The Antiquities of Orissa v1.c10.220.2

v1.c10.220.2

The Asuras, like their rivals, had, likewise, plenty of "gold and jewels",¹⁰⁴ and human beings, whose ornaments were no doubt the prototypes of their celestial counterparts, were certainly not without their due share. Accordingly we find the sage Kakṣīvat praying for a son "decorated with golden earrings and jewel necklace";¹⁰⁵ and among largesses to priests and Brāhmaṇs, gold in lumps or in ornaments, is prominently mentioned. In the *Nirukta* of Yāska and the grammar of Pāṇini, not only ornaments but names of various kinds of them, are enumerated, and Manu defines the nature and duties of the caste whose especial vocation was to manufacture them, and the punishment meet for fraudulent adulteration of gold. The old vocabulary of Amara Siṁha gives names for crowns, crests and tiaras for the head; of rings, flowers and bosses for the ears; of necklaces of one to a hundred rows, and of various shapes and patterns; of armlets and bracelets; of signet and other rings for the fingers; of zones and girdles for the waist for both men and women; as also of ornaments of bells, bands and chains for the leg and ankle. Although fashion has rendered the forms of many of the ancient ornaments now obsolete, most of the names are still current in connexion with their substitutes, and the sculptures of Bhuvaneśvara afford us a pretty fair idea of what their shapes were twelve hundred years ago.