113 
1900.] A. F. R. Hoernle — Epigraphical Note on Palm-leaf, etc. 
its measurements it might very well he a Corypha manuscript. But the 
probability perhaps is the other way, and I have accordingly treated it so. 
This leads me to the next point. Table I shows that the use of 
Borassus leaves for book-writing was, and still is, limited to the Eastern 
portion of Northern India, ^.e., to Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. In the 
rest of Northern India (including Nepal, and “ Western India ” north 
of Bombay), Borassus has never been used for that purpose : there 
none but Corypha leaves were used at all ; but as I shall show further 
on, the use of palm-leaves for book- writing died out there as early as 
the middle of the 15th century on the west-coast, and in the interior 
even some centuries earlier. At the time when the use of Borassus came 
in in the eastern provinces of Northern India, viz., in the 17th century, 
the use of paper had in its central and western provinces long super- 
seded that of palm-leaves. 
Even with regard to Eastern India, a striking difference shows 
itself between the three provinces composing it. In Bengal the use of 
the Borassus leaf makes its first appearance in a sporadic way, at the 
end of the 16th century, and we find it fully established a century later, 
from about 1675 A.D. On the contrary, in Bihar the exclusive use of 
Corypha leaves continues down to the middle of the 18th century, 
while in Orissa Corypha leaves appear to have never been used at all. 
To illustrate these conclusions I have prepared the following three 
Tables of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa palm-leaf manuscripts respectively. 
Table TV. Bengal Palm-leaf MSS. 
No. 
A. D. 
Date. 
Reference. 
Measures. 
Material. 
1 
1360 
Sam. 1416. 
Table III, No. 82. 
lOxlJ' 
Cor. 
2 
1386 
Sam. 1442. 
Table I, No. 45. 
11x2 
Cor. 
3 
1495 
gak. 1417. 
Table III, No. 104. 
10x2 
Cor. 
4 
1514 
gak. 1436. 
Table I, No. 53. 
14| X If 
Cor. 
5 
1518 
gak. 1440. 
Table III, No. 105. 
14x2| 
Cor. 
6 
1531 
gak. 1453. 
Table I, No. 54. 
13ix2 
Cor. 
7 
1535 
gak. 1457. 
Table III, No. 108. 
15xl| 
Cor. 
8 
1553 
gak. 1475. 
Table I, No. 55. 
H 
Cor. 
9 
1656 
gak. 1478. 
Table III, No. 111. 
10x2 
Cor. 
10 
1571 
gak. 1493. 
do. No. 112. 
12 X 2 
Cor. 
