144 General Cunningham — 'Relies from Ancient Persia. [Nov., 



4. Second notice of Relics from Ancient Persia, in gold, silver, and 



cop;per. — By Majoe-General Cunningham, C. S. I. 



(Abstract.) 



Tins paper describes several new objects discovered since the first 

 notice was written.* These relics were found on the banks of the 

 Oxus, near a place called Kawat or Kuad, two marches from Kunduz 

 and about midway between Khulm and Kaliadan. This is one of the most 

 frequented ferries on the Oxus, and has always been the chief thoroughfare 

 on the road to Samarkand. It is said that the owner of the land has 

 now stopped all search by other people and intends to explore on his own 

 account. The coins which General Cunningham has seen consist of 14 gold 

 and 76 silver pieces, and he concludes from them that the deposit must 

 have been made before the time of Mithridates I. The following ornaments 

 and other articles of gold which have been discovered are described in this 

 paper : — a gold circle of large size, with two winged and horned gryphons 

 at the ends ; a small figure of solid gold representing a " magus" in full 

 costume with the harsoni, or holy wand, in his right hand ; a gold seal 

 with five deeply cut symbols somewhat like hieroglyphic characters; a thin 

 gold ring of inferior workmanship, representing a lion couchant ; a circular 

 boss, convex on the upper surface, with a hunting scene depicted on it, pro- 

 bably the central boss of a shield ; a plain gold bracelet of one coil ending 

 in two antelope heads ; a ribbed bracelet of two coils ending in two lions' 

 heads ; a spirally twisted bracelet of three coils ending in two antelope 

 beads ; and two lions' heads, each of which probably formed one end of 

 a bracelet. 



This paper will also be published with plates in the Journal, Part I, 

 1882. 



* Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Vol. L, Part I, 1881. 



