Archeological Survey Report. xli 
of loose rough stones at the foot of the enclosure wall on the same 
side. These stones are the ruins of buildings which once crowned 
the wall on this side. 
107. Immediately to the south of the water, and in the southern 
angle of the valley, there is a low ridge of granite rock lying from 
west to east about 500 feet long, from 100 to 120 feet thick, and 
from 30 to 35 feet in height. The top of the ridge is rounded, and 
falls rapidly towards the east. It is divided longitudinally by natural 
cleavage into three separate masses. The block towards the north is 
much the smallest, being not more than 50 feet long by 27 feet in 
thickness. Originally it was probably about 80 or 100 feet in length, 
but its eastern end has been cut away to obtain access to the face of 
the central mass of rock, in which the Karna-chopdr cave has been 
excavated. A lingam and two rude Brahmanical figures are sculptured 
on the end of the northern rock. The middle rock is between 200 
and 300 feet in length, with a perpendicular face towards the north. 
The largest mass of rock, which faces towards the south, is rounded 
at top, but the lower part has been scarped to form a perpendicular 
wall for the two large caves now called Suddma and Lomas Rishi. A 
level piece of ground, about 100 feet in width, intervenes between 
this great rock and the foot of the southern hill. Sheds and tempo- 
rary buildings are erected on this spot during the annual fair time, 
when the caves are visited by thousands of pilgrims. The ground is 
strown with broken bricks and fragments of pottery, and the rubbish 
has now accumulated to a height of three feet above the floors of the 
eaves. This will account for the fact of there having been one foot 
of water in these caves when visited by Buchanan. ‘The water was 
drained away by Major Kittoe, who dug a trench along the foot of 
the rock, and brought to light several pieces of stone pillars which 
probably belonged to some portico or cloister in front of the caves. 
108. The Barabar Basin is naturally a strong defensive position, 
as it possesses plenty of water, and is only accessible at two points, 
on the north-east and south-east. Now both of these points have 
been closed by walls, and as there are also traces of walls on the 
surrounding hills, and more particularly on the Siddheswara Hill, it 
seems certain that the place must once have been used as a strong- 
hold. There is indeed a tradition of some Raja having been besieged 
in this place, and that he escaped by the narrow passage over the 
G 
