This set of 5 plates were found in the village of Penugoṇḍa in West Godavari district. It is secured with a ring and seal, and the seal is possibly decorated with a seated bull.
The charter records the donation of the village of Mulukuli in Kānira district to 60 Brāhmaṇas who belong to various gōtras and charaṇas. The donation was made by Hastivarman who is described as 100 years old and was given to increase the merit, health and wealth of the king. The charter was issued from Jayapura on the 8th day of the dark fortnight of the month of Jyeshṭha. The year of the donation is not known.
| Metadata | |
|---|---|
| Inscription ID | EIAD160 |
| Title | Penugoṇḍa Charter of Hastivarman |
| Alternative titles | |
| Parent Object | |
| Related Inscriptions | |
| Responsibility | |
| Author | Arlo Griffiths |
| Print edition recorded by | |
| Source encoded | |
| Digitally edited by | |
| Edition improved by | |
| Authority for | |
| Metadata recorded by | |
| Authority for metadata | |
| Metadata improved by | |
| Authoriy for improved | |
| Language | Prakrit , संस्कृतम् |
| Reigning monarch | Hastivarman |
| Commissioner | |
| Topic | donation of the village of Mulukuli in Kānira district to 60 Brāhmaṇas who belong to various gōtras and charaṇas |
| Date: | |
| Min | 350 |
| Max | 400 |
| Comment | Intrinsic date: the charter was issued from Jayapura on the 8th day of the dark fortnight of the month of Jyeshṭha during the reign of king Hastivarman (the numeral indicating the regnal year has become illegible.) This set of copper plates is attributed to a Śālaṅkāyana king even though the grant does not mention the name of this dynasty or their capital Veṅgī. EIAD 2017 tentatively follows Sircar (1963-1964c: 147-8) on the association with this dynasty, but the use of Middle Indo-Aryan suggests to us that the king is Hastivarman I and not Hastivarman II. An alternative attribution would be to Hastivarman of the dynasty of Ānandagotra kings, but again the grant does not mention the term Ānandagotra. Whatever be the truth on these question, the grant may be dated approximately to the second half of the 4th century. |
| Hand | |
| Letter size | |
| Description | Southern Brāhmī script |
| Layout | |
| Campus: | |
| Width | |
| Height | |
| Description | Campus dimensions not available. 18 lines with 2 lines on both sides of each plate, expect the first plate (which is blank on the recto and has 1 line on the verso), the fourth plate (which has 2 lines on the recto and 3 lines on the verso) and the fifth plate (which has 4 lines on the recto and is blank on the verso). |
| Decoration | There is a dextrorotatory spiral on the top left of the verso of the first plate. The plates are secured with a ring and a seal which is possibly decorated with a seated bull. |
| Bibliography | |
| References | First described and translated by Sircar 1963-1964c. Re-edited by Emmanuel Francis and Arlo Griffiths for EIAD. See also ARIE 1952-53: 11, 23, no. A.14; Damsteegt 1978: 236; Gai 1986: no. 858; and Krishnan and Sundaram 1989: 98-100, no. 52. |
| Add to bibliography | |
| Misc notes | |