I 



i < 



56 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [N.S., XIII. 



The reverse of the coin, however, with its striking resem- 

 blance to that figured by Dorn, affords to my mind the most 

 convincing proof that the drachme belongs to the early years of 

 Khusrau I. In connection with the local divergence in script 

 and speech noted above it is most significant that the coin 

 illustrated by Dorn bears on the reverse the Pahlavi word 

 chehar M instead of the Semitic " arba," this being the only 

 instance known to me in which the Pahlavi word is used in place 

 of the Semitic in the case of the first ten units. On my coin of 

 the fifth and on that of the third year described by Mr. Thana- 

 walla the fire-altar and the attendants are exactly similar. 

 There are no crescents on the margin of the reverse, and none 

 has ever been found on the reverse of any coin of Khusrau I. 



The conclusion seems irresistible. For the reasons given 

 the coin must be regarded as one of Khusrau I, since in view 

 of the many other considerations it appears impossible to at- 

 tribute it to any other monarch on the one disputable ground 

 of the reading of an indistinct letter. 



Strength is lent to this conclusion by Dorn who in his pre- 

 face to the plates of Bartholomaei (p. 7) states that " these 



are arranged chronologically, on the grounds of their 

 artistic execution, the manner in which the hair is dressed, the 

 forms of the fire-altar, the astral signs, the granular ornaments 

 round the coins and other indications which are necessary for 

 the deciphering of the inscriptions." On the following page he 

 remarks that with these plates at hand " one can easily attri- 

 bute each Sassanian coin, with very few exceptions, to the 



coins 



was 



from the time of King Jamasp. 



FlJRDOONJEE D. J. PaKUCK. 



173. "The Zoroastrian Deity * Ardoshr ' or 

 'Ardvishur' on Indo-Scythian Coins." 



With reference to the paper No. 149 on "The Zoroastrian 

 Deity ' Ardoshr ' or ' Ardvishur • on Indo-Scythian Coins " by 

 Mr. Framjee Jamasjee Thanawalla, published in the Numis- 

 matic Supplement No. XXV, in the course of which he re- 

 marks that an idea has recently struck him that the legend 

 APAOXt>0 can be read as ardoshr = ardvishur = the female 

 deity, goddess of sea, A van Ardshur, I may be allowed to p lint 

 out that no grounds are given for this suggestion and that the 

 transition from the original ardukhsh into ardoshr and then 

 into ardvishur is far from clear. He represents Avan Ardshur as 

 the goddess of the sea, but this term is a corruption and finds 

 no place in the Avesta language. The correct term is Ardvi- 

 <?ura Anahita. We find in the Avesta " I shall offer unto the 

 holy Ardvi?ura Anahita, goddess of the heavenly streams, pure 



