Dr.B.G. Babington's Account of Sculptures, S;c. at Mahdmahipur. 259 



considered " some of the porticoes, temples and bas-reliefs as very beau- 

 tifully executed," and pronounced " the general merit of the work as 

 superior to that of Elephanta." 



With these notices already before the public, it would be superfluous to 

 occupy the attention of the Society with another detailed description of 

 these monuments, and I shall therefore content myself with a reference to 

 Mr. Goldingham's paper, as far as may be necessary to accomplish the 

 objects which I have at present in view. These are, first, to convey a just 

 notion of the merits of the principal sculptures, by means of drawings 

 made on the spot by Mr. Andrew Hudleston and myself, several years 

 since ; and, secondly, to throw some light upon the inscriptions found 

 among these temples. 



To the legendary accounts of the Brahmans at Mahamalaipur, which are 

 given at such length by Mr. Chambers and Mrs. Graham, I attach little 

 value, because I find that they have not even preserved the memory of the 

 language and character of the inscriptions which here abound ; and 

 because this place, in being accounted the work of the five sons of Pandu, 

 only shares a tradition common to all the antiquities of unexplained origin 

 in the south of India. So far from believing in the tales of these Bralunans, 

 who are obviously interested in connecting wonderful stories with the 

 remains which they gain a livelihood by shewing to strangers, I even doubt 

 whether Mahamalaipur was ever, as asserted by them, the site of a great 

 city, now partly covered by the sea ; and still more, whether the gilded 

 summit of one of the five pagodas, said to be so covered, was visible two 

 generations ago. Several circumstances lead me to be sceptical on these 

 points : first, the absence of all remains of buildings,* walls, mounds of 

 rubbish, or broken pottery, such as I have invariably found surrounding 

 the site of other ancient cities ; secondly, the fruitless attempts made by 

 the late Mr. Ellis and Col. Mackenzie to ascertain the existence of sunken 

 buildings by careful soundings made off the shore ; thirdly, the silence of 

 tradition on other parts of the Coromandel coast regarding so vast an 

 encroachment of the sea, and consequent loss of land, as must necessarily 

 have taken place to effect the submersion of lofty pagodas still remaining 

 erect, and that too since the formation of the present system of Hihdu 

 mytliology, to which the existing sculptures obviously relate ; fourtlily, the 



• The small ruined brick edifice on the top of the rock can hardly be considered an exception. 



2 L 2 



