THE DARDS AT KHALATSE IN WESTERN TIBET. 417 



that several high waters had destroyed the last traces of fields. The interest in this 

 oasis rests in the fact that there are a few rock-carvings which represent ancient Dards 

 in their national costume, according to the ideas of the present Khalatse people. On 

 one boulder is carved a woman with a basket on her back. Her dress is girded up very 

 high, as the Dard women of Da have it when they are working, so that much of the legs 

 can be seen. On her head she has what at first glance looks much like a very narrow 

 cap. It is, however, as Khalatse people explain, the broad end of the little bag which is 

 worn sideways by the Dard women of Da, seen from the front, and in the carving this 

 woman is supposed to turn her full face to the on-looker. For comparison, the head- 

 dress of the Dard women of Da can be referred to in the Indian Antiquary, 1905 (" The 

 Eighteen Songs of the Bono-na Festival"), where a photo of a group of Dards is 

 given. 



From all this it follows that, according to popular tradition, the tribe of Dards 

 which first cultivated Khalatse was of the same stock as the present Dards of Da. 

 This is of interest, because near the village of Hunupata we find another group of rock- 

 carvings on a rock which represent the ancient inhabitants of that village in long-for- 

 gotten costumes. There the characteristics of the dress of the women are : a long, loose 

 gown and a very high pointed cap. This is a costume which is still worn by the Dard 

 women between Kargil and Dras, and from these rock-carvings we presume that the 

 ancient Dards of Hunupata once came from the Dard country between Kargil and Dras. 

 But the costume of the men represented on the rocks of Hunupata is no longer to be 

 found anywhere, and so it is with the costumes of ancient Dard men depicted at Kha- 

 latse. The reason is that during the time of the reign of the L,adakhi kings, certain cos- 

 tumes were made compulsory for the different classes of the male population, and they 

 caused the disappearence of the original forms of dress. The ancient costume of the 

 men of Khalatse we find represented on another boulder at ' aBrogmo guv am chagssa. 

 It is a man hunting antelope. He seems to wear something like trousers, and his hat 

 is somewhat of mushroom shape. It is also furnished with a string. Similar hats 

 without string can be found on other rocks below the Dard castle, and at Nyural. 

 On a rock below the Dard castle, on the river, there is also a drawing of a man, hunting 

 antelope, who wears something like a helmet. 



Of Dard customs several have already been mentioned, for instance their custom 

 of burying the dead, and in this connection the many graves at the Dard castle on the 

 brook. There seem to have been also graves near the castle on the river, for among the 

 debris of that site there is quite a quantity of human bones. Some look as if they were 

 of rather modern origin. Probably the graves were built direct on the walls of the 

 castle. The Dards seem to like to have the graves as close to the houses as possible. 

 Another Dard custom is the stern abstinence, not only from beef, but also from the milk 

 of cows. If I understand them right, they believe that certain demons are watch- 

 ing over their cows, ready to avenge the stealing of milk. The last remnant of this 

 custom at Khalatse is the fact that there are several families in the village who 

 do not eat any beef, although the others eat much, at least, if their cows and oxen 

 die a natural death. Such families are : Ralupa, Sabipa, Snumpa. But even these 



