280 Notes on Boodh Gya. [No. 4, 



breadth of the land, which can prove to date before his accession. 

 From his time, however, the series of monuments, some monolithic, 

 some rock cut, and others built, are tolerably complete during the 10 

 or 12 centuries in which Boodhism continued to be a prevalent 

 religion in the country of its birth." 



Again p. 129, he says, " Indian architecture began about 250 B. C, 

 with a strong admixture of Grecian, or at least of "Western art, as if 

 the Indian was then first learning from foreigners an art they had 

 not previously practised ; but this extraneous element soon died out, 

 and is not again to be traced, except perhaps in Cashmere where it 

 seems to have long remained in force." 



The inscriptions in the sculptured pillars or rather the carving on 

 the Boodhist railing posts, which these pillars really are, remind one 

 of Bhilsa. They are in fact, identical. 



G-enl. Cunningham, in describing them, says — u A few of them 

 have an inscription in the ancient Pali character of Asoka's pillars 

 HJ[JLi"}"?'AJL;r , i_'; 'Ay ay a Kuclrangiye danam' i.e. Gift of the 

 venerable Kudrangi." This is 5 or 6 times repeated. 



Now these pillars are of granite and placed in the quadrangle of the 

 Mohunt's residence, whilst those at the tope itself, discovered by Capt. 

 Mead subsequently to G-enl. Cunningham's report, are all of the same 

 character, so that his remark to the effect that the first named " can- 

 not be of much later date than Asoka's" will apply equally to those 

 last spoken of. They, moreover, appear "in situ" and if so, argue the 

 existence of the tope and of a Bo tree when they were placed around 

 them. 



It should also be borne in mind, that within a few miles we have 

 the rock cut temples of the Barabur, Nagarjuni Hills, relative to the 

 date of the excavation of which, the inscriptions borne by them leave 

 no doubt. 



The dates of some of these vary from 250 to 230 B. C, or the time 

 of Asoka. 



We might also argue from the bricks used, did I not hold this to be 

 a very uncertain test of age. Their bluish tinge remarked upon by 

 Hwen Thsang is very remarkable, as such a tinge is not common, and 

 the bricks used in the great tope decidedly possess it. 



I in vain sought for any mason marks ; but their non-existence may 



