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



in curls and a short beard. Dress and necklace. Over each 

 shoulder a Sassanian fillet floating. In front of the crown, a 

 crescent and star, and behind it, a star. 



Legend. — In front of the face, Auharmazi (very much 

 defaced owing to the deep impression on the reverse), and 

 behind the head afzu'n. 



Auharmazi afzu'n " Long live Hormazd." 



Grenetis and outside it on the margin three crescents and 

 stars. 



Reverse.— An altar, adorned with bands, surmounted by 

 the fire, having two attendants. A crescent to the right and 

 a star to the left of the fire. 



ihe field the mint ZUZN and to 



Legend.— -To the left in the field the mint 

 the right the date shata (six). 

 Grenetis. 



The peculiarity of this drachme is that on the reverse the 

 mint is engraved in place of the date and vice versa. As far as 

 I am aware this is the sole recorded instance of such a departure 

 from the prevailing practice In the drachme figured by Dorn 

 (PL XXVI, fig. 12) the apparent change is due to the perver- 

 sion of the design on the reverse, as the result of faulty die- 

 smking. When seen in a mirror the whole reverse presents no 

 unusual feature. 



De Morgan (Rev. Num., p. 507, no. 177) cites this mint- 

 monogram as unique in 590, and gives the reading GUGU as 

 very doubtful. He is unable to recall the name of any town 

 answering to this reading. 



Mordtmann (Z.D.M.G., 1854, p. 23, no. 44, PL IV, no. 51 ; 

 and 1879 p . 12 4, no . 36) reads another monogram . s i m ilar to 



7ttVvtt V Ug a verticaI stroke at the end instead of the dot, 

 z,UZiNU and identifies it with the town of Zuzen in Khorasan. 

 De Morgan (p 507, no. 75) reads it GUGUN without any iden 

 tincation. There is also another monogram similar but having 

 two vertical strokes at the end. I am of opinion that these 

 strokes are nothing but a full-stop. In the monogram on my 

 com there is a clot, which is also intended to show that the 

 name is written in full with all its letters, as in the case of 

 ■Bost, already noted. 



:♦ wi! vertical stroke is either an O or an U and corresponds 

 Mitn the optional which in MS. Pahlavi is found following 



1\ V a ' ^ n , and & either in th e body or at the end of 



1 rl i I? th ^ ° Idest MSS " fail to observe any uniformity 

 as regards this redundant 0, but insert or omit it indiscrimi- 



~Si J A 4. Seems *° show that ° though inserted at a very 



early date was not pronounced. 



That the reading of Mordtmann is correct is substantiated 

 by the similarity of the two letters 7A1 in the word afzun or 



lit if ° n the obverse of the la <** Sassanian drachmes. 



Jt is equally certain that the first as well as the third letter is 



