History of the Pallavas of Kanchi c6.s1.7

c6.s1.7

Pallava Monuments.—Side by side with the inscriptions we have the Pallava monuments themselves. According to one set of scholars whose enthusiasm for their subject hampers them from taking a dispassionate view, the study of architecture constitutes an even more important instrument for fixing dates than the study cf palæography and inscriptions. According to Mr. A. H. Longhurst for instance, ‘the present method of relying entirely on inscriptions for fixing the dates of ancient monuments adopted by Dr. Hultzsch and others is open to objection because when this method of investigation is employed alone, serious mistakes may occur. It is possible that inscriptions on a monument may have been inscribed long after it was erected. In such cases the inscription would not only give no information about the original author of the monument but may even lead us into error. Then again if the study of architecture is neglected, how is the epigraphist going to determine the age of the monument that does not possess any inscription ?’¹ This is a reply to the point of view of Prof. Hultzsch who in his paper on the ‘Inscriptions of the Seven Pagodas’² wrote :—‘The important question of the authors and the dates of these excavations can be answered only by a careful study of their inscriptions engraved on them.’ Prof. Jouveau-Dubreuil is inclined to agree with Mr. Longhurst, and attaches greater importance to the study of architecture for the determination of dates than to that of the inscriptions. In his work on the *Pallava Antiquities* the author enters into a minute examination of the evolution of the Pallava style in the course of the Pallava age, and distinguishes various styles even during comparatively short intervals of time.