1897.] Dr. Hoernle — Gauhati Copper-plate Grant of Indrap&la. 115 
From the palseographic point of view the following particulars are 
worth noting. The y (guttural nasal) is formed with a ringlet, which is 
usually placed oil the line (as in kha\vayga 1,16, Gaygd 1,26, brahmdyga 
1,66, bhujayga 1,66, payka 1,76, atitaraygini II, 14a, tuyge 11,16), but 
twice it appears above the line, resembling the anusvara (viz., in payka 
I, 56, and aykura 1,86). It is not attached to the body of the letter, as is 
now the case in the modern Bengali «. 
An r preceding a consonant is formed throughout above the line. 
A final consonant is indicated either by the usual sign of the 
virama , or a special modified form of the letter is used. Thus we have 
the virama with final t in asit 1,56, and abhavat II,2a, and with final n 
in yasmin II, 12a. In these cases the virama -stroke is placed a little 
to the left of the foot of the consonant, and detached from it, the letter 
itself being of the usual size. More frequent, however, is the use of a 
special form for final t , n and m ; viz., for t it is the sign fj, made of 
somewhat smaller size than the surrounding letters; for n it is the 
sign Sb> and for m the sign ^, both made of the same size as the sur¬ 
rounding letters. Thus t in asit 11,116; n in valiyan 1,136, janapadan 
II, 76, prabhrtin 11,86, and sarvvdn 11,86; min mudraml,7b, sambha- 
vam II,9a, param II,15a, bhavatdm 11,96 and iyam 11,96. It is worthy 
of note, that all these special final letters also occur in the Badal 
pillar inscription of the time of Narayana Pala, an excellent 
facsimile of which has been published by Professor Kielhorn in the 
Epigraphia Indica , Yol. II, p. 160. Thus the same final t occurs 
there in Jeincit, line 24, the final n in grimdn, 1. 8 and 12, sampitdn and 
nidhin, 1. 13, and final m in amalam 1. 28. The final m appears to have 
been suspected by Professor Kielhorn, as he has enclosed it in brackets, 
but it is quite correct. A slightly different final form of t is more fre¬ 
quent, and occurs in vidhivat, 1. 11, abliavat, 1. 17, avadat, 1. 21, vyavrnot, 
1. 25, and asmat , 1. 28. The origin of the curious form of the final n is in 
this wise: the virama was attached to the middle of the right hand 
side of the perpendicular stroke of n, as clearly seen in the Badal plate 
priman, 1. 8, 12; next the head-loop was added, as in our plate, to 
enable the whole letter to be drawn by one stroke of the pen. The 
latter, therefore, is a more cursive form. 
The anuswara is formed by a dot or ringlet, which is either placed 
above the line (as usually), or on the line. The latter is seen in san- 
nilhidm 1,76, vijayindm 1,146, tam II, 13a, svarggam II, 15a, sam 11,96, 
vampa III,4a. 
The sign of avagraha occurs four times; viz., in 'tipavito 11,116, 
’gesha 11,146, ’stame 11,156, also in III, la after kulam where it is out 
