Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages c8.s3.t5: 3.3.5 Early Sanskrit inscriptions from other regions
Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages c8.s3.t5
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3.3.5 Early Sanskrit inscriptions from other regions
c8.s3.t5.1
With the exception of the very early Ayodhyā inscription discussed earlier (3.3.1), there are few early Sanskrit inscriptions from eastern and northeastern India. Some brief records of the "Magha" kings of Kauśāmbī of the second century A.D. are in Sanskrit or in a highly Sanskritized hybrid: for example, the Bāndhogarh inscriptions nos. 18 and 19 of Vaiśravaṇa (and apparently also the fragmentary no. 14 of Śivamagha; EI 31, 184–6) and the Kosam pillar inscription (EI 24, 146–8) of Vaiśravaṇa. Apart from such scattered and marginal examples, the earliest true Sanskrit inscription from the northeast (besides Ayodhyā) is probably the Susuniyā (West Bengal) rock inscription (SI I.351–2), datable to about the middle of the fourth century.
c8.s3.t5.2
From the far north, a notable set of relatively early Sanskrit inscriptions in more or less correct classical style are the Jagatpur (Dehradun Dist., UP) *aśvamedha* brick inscriptions of King Śīlavarman (SI I.98–9), dated paleographically to about the third century A.D.
c8.s3.t5.3
Outside of India proper, the oldest Sanskrit inscription is probably the Võ-cạnh (Vietnam) stele inscription, composed in standard Sanskrit prose and verse (*vasantatilakā* and *śārdūlavikrīḍita*).⁵³ Its date is highly controversial, but some time in the third century A.D. is the most likely (see 4.3.7.8); if this date is correct, this record would be at least as advanced linguistically and stylistically as the contemporary epigraphs within India.⁵⁴ From about the fifth century A.D., Sanskrit inscriptions become common in various countries outside of India, particularly Cambodia, Vietnam, and Nepal.
c8.s3.t5.4
⁵³ See Claude Jacques, BEFEO 55, 1969, 117–24.
c8.s3.t5.5
⁵⁴ It is interesting to note that, somewhat surprisingly, Prakrit was not used as an epigraphic language in Southeast Asia; see Jean Filliozat, BEFEO 55, 1969, 112.