82 A, F. R, Hoernle— On the date of the Bower Manuscript . [No. 2, 
Nepalese inscriptions, Nos. 1 to 10 and No. 12, published in the Indian 
Antiquary , vol. IX, p. 163; also in the Nepalese inscriptions Nos. 1 and 
2, in Mr. Bendall’s Journey in Nepal, pp. 72, 74. On the other hand, 
the other Nepalese inscriptions in vol, IX of the Indian Antiquary, 
Nos. 11, 13, 14, 15, and in Mr. Bendall’s Journey , Nos. 3 to 6, exhibit 
the North-Western alphabet. The latter alphabet is also to be seen 
in all the Nepalese MSS , described in Mr. Bendall’s Catalogue of 
Buddhist Sanskrit MSS., including the two oldest, Nos. 1049 and 1702. 
Examples of the North-Western alphabet in Mr. Fleet’s volume are 
the Mathura stone inscription of Chandra Gupta, of about 400 A. D., 
the Indor plate of Skanda Gupta, of 565 A. D., and others.* Also 
the Toramana inscription in the Bpigraphia Indica, Vol. I, p. 238, and 
the Nepalese inscriptions above mentioned. 
In both the North-Eastern and North-Western sections there are 
divisions into varieties, some of which Mr. Fleet has noticed. However 
for my present purpose, there is no need to enter into any consideration 
of these. But the distinction of the two great sections is very marked, 
and can never be missed when once pointed out. 
There is one point, worthy of notice, with regard to these two great 
Northern divisions. It is this, that in India proper the North-Eastern 
alphabet gradually came to be entirely displaced by the North-Western 
alphabet, in comparatively very early times. This displacement must 
have been in progress during the earlier part of the sixth century A. D., 
and must have been completed about 580 A. D. For in 588 A. D. we 
already find inscriptions in Bodhgaya (of Mahanaman, Fleet, p. 274) 
which show an exclusive North-Western character; and there is not a 
single inscription known (so far as I am aware) about and after 600 
A. D. which shows the distinctive marks of the old North-Eastern alpha¬ 
bet. Outside of India proper, that is in Nepal, the North-Eastern al¬ 
phabet maintained its ground for about three centuries longer; for the 
inscription, No. 4 in the Indian Antiquary, vol. IX, dated in 854 A. D., 
still shows the use of that alphabet. This survival is accounted for by 
the fact, that the North-Western alphabet made its way into Nepal, 
apparently, about a century later than into Eastern India proper. For 
the earliest known inscription, in that alphabet, is No. 11 in the Indian 
Antiquary, vol. IX, which is dated in 653 A. D. For the purpose of ma¬ 
nuscript writing, as distinguished from documentary inscription, the 
North-Western alphabet probably made its way into Nepal very much 
earlier, as shown by Mr. Bendall’s old MS. No. 1049, if (as I think it may 
well be) it is dated in 252 of the Gupta Era, that is, in 571 A. D. 
* The following Nos. belong to this class : Nos. 4, 10, 16, 19, 20, 22—37, 42, 43, 
46—54, 58—61, 63, 65, 67, 70—72, 74, 76. 
