62 Dr. E. D. Ross — On an early Arabic MS.j relating to famous horses. Mat, 



some additions and corrections to the other published list. The inscrip- 

 tion then records the consecration by Bhairavendra of some images of 

 Uma, Mahe9a and Gane9a, which may still be seen lying on the top of 

 the hill close to the inscribed slab. It contains a date purporting to be 

 Monday, the 12th tithi of the dark fortnight of Jyaistha, in the Vikrama 

 year 1500. This date is somewhat puzzling. For, on calculating all 

 the possible European equivalents, as I have done with the help of 

 Professor Jacobi's Tables, I find that it corresponds to Monday, the 7th 

 May, 1442 A.D., the year being the current Vikrama year beginning 

 with Caitra, and the arrangement of the lunar fortnights being accord- 

 ing to the scheme beginning with full-moon (pilrnimdnta). The 

 existence of current Vikrama years in dates, however, being a matter 

 of very great uncertainty, the calculation can not be considered satis- 

 factory ; but at present I see no other way out of the difficulty. 



The author refers also to the tradition pointing to Bhairavendra 

 as the builder of the great brick temple at Konch, 4 miles from Tikari, 

 in District Gaya, and 25 miles from Umga. I think this tradition 

 deserves very great credit, for the close resemblance in style between 

 this temple and the many temples at Umga, which, as we know, were 

 mostly erected by Bhairavendra, must strike even a casual observer* 

 Generally, the Konch temple is put down to 700 A.D. But in my 

 opinion the local tradition is far more to the point. 



Finally, the author relates the traditional history of the successors 

 of Bhairavendra. He died childless, and his widowed Queen adopted 

 as her successor one Bhanu Singh, a Sisondhia Rajput from Udaipur, 

 who happened to come to Umga on a pilgrimage to Gaya. He became 

 the ancestor of the present Rajas of Deo. The sixth in descent from 

 him, Atibal Singh, removed his capital from Umga to Deo, where the 

 family still resides, the present Raja being a minor, his father having 

 died in 1898. 



4. On an early Arabic MS., relating to famous horses. — By Dr. 

 E. D. Ross. 



(Abstract.) 

 This manuscript belongs to the very valuable Khuda Bakhsh 

 Collection at Bankipore. It comprises 2.3 folios of 13 lines each. The 

 full title of the work is Al-Halha fi asmai -'l-khayli 'l-mashhura fi 

 l-Isldm wa 'l-Jdhiliyyaf i.e. *' The Hippodrome. On the names of 

 famous horses in the days of Islam and in the time of Ignorance." The 

 list includes the names of 237 horses, among which eight belonged to 

 the Prophet. In the case of horses of purely historical fame, reference 

 is made either to the battle in which they were present or to the 



