Indian Palaeography from about B.C. 350 to about A.D. 1300 c11.s2.t2: B. — Copper-plates

Indian Palaeography from about B.C. 350 to about A.D. 1300 c11.s2.t2

Language: English

B. — Copper-plates

c11.s2.t2.1

The way in which private individuals kept their copper-plate grants, seems to have been very peculiar. In many places, *e. g.*, in the ruins of Valabhī, near the modern Valā, they have been found immured in the walls or even in the foundations of the houses of the owners. In many other cases [94] the grants have turned up in those fields to the donation of which they refer, often hidden in small caches constructed of bricks.

c11.s2.t2.2

The finders or poor owners often sell or pledge plates to the Vāṇiās, and this custom explains why they frequently come into the hands of European collectors at great distances from the places of issue. The originals of the grants, according to which the plates were prepared, probably remained in the royal Daftar, the keeper of which, the *akṣapaṭalika*, is frequently mentioned.¹

c11.s2.t2.3

¹ Compare STEIN's translation of the Rājataraṅgiṇī, V, 249, 397, and notes.

Linked texts (2)

Rājataraṅgiṇī — Kalhaṇa, Sanskrit
Valabhi