enclosure between the Barâbar and Nâgârjuni Hills, and the western branch of the Phalgu River, where, according to Buchanan's information, the original Ram Gaya was situated. The numerous heaps of brick and stone that lie scattered over the plain would seem to show that this had once been the site of a large town. The situation is similar to that of old Raja-griha, namely, that of a small valley or basin almost surrounded by hills; but in size it is very much less than the famous Girivraja, or hill-encircled city of Jarasandha. This enclosure had the Barâbar Hill on the west, the Sangar branch of the Phalgu River on the east, and the two parallel ridges of the Nâgârjuni Hills to the north and south. ́It was upwards of one mile in length, with a mean width of half a mile and a circuit of rather more than three miles. The circuit of the hills surrounding old Raja-griha was about eight miles.

The caves in the Barâbar Hills are usually known as the Sat-ghara, or "seven houses." Major Kittoe proposed Saptgarbha, or the "seven caves" as the true name; but I think that Sapta-griha, or, as it is pronounced in the vernacular of the present day, Sat-ghara, is a preferable etymology, as it is the very same name by which this collection of caves is now known.

The Nâgârjuni Hills consist of two very narrow ridges of granite running nearly parallel, and about half a mile distant from each other, between the Barabar Peak and the Phalgu River. The northern ridge would appear to be the same as that which Buchanan calls Murali,* but my informants applied this name to another peak in the Barâbar group. The southern ridge contains the famous old caves, of which the largest one, called the Gopi Cave, is on the southern side, with its entrance to the south. The two other caves are situated on the southern face of a small spur, or off-shoot, on the northern side of the hill.

There are, therefore, altogether seven caves in these hills, four of which belong to the Barabar or Siddheswara group, and three to the Nagarjuni group. I incline, therefore, to believe that the name of Sat-ghara, or the "seven houses," belonged originally to the whole of these seven caves, and not

*Eastern India, Vol. I., p. 100.

to the four caves with seven chambers in the Barâbar group. It is true, indeed, that the Barâbar caves are somewhat older than those of Nâgârjuni, but the difference of date is very little, being not more than 30 years, as will be shown when I come to speak of the inscriptions.

The Karna Chopár Cave, marked A. in the map, is situated in the northern face of the Barâbar ridge of granite, which has already been described. The entrance, which is of Egyptian form, faces the north. The cave is 33 feet 61 inches in length, by 14 feet in width.* The sides of the

cave are 6 feet 1 inch in height, and the vaulted roof has a rise of 4 feet 8 inches, making the total height 10 feet 9 inches. At the western end there is a raised platform 7 feet 6 inches long, 2 feet 6 inches broad, and 1 foot 3 inches high. From its length I infer that this was the pedestal of a statue. The whole of the interior of the cave is polished. On the outside, and at the western corner of the entrance, there is a sunken tablet containing a short inscription of five lines in the ancient character of Asoka's Pillars. It records the excavation of the cave in the 19th year of the reign of Raja Piyadasi, that is, of Asoka himself.† This cave, therefore, dates as far back as 245 B. C. The inscription has been so much injured by the weather, that it is very difficult to make out the letters satisfactorily. It also faces the north, so that no advantage can be obtained from the difference of light and shade which is caused by the sun in the hollows of the letters of such inscriptions as face in other directions. There are also several short inscriptions on the jambs of the doorway, such as Bodhimula "the root of Intelligence," Daridra kántára "the cave of the poor," or "the mendicant's cave,' and others the records of mere visitors.

The Sudama Cave, marked B. in the map, is situated in the same granite range, but on the opposite side of it, and with its entrance facing the south. The door-way, which is of Egyptian form, is sunk in a recess 6 feet square and 2 feet deep. On the eastern wall of this recess or porch, there is an inscription of two lines in the ancient Pali characters of Asoka's Pillars. An attempt has been made to obliterate the greater part of this inscription with a chisel,

* See Plate XIX, Fig. 1, for plan and section.

See Plate XX., No. 1 Inscription.

*

but owing to the great depth of the letters the work of destruction was not an easy one, and the clearly cut lines of the original letters, with the exception of one, perhaps, at the end, are still distinctly traceable in the midst of the rough holes made by the destroyer's chisel. This inscription records the dedication by Raja Piyadasi (that is, Asoka himself), in the 12th year of his reign, of the Nigoha cave. The excavation of this cave, therefore, dates as far back as 252 B. C., the very same year in which many of Asoka's edicts were promulgated, as recorded in his different inscriptions both on pillars and rocks. The cave itself consists of two chambers, of which the inner one is nearly circular with a hemispherical domed roof. This roof, which projects beyond the wall of the circular room into the outer apartment, is considerably under-cut, as if to represent a thatch with its overhanging caves. The circular room is 19 feet 11 inches in diameter from west to east, and 19 feet from north to south. The outer apartment is 32 feet 9 inches in length, by 19 feet 6 inches in breadth. The walls are 6 feet 9 inches in height to the springing of the vaulted roof, which has a rise of 5 feet 6 inches, making the total height of the chamber 12 feet 3 inches. At the east end of this apartment there is a shallow recess which may have been intended as a niche for a statue, or more probably as an entrance to another projected chamber. But the work was abandoned soon after its commencement, and remains rough and unfinished, while all the rest of the cave, both roof and walls, is highly polished.†

The Lomas Rishi Cave, marked C. in the map, is similar to the Sudama Cave, both as to the size and arrangement of its two chambers; but the whole of the interior of the circular room has been left rough, and both the floor and the roof of the outer apartment remain unfinished. The straight walls of this apartment are polished, but the outer wall of the circular room is only smoothed and not polished. The chisel marks are yet visible on the floor, while on the roof, which has only been partially hewn, the cuts of the chisels, both broad and narrow, are still sharp and distinct. The excavation of the roof would appear to have been abandoned, owing

* See Plate XX., No. 2 Inscription.

+ See Plate XIX., Fig. 2.

See Plate XIX., Fig. 3.