Indian Epigraphy c7.s5: 5. Historical Importance
Indian Epigraphy c7.s5
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5. Historical Importance
c7.s5.1
From the historical point of view, the Indo-Muslim inscriptions are not as important as the epigraphs in the Sanskritic and Dravidian languages, bacause there is no dearth of historical works dealing with the activities and achievements of the Muslim monarchs. Moreover, State documents of the Muslim rulers, such as *farmāns* and *sanads*, were written generally on paper. Nevertheless, inscriptions as well as coins sometimes supply valuable data for the reconstruction of political, social and religious history. In some cases, they supply the missing links in the chronology of rulers¹ and throw light on events and personages unknown from literary sources.² At times they also correct anachronism or incongruity and settle the dates of historical events in cases where the information from literary sources happen to be confusing or conflicting.³ Although, in most of the cases, they merely corroborate the statements in historical works, sometimes they offer details left out in the chronicles and provide links in the reconstruction of the succession of public officials and the history of noble families.⁴ Often they give the correct names of places and persons, thus correcting the wrong or conflicting spellings found in the manuscripts of the chronicles.⁵ The inscriptions on buildings are important to the student of the history of architecture.
c7.s5.2
¹ That Kaikā’ūs, son of Nāṣiruddīn Bughrā Khān, actually ruled over Bengal is not indicated by the Persian historians and is only known from inscriptions (*Ep. Indo-Mosl.*, 1917-1918, pp. 8-15). Inscriptions have shown that Maḥmūd Tughlaq was a ruling king in A. H. 795 (1392-93 A.D.) and did not begin to rule in the following year as stated in the chronicles (ibid., 1919-1920, pp. 12-15; 1933-1934, Supp., pp. 22-23). Cf. also the evidence of a Sanskrit inscription referring to Muḥammad bin Tughlaq (believed to have ascended the throne in 1325 A.D.) but dated June 3, 1324 A. D. (*Ep. Ind.*, Vol. XXXV, p. 141).
c7.s5.3
² Cf., e.g., *Ep. Indo-Mosl.*, 1925-1926, p. 7.
c7.s5.4
³ See, e.g., ibid., 1939-1940, pp. 11-12.
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⁴ Cf., e.g., ibid., 1917-1918, pp. 33-34.
c7.s5.6
⁵ Cf. *A. R. Ep.*, 1952-53, pp. 18 ff.