Meluhha standard – exchange market of Ancient Near East
-- Product offerings: stone (bead, polished pillars, ring-stones), mineral, turner (forge/stone-cutter, metal alloy products), stone-smithy guild (fortification)
Two tablets of Mohenjo-daro present the Meluhha standard: m0490, m0491.
m0490
Line drawing of m0491.
Four persons in a procession, each carrying a standard. This procession of four hieroglyphs constitute the Meluhha standard.
one standard-bearer carries a shaft with some object, which looks like a perforated bead on top
one standard-bearer carries a shaft with a scarf hanging from the top
one standard-bearer a stand with the figure of a one- horned young bull on top
one standard-bearer holds aloft the shaft of the the standard device -- a composite of lathe and portable furnace.
See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/08/professions-on-ancient-near-east.htmlProfessions on Ancient Near East writing systems
Two of the four hieroglyphs carried in a procession by standard-bearers constitute the most frequently occurring motifs on Indus Writing Corpora: 1. one-horned young bull and 2. Standard device (lathe/portable furnace). For e.g. h006 Harappa seal, m001 Mohenjo-daro seal
Stone-smithy guild on a Meluhha standard
This is an exchange market barter procession exhibiting the artificers’ craft products available for exchange. Products offered for barter are: stone beads, minerals (ore), turned metal tools, pots and pans from an artificers’ guild workshop (in a fortification)
Tablet m0490 Four Meluhha standard-bearers carrie images in a procession, comparable to Tablet m0491 which shows only three standard-bearers.
m0491 Tablet. Line drawing (right). This tablet showing three hieroglyphs may be called the Meluhha standard.
Text 2937![]()
The same text appears on both tablets m0490 and m0491 read rebus from r.:
The same text appears on both tablets m0490 and m0491 read rebus from r.: dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast (metal)' kanḍ 'warrior's pair of bangles' Rebus:kanḍ 'stone'. sal 'splinter' Rebus: sal 'workshop'; khaḍā ‘circumscribe’ (Marathi) Rebus: khaḍā ‘nodule (ore), stone’; kolmo 'seedling' Rebus: kolami 'smithy/forge'. Thus the composite hieroglyph reads: stone smithy/forge. bhaṭa ‘warrior’ Rebus: baṭa, 'kiln, furnace' (Santali); baṭa = a kind of iron (Gujarati) kōnṭa‘corner’ (Nk.); kōṇṭu‘angle, corner’ (Tulu) khōṭ ‘alloyed’ (Punjabi) koṭe‘forged (metal)' (Santali). Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (B.)
Thus, the artefacts offered for barter/exchange are: cast stone (ore) workshop, stone smithy/forge with furnace, alloyed (forged) metal turned in lathe.
Note: It is possible that the hieroglyph on Text 2937 shows a pair of 'bangle-glyphs' which connote such a pair of kaṇṭai‘warrior’s ankle rings’.
The procession is a celebration of the graduation of a stone-cutter as a metal-turner in a smithy/forge. A sangatarāśū‘stone-cutter’ or lapidary of neolithic/chalolithic age had graduated into a metal turner’s workshop (koḍ), working with metallic minerals (dhatu) and alloys (khōṭ) of the bronze age.
Dawn of the bronze age is best exemplified by this Mohenjo-daro tablet which shows a procession of four hieroglyphs carried on the shoulders of four persons. The hieroglyphs are:
- Perforated bead carried on a standard kaṇṭu‘bead’ Rebus: kanḍu, ‘stone’ (Gadba)
- Scarf carried on a pole (dhaṭu m. (also dhaṭhu) m. ‘scarf’ (WPah.) (CDIAL 6707) Rebus: dhatu ‘mineral’ (Santali)
- A young bull carried on a stand kõdā‘young bull’ Rebus: kõda ‘turner‘ koḍ‘horn’ Rebus: koḍ‘workshop’
- Portable standard device sã̄gāḍ‘Top part: lathe-gimlet; Bottom part: portable furnace’Rebus: sangatarāśū‘stone-cutter’. sanghāḍo (Gujarati) cutting stone, gilding (Gujarati); sangsāru karaṇu = to stone (Sindhi) sanghāḍiyo, a worker on a lathe (Gujarati) Rebus jāṅgaḍ also indicated that the products offered were on the well-settled Indian legal system of transport and exchange as ‘goods sent on approval or ‘on sale or return’.
caṭṭam‘image’ (Tamil) Rebus: saṭṭī f. ʻ exchange market ʼ (Punjabi) ēgu‘procession’.
Combined reading for the joined or ligatured glyphs is an announcement of barter/exchange offerings (saṭṭī) from the guild (fortification): saṭṭī kanḍu dhatukõdā (koḍ) sangaḍa (sangara) ‘exchange market: stone, mineral, turner (forge/stone-cutter products), stone-smithy guild (fortification) -- goods delivered on jāṅgaḍ 'approval basis'’.
