98 Gems from Kandahar, [No. 98 



But leaving coins to a future opportunity, I proceed to lay 

 before you the history of the gems forwarded. 



1 . A Buddhist (?) monogram on an agate, found at Kandahar. 



2. A female with child, and a hawk in her hand. The 

 figures on the margin, which might be mistaken for letters, 

 seem rather to be birds ; seals with this impression seem not to 

 be uncommon ; they have been found at Herat and Kandahar. 

 The inclosed is from an agate. 



3. A Victory : agate. Kandahar. 



4. A do. with fillet and palm branch, do. 



5. A seated figure. Rudely executed Pehlevi character ? 

 These are all of the collection of Colonel Stacy. 



Major Leech allows me to send you the following : — 



6. Similar to No. 2, Pehlevi letters distinct. Ruby. 



7. Horse and rider ; inscription indistinct. 



8. Bacchus or Silenus ? 



9. A doubtful specimen, probably modern, representing a 

 love scene from some of the innumerable tales, such as Wamik 

 and Oosra, (a work which in spite of Van Hammer's boasted 

 discovery, is common in Europe) Adam and Door Khani, fyc. fyc. 



10. The most perfect and curious specimen of the collection 

 was dug out of the ruins of the ancient Boonaka, upon which is 

 now erected Nadali, the Mokum of one of the four chiefs of 

 Seistan. This place affords innumerable relics of antiquity. 

 Climbing up the old mound with two or three attendants, we 

 found three copper coins in as many minutes. It is an agate 

 seal with three faces, bored through so as to admit of its being 

 worn round the neck. I will not venture a conjecture on the 

 subject of the engravings. The head would seem to be Sas- 

 sanian, while the peculiar position of the five fingers argue 

 something mystical and Buddhistic. 



11. Has perhaps some relation to the punja in the above; 

 it belongs to Colonel Stacy. 



The next five are also from the ruins of Boonaka, nearly 

 the only place in Seistan which has as yet yielded antiquities. 

 When the rain turns up the earth, the idlers hasten to the 

 iC Dujhulgurdi," as they call the rummaging of these old relics, 

 and find large numbers of gems, small copper images of birds 





