614 Note on some Sculptures found in Peshawar. [No. 7. 



Such a reason is afforded us, if we suppose that Agathocles ruled in 

 those countries north of the Indus which the Maurya dynasty had 

 held, and where it is probable that they had introduced the alphabet 

 of their own original seat as the court and state character. Just as at 

 a subsequent period Mahomedan conquerors introduced into India 

 proper, the use of the Persian character, and as European conquerors 

 have impressed their coin with inscriptions in their own language. 



We know that Chandra Gupta (Sandracottus) held Trans-Indus 

 provinces (v. Strabo in Lassen's Pentapotamia, p. 8 ; also Mudra 

 Rakshasa in do. p. 61), and Fahian relates (see Laidlay's edition, p. 

 65), that his great-grandson, the son of Asoka, reigned in Khian tho wei 

 or " Gandhara," which lying between the Suastus and Indus, of course 

 included Eusofzye and Jamal Giri. 



It is therefore highly probable that Agathocles's dominion extended 

 to Gandhara (and this the distribution of his coins also seems to shew), 

 and " par consequence" that the Mauryas were expelled from Euzofzye 

 before 225 B. C., which in such case must, as I have shewn before, be 

 looked upon as the latest probable date for the sculptures under notice, 

 unless, indeed, we suppose from the use of the " lath" character that 

 the conquering Greek adopted the state religion as well as the state 

 alphabet of his predecessors. 



My next endeavour will be to assign the earliest possible date to 

 which these sculptures may reach. 



This of course will be determined by the earliest date at which 

 Buddhism can be shown to have flourished Trans-Indus. 



That Chandra Gupta and his son were not Buddhists is to be inferred 

 from the notice of his grandson's conversion, and the emphasis laid 

 on it. 



"We know from Justin that Chandra Gupta only first began to dream 

 of empire when he fled from Alexander's presence, which event must 

 have occurred about 325 B. C, and as he was sufficiently powerful 

 immediately after Alexander's death to reconquer the whole of that 

 monarch's Indian empire, his accession to the throne of Magadha must 

 have occurred in the interim, say about 324 B. C. 



The shortest periods anywhere assigned to the reigns of Chandra 

 Gupta and his successor are respectively 8 and 25 years. 



Adding four years as the shortest period anywhere assigned for 



