Pondicherry Inscriptions (Part I)

The inscriptions gathered together in this volume for the first time come from the Union Territory of Pondicherry and span a broad period from the 10th to the 10the century. The total number assembled is 545; only inscriptions on tombstones have been consciously excluded. The epigraphs belong to various dynasties, such as those of the Rastrakutas, Colas, later Pallavas, Pantiyas, the Vijayanagara kings and the Sambhuvarayas. The vast majority of them are written in Tamil language, but Sanskrit, Telugu and Kannada, as well as Latin and French, are also to be found. The text of each inscription is preceded by a short summary of its content and a note of information pertaining to prior publications, along with details of its location, date (in Indian and in Christian calculations), dynasty and the name of the king inj whose reign it was inscribed. An elaborate preface in English and an introduction in Tamil map the historical context to which these inscriptions belong and show how these sources may be used in reconstructing the cultural history of a particular region within the Tamil-speaking South of India. Annotated translations as well as word indexes will follow in the second volume. The printed texts are based on the estampages and transcriptions made by the late Pulavar S. Kuppusamy (expired October 1986). After studying at Annamalai University under Sadasiva Pandarathar and V. Sundaresa Vandayar, he worked for many years as an epigraphist in the Pondicherry Center of the EFEO.