880 Facsimiles of Ancient Inscriptions. [Oct. 



remarkable facts regarding Buddhism and its influence on the history 

 pf central Asia. 



I must extract the passage from professor Ritter's letter : " A few 

 words will shew how desirable it would be to communicate the original 

 measurements, ground plan, dimensions, &c. of the tope of Manikyala 

 whose interior has been laid open by General Ventura : or if this 

 should be impossible, it would be extremely interesting to know the in- 

 ner construction of those singular compact colossal stupas by more ac- 

 curate investigation and measurement ; particularly the manner of con- 

 structing the cupolas and the inner little chambers, and the square mass 

 of masonry exactly in the centre of the mound, regularly built of quarri- 

 ed stones*. Now by combining the number of feet you mention in the 

 excavation from the height to the base of the last small chamber, or 

 bason under the immense stone slab, and by the singular equidistant 

 proportions of the places where antiques and coins were found as 

 originally deposited, I am induced to conclude that there must have 

 been originally nine stages, or stories, from the base of the monument 

 to the platform of the cupola : these nine stages corresponding with 

 the nine nirvanas of Buddhist doctrine, and with the monuments of 

 nine stages anciently erected in Ceylon. The stages are only intrinsi- 

 cally revealed in the Bactrian topes by the floor of the chambers on 

 which the medals were deposited ; the dilapidation of the cupolas by 

 theMusalmans to plunder the metallic ornaments at the top, having filled 

 up with rubbish falling in from above the whole interior of the lower : 

 (carre parfait a, douze pieds tres bien etabli au centre, qu'on a creuse a 

 dix pieds de profondeur, dont la battisse reguliere s'est terminer la 

 &c. t)« But how did these stages communicate with one another? 

 were there staircases ? — No mention is made of any steps from floor 

 to floor. 



"The other excavations by Messrs. Masson, Gerard, Honighber- 

 ger, &c. give no nearer insight into the actual architectural construc- 

 tion of these monuments, and seem made directly from top to bottom 

 merely to get at the hidden in the readiest manner. I therefore 

 venture to invite your attention to the contents of my memoir." 



I have given the passage at length to prove to our explorers in the 

 north what keen eyes are fixed upon their proceedings, and to shew 

 how necessary it is to leave nothing unnoticed in their operations on 

 the topes ; but for myself I have no anticipations of the Professor's 



* J. A. S. III. p. 315. This passage was afterwards explained to have been 

 somewhat misunderstood, — see M. Court's account of the same tope. — E». 



t Ditto page 317. 



