does not occur at Ajanta, but seems to be thoroughly Indian. The kukri small sword, mounted like a knife, is of course particularly connected with Nepal.
Egerton in his handbook of Indian arms uses a pseudo-ethnological classification, which includes talwar-shamsher-bichwa-peshqabz types of curved and recurved blades, here treated of ag Mughal or Muhammadan, with obviously more primitive types. He distinguishes four main groups: firstly, the Nepalese ; secondly, the Coorg, Nair and Moplah group, in which kukri-like hatchets and flamboyant swords with Indian V-shaped guards predominate ; thirdly, a Central Indian group comprising the arms of the various hill tribes (which unfortunately he does not analyse] ; and fourthly, the Assamese-Burmese group, in which the dhá or dão guardless type of weapon predominates. Actually the latter two groups tend to merge on the east coast, where a suggestion of the dha-shape is found in certain Khond and Koi weapons. In the early Ajanta frescoes some very Coorg-like choppers (adhya-kathi) occur.
The modern arms of Southern India are chiefly conspicuous for their chiselled steel decoration, work associated with Tanjore and Sivaganga. Nothing of the kind is indicated at Ajanta. The close parallels between the Southern Indian technique and Japanese technique are noteworthy.
At Sanchi the Ajanta types of sword and dagger are also found, and the same composite and one-piece bows, both of them of very moderate length. The infantry shield is long and narrow with a rounded top, while the cavalry shield, which corresponds closely with the Ajanta Cave IX shields, is bell-shaped and somewhat rounded at the bottom. At Amaravati the long basket-work shield is found and the long sword, but not the kukri. There, as at Ajanta, no war' chariots are to be seen. F. POTTERY
One of the commonest types of pot at Ajanta is the spouted water-jar, a form which is found repeatedly on the Sanchi and Bharhut bas-reliefs. Besides this there are two main types of pots. The first is round-bottomed with a substantial rolled rim and a neck of varying length. Squat pots of this kind, with wide mouths were made in diminishing sizes to stack one upon the other. They were often also, as nowadays, enclosed in a rope net for hanging up. The second type has a rimmed foot and a long neck flaring outwards at the mouth. The ordinary drinking vessel seems to have been a shapely little oup, with a flat narrowly-necked foot. In the fresco in the verandah of Cave XVII each of the holy men at the feast is provided with two or three of these cups set out on a flat platter-like dish.22 These tray-like dishes often appear at Ajanta. They were of all sizes, and some seem to have had slip-decoration in stripes.
31 This term is used by Egerton in his Handbook to Indian Arms, but strictly it means a pronged instrument. [A kind of spear.-JT. EDITOR.]
22 Plate 69, I, S., 41, 1885,