1837.] Specimens of Indo-Sassanian Coins, 293 



prince wears a profusion of pearls and handsome earrings. In 

 front of his face is a legend in an unknown character, which can, how- 

 ever, be almost exactly represented by Nagari numerals, thus : 

 3 18 • \ oo ^. None of the pure Pehlevi is to be seen on either face, 

 but on the shoulder in the corner is something like a Nagari *?, which 

 is probably an m, not a bh. The fire-altar of the reverse is remarkable 

 from the two wheels or chakras over the officiating priests. We shall 

 see more of these again as we descend. 



Fig. 4. is a silver coin in Dr. Swiney's possession : it is of inferior 

 workmanship, the features beginning to be cut in outline. A dimi- 

 nutive figure (female) in front of the face holds a flower or cornuco. 

 pia : — just above can be discerned two small Sanskrit letters JJ^ prati 

 or pratd . . . which suffice to ally the coin with our present group. 



The two succeeding figures are from Masson's drawings, some of 

 which have already appeared in lithography. Fig. 5 represents rather 

 a numerous class of the same type as fig. 3. The letter of the legend 

 is sometimes omitted, and the oo becomes a cf) ; but without examining 

 the coins themselves, it would be unsafe to argue on such differences. 

 No. 4 represents a variation of the monogram, it may be an old 

 form of "Si 



Fig. 6, is an interesting coin, similar to my Vasudeva, and the Mani- 

 kyula coins in some respects, but hardly so far advanced towards Hin- 

 duism, inasmuch as the fire-altar is retained, and the full marginal 

 legend on both sides is in the unknown character, while the Nagari 

 occupies only a secondary place on the field. This name, too, is, as it 

 stands in Masson's drawing, wholly uncertain, with exception of the 

 initial Sri Va.. . It may be ^ffa^^Tlf. . W. 



We now arrive at a class of coins of considerable interest as well 

 to the history of India, as to the science of numismatics ; for the gra- 

 dual manner in which the nature of their device has been developed 

 is as much a matter of curiosity, as the unexpected conclusion to which 

 they lead respecting the immediate prevalence of the same Sassanian 

 (or ignicolist) rule in Upper India, while the foregoing coins only 

 prove the mixture of Hinduism with the religion of Bactria. 



Colonel Tod has repeated an observation of Dr. Clarke, the 

 traveller, that "by a proper attention to the vestiges of ancient 

 superstition, we are sometimes enabled to refer a whole people to their 

 original ancestors, with as much, if not more certainty, than by 

 observations made upon their language, because the superstition 

 is engrafted upon the stock, but the language is liable to change." 

 In some respects the converse of this proposition would be better 

 2 Q 



