[ *598 ] 
fuch as fometimes occurs upon the (34) Parthian coins, 
the words APCAKOT BACIA£coC BAClAftdN, 
/. e. ARSACIS REGIS REGUM, OF ARSACES 
THE KING OF KINGS ; and confequently give 
us fufficiently to underftand, as they are infcribed on 
the bread: of a horfe of Rone, cut out of the mountain 
of black marble at Naxi-Ruftan, or, as others fay, on 
the garment of his rider, that they belonged to an 
equeftrian ftatue of one of the Parthian kings. Now 
the Omega of the minufcular form, always exhibited 
here, was never vifible on the Parthian coins before 
the reign of Monnefes, which a little preceded that of 
Vologefes III. if the draughts of thofe coins given us 
(35) by Dr. Vaillant may be depended upon. Hence 
we may conclude, that the Palmyrene infcriptions 
now before us were probably coeval with Monnefes 
and Vologefes III. and confequently that the Pal- 
myrene alphabetic characters were ufed at Eftakhr, 
a very antient and confiderable city (36) of Fars, or 
Perfia properly fo called, almofl contiguous to the 
aforefaid ruins, that is, in the interior part of Perfia 
itfelf, about the very time when the piece I am now 
offering my thoughts upon was coined. 
1 1. From what has been here obferved, fome of 
the learned may perhaps be induced to fuppofe, 
that the aforefaid ftupendous remains of antiquity 
(34) J. Foy Vaill. in Arfacid. Imper. p. 347. 
(35) J. Foy Vaill. Arfactd. Imper. 
(36) Ifm. AbuMfed. apud Gol. in Not. ad Alfragan. p. 1 13. 
ut et ipfe Gol. ibid. Nafsir A1 Tufi & Ulugh Beik, in Tabul. Loa~ 
git >13 Latit. Civitat. Ed. Hudf. Oxon. 1711. 
cannot 
