04 R. Maclagan — On Early Asiatic Mre Weapons. [No. 1 



Hindu buildings in Kashmir, particularly those of the temples at Avantipura, 

 that no agency but that of gunpowder could have reduced them to the 

 state of entire destruction and confusion in which the materials of the 

 structures are now found. And this destruction, if it was, as is supposed, the 

 work of Sikandar, designated But- shikari, who was reigning at the time of 

 Timur's invasion of India, occurred about the beginning of the fifteenth 

 century. (Otherwise, gunpowder being used, General Cnnningham supposes 

 Aurangzib may have been the destroyer.) But other agencies appear suf- 

 ficient to account for the condition of these buildings. During the interval,— 

 a little more than quarter of a century, — since General Cunningham expressed 

 this opinion, the fingers of Time, and moderate movements of the earth, have 

 been making openings in some of the other old Hindu buildings in Kash- 

 mir • and from their appearance it may be believed that these same agencies, 

 together with undermining work applied for wilful destruction, could do 

 what has been done. The little temple of Pdyacli, so complete at the time 

 of General Cunningham's visit on the occasion referred to, has now not only 

 lost the pinnacle he describes, — which is a small matter, — but has its roof- 

 stone, which is a single block, further dislodged than at that time, some of 

 the other stones out of their places, and gaps as wide as two inches in the 

 masonry of the basement, through which can be seen the interior filling of 

 small boulders. At the splendid temple of Martand, the two side buildings 

 which General Cunningham described are now seriously out of the per- 

 pendicular, and parts of the lower courses of masonry of the north-east 

 angle of the main building have fallen out, painfully suggesting the pro- 

 bability that, unless measures are taken to re-support it (which it is hoped 

 is now to be done) that corner of the building may ere long come down, 

 and, with it, great part of the walls. If some such work of destruction 

 were done purposely, perhaps suggested by, — partial injury of this kind 

 from natural causes, the ruin might be as complete as that of the buildings 

 at Avantipura. The whole of that country has long been noted for the fre- 

 quency of earthquakes.* In the present century they have occasionally 

 been severe. The earthquakes of June and July, 1828, which were repeated 

 almost daily for weeks together, caused much destruction of house property 

 in Srinagar, and large masses of rock are said to have been detached from 

 the hill sides and thrown down. Gunpowder does not seem necessary to 

 account for the ruin of these Kashmir temples. 



"While there appears to be no good evidence in support of the idea that 



* "Je croirois," says Bernier, speaking of the legends regarding the opening of 

 the Baramula pass by which the Jhelam issues from the placid level of the valley, 

 « Je croirois plutot que quelque grand tremhlement de terre, comme ces lieux y sont 

 assez sujets, auroit fait ouvrir, &c. &c." {Voyages, II, 269.) Abul Fazl notices the fre- 

 quency of earthquakes in Kashmir. (Gladwin's Ayeen AJcbary, II, 153). 



