Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c25.s19.t2.2

c25.s19.t2.2

The two rock inscriptions discovered in 1979 at Pulankurichi are the earliest and by far the longest of the Early Vaṭṭeḻuttu records.¹ They are assigned to ca. 5th century A.D. on palaeographic evidence. The script employed in the inscriptions at this site is in the transitional stage between Tamil-Brāhmī and Vaṭṭeḻuttu (see Chart 8). The vowels *a*, *ā*, *e* and *o* and most of the consonants still retain the Late Tamil-Brāhmī forms. The vowels *i* and *u* and the consonants *ṇ*, *n*, *l*, *ḷ* are more advanced and have attained the Early Vaṭṭeḻuttu forms. From the palaeographic point of view, the importance of the Pulankurichi inscriptions is that they have finally set at rest the controversy regarding the origin of the Vaṭṭeḻuttu script and proved conclusively its derivation from Tamil-Brāhmī.