1888.] 



Philological Secvetsi,ry— Reports on Gains. 



183 



vague to allow perhaps exceptional forms like Dominative singular 

 vaif}imam. The selection of his examples shows that the facts to which 

 he refers were not peculiar to the S'auraseni, but rather to the old 

 Prakrit of the Jains generally. The downward limit of the period 

 during which that old Prakrit language was in use is not distinctly 

 fixed. It was certainly current in the three or four first centuries of 

 the Christian era, but was gradually being displaced by the Sanskrit. 

 It may have lingered on later ; but on the whole the evidence of the 

 language and of the general appearance of these coins seem to me 

 rather to favour the idea, that the Yasovarman of these coins is none 

 of the kings as yet known to us by that name, but that he is an other- 

 wise unknown Scythian tribal chieftain, of a very early period of our 

 era (say, of the 3rd or 4th century). 



Ohverse : Crude figure of king, standing to front, right arm (in wide 

 sleeve) pointing downwards to fire-altar ; left hand supporting spear 

 or standard. The whole I take to be a very crude imitation of the 

 obverse of good Indo- Scythian coins (e. g., of Kanishka). Legend : 

 under left arm: f%^ kida ; outside spear qf ka. The 'fire-altar' looks 

 exceedingly like the akshara ^ kam, and possibly that may be the 

 intention, the akshara forming part of the legend ; though, from the 

 general circumstances of these and similar coins, it seems more probable 

 that the resemblance is merely accidental, owing to the crudeness of the 

 imitation of a misunderstood symbol. 



Reverse : Crude female figure sitting on throne, holding cornuco- 

 piae in left and scroll in right hand ; the whole being an extremely 

 crude imitation of the reverse of Vasudeva's Ardokro coins ; the throne 

 on which the female sits has almost entirely disappeared in the present 

 coins, the only indication of it that is left is the horizontal line pro- 

 jecting on both sides of the waist. Legend : along the right hand mar- 

 gin ^ ^TlftW sri Yasova ; on the left side in the lower field JT rinam ; the 

 whole being ^ ^ifT^iT sH YoJovarmatn. The two portions of the legend 

 do not run in the same direction. 



Messrs. Hamilton & Co., Jewellers, of Calcutta, have kindly tested 

 the coins at my request. They state that they are made of bronze, and 

 weigh 115 grains each. 



Obverses. Eeverses. 