Glosses of Indian sprachbund :
Ta. ēku (ēki-) to go, pass, walk. Te. ēgu, (K.) ē̃gu to go, proceed; (Inscr.) ēgincu to carry the deity in procession through the village streets. Kur. ēknā (īkyas) to walk, direct or conduct affairs. Malt. éke to go, move.(DEDR 871). ఏగు [ ēgu ] ēgu. [Tel.] v. n. To go, resort, repair. పోవు. ఏగించు ēginṭsu. To send, to make one go. ఊరేగించు To carry (a god, a married couple, &c.) in procession through the town. ఏదుదెంచు ēgu-denṭsu. [Tel. ఏగు+తెంచు] v. i. To go, proceed, repair, resort. పోవు. Also, to come వచ్చు. ఏగుపెండ్లి ēgu-penḍli. n. A procession in which the bride and the bridegroom are carried through the streets of a town at the end of a wedding పెండ్లికడపట వధూవరులను ఊరేగించునట్టి వేడుక.
మెరవడి [ meravaḍi ] or మెరవణి mera-vaḍi. [Tel.] n. Courage, ability, energy, Increase, greatness, excess. Pride. ధైర్యము, శక్తి, ఉద్రేకము, ఆధిక్యము, అతిశయము, గౌరవము. A procession, ఉరేగింపు.
*saṭṭa1 ʻ exchange ʼ. [Scarcely with LM 418 < sāˊrtha -- : cf. saṭṭayati2 ʻ gives (v.l. receives) ʼ Dhātup., ṣaṭṭayati2 ʻ gives ʼ lex., sanskritized as sattra -- n. ʻ wealth, gift ʼ]
Pk. saṭṭa -- ʻ exchanged ʼ, m. ʻ exchange ʼ, saṭṭī -- f., S. saṭo m.; P. saṭṭī f. ʻ exchange market ʼ; Ku. sã̄ṭo ʻ exchange ʼ, saṭoṇo ʻ to exchange, barter ʼ; N. sāṭo ʻ amends, revenge ʼ, sāṭnu ʻ to exchange ʼ; H. sāṭā m. ʻ exchange ʼ; G. sāṭũ n. ʻ bargain ʼ, sāṭvũ ʻ to make a bargain ʼ; M. sāṭṇē ʻ to buy up stock ʼ(CDIAL 13101).
kaṇṭu n. < gaṇḍa Bead or something like a pendant in an ornament for the neck; ஓர் ஆபரணவுரு. புல்லிகைக்கண்ட நாண் ஒன்றிற் கட்டின கண்டு ஒன்றும் (S.I.I. ii, 429). கண்டை² kaṇṭai , n. < T. kaṇḍe. Reel of a weaver's shuttle; நெசவுத்தாறு. கண்டு¹ kaṇṭu n. < T. kaṇḍe. [K. kaṇḍikē.] Ball of thread; நூற்பந்து.Pa.kandi (pl. –l) necklace, beads. Ga. (P.) kandi (pl. –l) bead, (pl.) necklace; (S.2) kandiṭ bead (DEDR 1215). kandil, kandīl = a globe of glass, a lantern (Kannada) gaṇḍá1 m. ʻ goitre ʼ AitBr., ʻ boil ʼ Suśr.(CDIAL 3997). kaṇṭaiகண்டை , n. < ghaṇṭā Bell, large bell; பெரு மணி. (திவா.) gaṇḍī f. ʻ gong ʼ, °ḍikā -- f. BHS ii 208. [Cf. ghaṇṭā -- ] Pa. gaṇḍī -- f., Si. geḍa (CDIAL 4005). కండ [ kaṇḍa ] kaṇḍa. [Tel.] n. A lump or piece of flesh or pulp.
Pa. gaṇḍa -- m. ʻ stalk ʼ, °ḍī -- f. ʻ sugarcane joint, shaft or stalk used as a bar ʼ, Pk. gaṁḍa -- m., °ḍiyā -- f.; Kt. gäṇa ʻ stem ʼ; Paš. lauṛ. gaṇḍīˊ ʻ stem, stump of a tree, large roof beam ʼ (→ Par. gaṇḍāˊ ʻ stem ʼ, Orm. goṇ ʻ stick ʼ IIFL i 253, 395), gul. geṇḍū, nir. gaṇīˊ, kuṛ. gã̄ṛo; Kal. urt. gəṇ ʻ log (in a wall) ʼ, rumb. goṇ (st. gōṇḍ -- ) ʻ handle ʼ, guṇḍík ʻ stick ʼ; Kho. (Lor.) gon, gonu, (Morgenstierne) gɔ̄ˋn ʻ haft of axe, spade or knife ʼ (or < ghaná -- 2?); K. gonḍu, grọ̆nḍu m. ʻ great untrimmed log ʼ (CDIAL 3998) kã̄ḍकाँड् । काण्डः m. ‘the stalk or stem of a reed, grass, or the like, straw’ (Kashmiri)
Rebus: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, stone, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) id. (DEDR 1298). కండ్లు [ kaṇḍlu ] kaṇḍlu The plural of of కల్లు a stone (Telugu)
Rebus: kaṇṭaiகண்டை Warrior's ankle rings or bells; வீரக்கழல். Bi. gãṛās, °sā ʻ fodder cutter ʼ, °sī ʻ its blade ʼ; Bhoj. gãṛās ʻ a partic. iron instrument ʼ; H. gãṛāsī f., °sā m. ʻ knife for cutting fodder or sugarcane ʼ (→ P. gãḍāsā m. ʻ chopper for cutting fodder &c. ʼ).(CDIAL 4004). G.karã̄ n. pl. ‘wristlets, bangles’; S. karāī f. ’wrist’ (CDIAL 2779).
August 17, 2013