86 Ancient Remains at Saidpur and Bhitdri. [No. 2, 



stones picked up in the neighbourhood at various times. Some of 

 these are of Buddhist, while others may be of Hindu type. Amongst 

 them are two heads alluded to in the note, and also two very curious 

 stones, one representing the front portion of the human skull, and 

 the other a human hand clasping a shell. There is likewise rather a 

 large' statue of the god Ganesh, referred to by General Cunningham 

 in his Bhitari Report. It is plainly of modern date, and is not worth 

 even an allusion. Portions of cloister pillars, square below and 

 octagonal above, may be here and there seen. These were manifestly 

 first cut down and rounded by the Hindus, to serve as lingams, and 

 when the Mahomedans became dominant, were then used by them as 

 head-stones for their graves, the chirdyh or lamp being placed on the 

 top instead of in a small niche which it is customary to make for the 

 same. Some of the massive stones of the mosque now used as archi- 

 traves and pillars were evidently taken from ancient edifices ; and it 

 is not difficult to trace roofing stones of old cloisters in some of the 

 stones in the pavement and in the covering stones of the graves. 



Greneral Cunningham also partially describes a remarkable stone 

 found not far from the column, respecting which we would make a 

 few remarks in addition to his own. His account is as follows. 

 " There is also a large slab," he says, " with a half-size two-armed 

 female figure, attended by another female figure holding an umbrella 

 over her, both in very high relief. The figures in this sculpture are 

 in the same style and in the same attitudes as those of the similar 

 group of the Raja and his umbrella attendant on the gold coins of 

 the Gupta Princes. This sculpture, I believe, represents a queen on 

 her way to worship at the temple. The group is a favourite one 

 with Hindu artists, and, as far as my observation goes, it is never 

 used singly, but always in pairs, one on each side of the door-way of 

 a temple. The age of this sculpture I am inclined to fix as early as 

 the time of the Gupta kings, partly on account of the similarity of 

 style to that of their gold coins, partly also because the pillar belongs 

 to one of that family, but chiefly because some of the bricks found 

 in various parts of the ruins are stamped with the name of Sri 

 Kumara Gupta." To this interesting information concerning this curious 

 stone, we would add, that seven human figures are sculptured upon it 

 in bas-relief. Of these the chief female figure or queen stands upon a 



