160 A. Cunningham —Relics from Ancient Rersia. [No. 3, 
and those which went as far as the middle of the breast, (he arranged them) 
to worship, to praise, to satisfy and to extol the archangels.” 
In his notes descriptive of Parsi ceremonies Ilaug gives the following 
detailed description of the holy wand. a The barsom consists of a number 
of slender rods or tdi, formerly twigs of some particular trees, hut now thin 
metal wires are generally used. The number of these tdi depends upon the 
nature of the ceremony to be celebrated. For Ijashne (yazishn) alone 21 
tdi are required, for Ijashne with Yendidad and Visparad 33 tdi, for Yasht- 
i-Rapithwin 13 tdi, for Damn Baj 5 tdi, or 7 when a priest becomes 
a herhadA In a footnote Dr. Haug adds—“ According to other informa¬ 
tion the Damn Baj requires 7 tdi of double thickness, or 9 if per¬ 
formed in the house of a king or chief highpriest. In the Nirangistan it 
is stated that the barsom twigs may be cut from any tree whose trunk is 
sound, and that they should be from one to three spans in length and a 
barley-corn in thickness, and their number either 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, 15, 21, 33, 
69, or 551, according to the circumstances of the ceremony.” 
The barsom carried by the Magus on the gold plate has only 5 
twigs or rods, but I can nowhere find any statement as to the particular 
ceremony for which a wand of 5 twigs is required. All the authorities, 
from Anquetil clu Perron downwards, are content with stating the fact that 
the number varies according to the character of the sacrifice performed. 
Gerson da Cunha, the latest writer, simply says that “ in the ordinary 
Damn ceremony only 5 wires are used.”* 
Arms and Ornaments. 
Both Medes and Persians were fond of gold ornaments ; and in the 
sculptures of Persepolis and Nakshi Rustam w$ see a profusion of ear-rings, 
finger-rings, bracelets, armlets, and collars or torques, of which numerous 
examples are found in the present collection. The only arms represented 
are the short Persian sword called A hinalces, on the Magus, in Plate XIY; 
and a spear in the hands of the king in the chariot, in Plate XII. On the 
coins, however, are seen both the bow and the shield. 
Ear-rings are represented by a single specimen, Plate XYI, fig. 1, which 
I have already noticed as being of superior workmanship. It represents a 
naked male figure with his hands on his hips, and his body bent double. 
The figure is well proportioned and beautifully made. Arrian mentions 
gold ear rings set with precious stones as part of the treasures in the tomb 
of Cyrus at Pasargadse : evcoria ypwou re kcu XlOojv KoWrjrd, Arrian, 
Anabasis, YI, 29. 
Finger-rings are of two kinds, the coiled snaice pattern and the seal 
ring pattern. Of the former there are two specimens in Plate XVI, the 
* See Gerson da Cunha, in Bombay Asiatic Society’s Journal, XIY, 6. 
