Indian Antiquary Vol 60

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

Page 163

JULY, 1931)
NOTE ON CERTAIN SIGNS INSCRIBED ON POTTERY.
137
Captain Anderson, Captain Wilson and other officers of the ship, and myself landed and walked to some remarkable caves, 14 miles inland and at a considerable height. The place is well worth a visit. The caves are of coral limestone formation, with stalactites. Illumi. nated by a ship's blue light, a most beautiful effect was obtained. Near Hoinipoh village was an enormous clump of the giant bamboo, the finest I have ever seen. The ship left Hoinipoh at 2-30 p.m. for Dring Harbour, where she arrived at 3-30 p.m. I went ashore with Mr. Man and Captain Wilson to take the census of the villages in the north-west of Camorta Island. Could not get all the information required about five villages at the extreme north, 80 it was decided to pay a visit there on the return journey from the southern group of islands. Captain Wilson and myself went for a long walk in the adjoining country to the north in search of wild buffalo. There were fresh tracks all over the place, but no animals were seen. The ship remained at this anchorage, Dring Harbour, for the night.
11th January.--Left Dring Harbour at 5 a.m. for Kondul, where we arrived at 12-30. Mr. Man landed to procure all information as to Great and Little Nicobar as well as this Igland. I went off in the steam launch with Lieutenant Gray to visit a Chinese junk, lying off a village on Little Nicobar, five miles off. The Chinaman was found to be the Ching Taung Fat ; Master, Fu Chow Pian. A vessel of 38 tons with a crew of 12 men. They had a license signed by Rati Lal, Agent at Camorta. A search was made of the junk with the help of two of the crew of the launch, but nothing contraband was found; we got back to the Elphinstone at 5-30 p.m.
(To be continued.)
A NOTE ON CERTAIN SIGNS INSCRIBED ON POTTERY FOUND IN ANCIENT
FUNERAL URNS IN SOUTH INDIA BY PHARMACIEN-COMMANDANT NUMA LAFFITTE OF THE SERVICE DE SANTÉ COLONIAL.
DURING the years 1928-29 I explored round Pondicherry (French India), south of Madras, numerous beds of funeral urns, stretching from east to west for a distance of about twenty thousand yards. The results of this exploration will be published in a volume under preparation, and the finds will, I hope, be exhibited at the Colonial Exhibition being held in Paris during the current year.
What I call funeral urns are large receptacles made of ordinary half-baked earth. measuring about one yard in height and about two yards in circumference. Buried in the soil, these urns, when in good preservation, are covered by others, of equal dimensions, in reverse position (see Plate I, urn 17).
The presence of human bones and skulls in these urns is general. The bones at the bottom are accompanied by numerous red and black terracotta vessels. On the accompanying Plate II two skulls may be seen. The sizes and forms of these vessels are of great variety, and they are always of elegant shape. Stone axes and implements, and numerous kinds of iron arms and instruments are often found among the bones and vessels. Sometimes also there occur copper rings and beads of oornelian.
Among the vessels found during the course of my excavations some had signs engraved upon them, which were always conspicuous. These signs are engraved in the thickness of the coating only, but this does not prevent them from being quite distinct and visible in most cases on the photographs. I collected 27 of these signs. These are shown in Plate III, reduced to half the actual size. Plate IV reproduces a photograph of two of the vessels (scale one-fifth of actual size).
What is the signification of these signs? For a long time I thought they might be potters' marks, or might refer to the deceased himself. But a few weeks ago Dr. JouveauDubreuil, who had seen my collection in Pondicherry, wrote to me from Calicut, that is to say, from the opposite coast of the peninsula, that he had there soon, in an ancient burial