1840.] from Bactrian and Indo-Scythian coins, 635 



establishment of the dominion of the Bactrian kings in Cabul 

 and on the Indus^ as no sound critic can assign such an influ- 

 ence as consequent on Alexander's momentary sojourn in India. 



Bayer had discovered from some Indian words^ communicated 

 to him^ that a striking similarity obtained between the Greek 

 and Indian numerals ; hence he concluded, that the Indians had 

 borrowed these words from the Greeks. The affinity was in- 

 geniously discovered, while the inference not too bold, as he at the 

 same time admitted, that the Indians possessed other and more 

 ancient native numerals ; none, however, will probably in our days 

 earnestly undertake to refute Bayer's opinion 3 but in his time 

 he could hardly draw any other conclusion from the reports at 

 his disposal. 



Mr. Mueller's conclusion, however, appears to me much bolder, 

 and whatever species of criticism he may meet with from others, 

 I for my part shall refute him in good earnest. 



Supposing, there exists in very deed a similarity between the 

 Greek and the Indian characters on the Saurashtra coins, as Mr. 

 Prinsep has maintained; granting also, that they were imitated 

 after Parthian and Indo- Scythian models, it will be asked, what 

 inference can be hence derived? Certainly only this, that the 

 characters on those coins are of Greek origin. Mr. Mueller* 

 places a date to these coins, subsequent to the first century of 

 our era; the age of the Indian alphabet cannot therefore be 

 traced with certainty prior to this period. 



Whether this similarity do exist, or not, is here wholly 

 beside the question ; I think it fallacious, but I shall here drop 

 the subject. 



Mr. Mueller will have it for granted, that the older the 

 Indian characters are, according to his conjecture, the closer 

 must be their similarity with the Greek. 



Now he assigns himself the coins of Agathokles and Pantaleou 

 to the year 200 — 160 b. c. Their coins, having exactly the same 

 alphabet as employed but a short time before on Indian monu- 

 ments, was undoubtedly the form, then adopted, of Brahminical 

 Debnagari. This character has been now decyphered with full 



* p. 248. 



4 M 



