1881.] visited and described by Tavernier. 43 



Jenkins and Wilkinson, residents at Nagpur,* by Messrs. Hislop and 

 Hunterf and more recently by Mr. Beglar of the Archaeological Survey. 

 The fact is also recorded in the Central Provinces Gazetteer under the 

 heading of Wairagurh where, however, there is no mention of the identity 

 of Beiragurh with Wairagurh although it is fully set forth in the 

 historical account of Chanda in the same volume ; but this I did not see 

 until I had independently come to the same conclusion. 



As not improbably referring to this last locality it may be of interest 

 to add the following from the account % of the Travels of Nicolo Conti in 

 the early part of the 15th century. I cannot agree with the writer of the 

 Introduction to the volume which contains this account that Golconda was 

 intended. Nicolo Conti says that at 15 days' journey north of Bizengulia 

 (by which Vijayanagar the modern Bijapur is intended) there is a mountain 

 which produces diamonds called Albenigaras. Now Beiragarh, the modern 

 Wairagarh, is as the crow flies about 324 miles north-eastwards of Bijapur 

 and therefore within a possible 15 days' journey though, as the actual distance 

 traversed would be greater it would require very hard travelling. However 

 ,4/benigaras looks so like Beiragarh with the Arabic prefix EV or AV that 

 I am inclined to believe that it was the place intended. He goes on to say 

 that the mountain being infested with serpents it is inaccessible, but 

 is commanded by another mountain somewhat higher. " Here at a certain 

 " period of the year men bring oxen which they drive to the top, and 

 " having cut them into pieces, cast the warm and bleeding fragments upon 

 " the summit of the other mountain by means of machines which they 

 " construct for the purpose. The diamonds stick to these pieces of flesh. 

 " Then come vultures and eagles flying to the spot, which seizing the meat 

 " for their food, fly away with it to places where they may be safe from the 

 " serpents. To these places the men afterwards come, and collect the 

 " diamonds which have fallen from the flesh." Nicolo Conti continues 

 with an account of how other less precious stones are obtained, and his 

 description is that of ordinary Indian diamond mining. The travels of 

 Sindbad the Sailor and of Marco Polo whose account apparently refers to 

 localities in Golconda on the Kistna, have made this tradition of throwing 

 pieces of meat in order that the diamonds may stick to them familiar to most 

 people ; yet an adequate explanation of the origin of the myth does not 

 appear to have been offered hitherto. I believe the following to be a 

 probable one. 



Heyne in the account of his visit to the mines at Kadapah (Cuddapah) 

 states that they were under the particular protection of Ammavvaru (the 



* Vide Calcutta Journal of Natural History, Vol. Ill, p. 290. 

 t Journal of the Geological Society, Vol. XI, p. 355. 

 % India in the 15th century. Hakluyt Society, p. 29. 



