40 
J. M. Foster — Note on Ghmydon, Asdm. 
[No. 1, 
1866 ; the bund is overgrown with forest ; the ditch in many places filled 
with rank vegetation, and the enclosure itself a mass of dense jungle. The 
palace, as before mentioned, is rapidly crumbling away ; in 1869, the north- 
west front consisting of two verandahs fell in, the balustrades in many places 
are gone, huge cracks gape in every direction, the rain finds its way from top 
to bottom of the building, and although the plans shew that it is of the most 
massive construction, it is hardly safe for a visitor to mount to the summit. 
Some twenty years since, it was temporarily occupied by some tea planters 
who are said to have made slight repairs ; they are also credited with having 
found a sword having a silver hilt, and an ivory and gold sheath, besides 
other valuables. 
The so-called palace itself may be described as a quadrangular pile of 
brickwork consisting of three stories above ground, and two subterranean 
ones. The surface of the soil being very soft and liable to inundations 'from 
the Dik’ho, an immense mass of boulders was placed there, upon which the 
palace was erected, some ten feet above the level of the surrounding country. 
These boulders were probably procured from Santok Mukli, about twelve 
miles from Ghargaon, up the river Dik’ho, that being the nearest place where 
they can be found. The subterranean chambers have been visited of late 
years, but presented nothing of interest, and at the present date are hardly 
accessible from fallen brickwork, &c. The building has cupolas at the angles 
and a terminal one at the summit in the centre ; the openings on to the 
verandahs are generally arched, frequently cusped : all the decorations are 
in stucco, and although cut or carved bricks have been found in the imme- 
diate vicinity, not one is visible in 'or on the palace itself. This is singular, 
as cut bricks seem to constitute the chief ornaments of the old Asamese 
buildings in this district. The walls and piers are very massive, and the 
openings generally small. The general design seems more ornate than useful, 
and it is apparently as much a temple as a dwelling or palace. The bricks, 
or rather tiles, of which it is entirely composed (not a particle of wood or 
stone being perceptible) are extremely hard and frequently hear a polish, and 
are seldom of the same thickness and superficial measure, a fair specimen 
8" x 10" x If". In one verandah the ornamented stucco has fallen off in 
places disclosing an under layer of the same material having the same 
pattern but on a slightly smaller scale. The plans and photographs will 
give a far more correct idea of the peculiarities of the building than any 
written description can supply. The buildings near the palace were stand- 
ing some three years since, and consisted of a large square room, said to have 
been a room for holding nautclies in, and a long arched passage-like building 
of which it is impossible to conjecture the use. Remains of brickwork some 
three hundred yards from the palace lead to the conclusion that there might 
have been a brick wall surrounding it at that distance, but the dense jungle 
