304 Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. [No. 3, 



San 5 Mdsa Tsattilcasa divasa Vrelii 3. 



In the year 5 on the third day of the increase of the month Xan- 

 thikos. 



In all these inscriptions it is observable that the word mdsa pre- 

 cedes the name of the month, whereas in my two Yusufzai inscrip- 

 tions, in which the Hindu months are used, the word mdsa follows 

 the name of the month. This may be a useful hint for the reading 

 of other dates. 



In Court's Manikyala inscription the name and day of the month 

 are given at the end, I read them as 



Kattihasa mdsa divasa 3. 



" On the 3rd day of the month of KdrttUca." 



The date of the Manikyala, Hidda, and Thomas No. 3, Plate 9, 

 inscriptions, is the same, namely X X Q which I incline to read as 144 

 from right to left, and I would refer the erection of the three topes 

 to the period of Kanishka's conversion to Buddhism, say approxi- 

 mately 25 B. C. Then 25 plus 144 would give 169 B. C. as the ini- 

 tial year of the era, which may probably refer to the Scythian occu- 

 pation of Baetriana and Sogdiana, which we know must have taken 

 place about 170 or 160 B. C. during the time of Eukratides and 

 Heliokles. The coins of the latter prince were copied by the Scy- 

 thians, as well as those of Euthydemus. 



VreM, I take to be equivalent to Yriddhi " increase." The read- 

 ing of Vrelii I believe to be quite correct, but v/e cannot be certain 

 of it until we find an inscription dated during the " decrease" of the 

 month. Quintus Curtius, whose information was derived from the 

 records of Alexander's companions, states that the Indians reckoned 

 time by half-months, according to the increase or decrease of the 

 moon. There is every probability, therefore, that I am right in my 

 reading of the Macedonian months. 



I have not time to go through the "Wardak inscription just now, 

 but I may note that I read the name of the hill mentioned in the 

 first line, as Khdsatamri Kotala. And small hills in the Kabul val- 

 ley are called Kotal as Haft Kotal, the seven hills, and Khdsa is the 

 name of the Takt-i-Suliman or Khdsa-ghar. 



Regarding my explorations during the past season, I can only 

 give you a rapid account. I visited Gay a, Bodh Gay a, Kurkihar, 



