国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

and painted ware such as Nur. 1, 5 (Pl. I) on this ground affords some useful
evidence, be it only of a negative kind, for the dating of the previously men-
tioned sites.

A subsequent excursion made from Shāhpur due east along the road towards
Bhalwāl showed a large site near the village of Gurtāla at a distance of about
3 miles. The debris-covered area here measures about 380 yards from south-
east to north-west and not much less across. It has been largely dug up for the
extraction of saltpetre. Among the abundant potsherds fragments of painted
ware, of finer execution than elsewhere and with considerable variety of designs,
were frequent (Gur. 1, 5, 8; Pl. II). Among relief-decorated fragments, recalling
those from Rakh Chirāgha, pieces with irregular tracery and volutes (Gur. 9, 14;
Pl. II) were particularly noticeable. Gur. 17 (Pl. II) is a figurine representing
a grotesque beast-head. That the occupation of this site goes back to pre-
Muhammadan times appears very probable. This conclusion is supported by the
observations made at a smaller mound situated close to the village of Sahnu,
some 8 miles farther on by the same road and similarly much disturbed by
digging for saltpetre. Apart from painted and moulded pottery remains (Sahnu.
6, 13, 16; Pl. II) resembling those of Gurtāla, we collected here several much-
corroded copper coins which certainly looked pre-Muhammadan. One shows a
design suggesting a barbarous imitation of the figure of Athene as frequent on
certain Indo-Greek coins.

A subsequent visit paid to a ruined fort near Akil Shāh, about 2 miles to the
north-west of the former Shāhpur cantonment, showed that its remains had been
occupied down to comparatively modern times. It was different with a mound
examined at Chak Haripur about 6 miles to the south-east from Shāhpur. This
mound rises to about 30 feet above the alluvial ground irrigated, like the rest
of the neighbouring area, from inundation canals of the Jhēlum. Here the
pottery showed the same types as noted before at Gurtāla. On the top of the
mound, which is about 80 yards in diameter and is now occupied by the dilapi-
dated mansion of a former Sikh Jāgīrdār, we picked up a large brick of burnt
clay, measuring 15 × 10 × 3 inches, and thus corresponding in size to the old
bricks noticed on the Sabzpind mound near Miānī.

On December 17th camp was moved to the small town of Sahiwāl, some 22
miles lower down the Jhēlum. Thence we visited the same day the group of
large mounds collectively known as Babūr. These are situated about 10 miles
farther south, a little over a mile to the east of the village of Nihang and near
the place of Muhammadan pilgrimage known as Panjpīr (the 'five holy men').
The sketch plan (Plan 6) shows the relative position and the size of the mounds.
The westernmost, marked A, is about 400 yards long and rises to a height of