Copper plates of Indus Script and rebus Meluhha readings
It is unfortunate that ‘fake experts’ cry ‘fake’ the moment a long inscription of 37 hieroglyphs of 'text' PLUS pictorial motifs is evidenced. There are hundreds of inscriptions in Indus corpora which have not been precisely provenienced. This does not automatically make the nine copper plates recently reported as ‘blatant fakes’. The blatant appellation comes from those who consider the authors of Indus writing to be illiterates. Massimo Vidale and other archaeologists are convinced that it was a writing system and a number of books have been brought out reading the inscriptions as Meluhha hieroglyphs of metalwork. It is for the criers of wolf or fake to come out with a logical explanation of the purport of the inscriptions which have been found not only in the Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization area but also in the contact areas of Ancient Near East and the Levant (pace two tin ingots found in Haifa with Indus writing inscriptions designating them as tin metal).
I present in this note rebus readings of the copper plates recently reported as precursors of printing. This insight is consistent with the purport of the Indus script as Meluhha metalwork catalogs. Hopefully, more prints would be found which are replicas of such copper plates or copper tablets of Harappa with raised script reported by HARP.
Vasant Shinde and Rick Willis have reported a remarkable discovery of nine copper plates which can be compared with the 200+ copper plates of Indus Script corpora. Links:
The authors make an insightful comment that the plates could have been used for printing, taking the discovery of first known printing techniques to ca. 2300 BCE in Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization.
The size of the copper plates is comparable to the size of such plates found in Mohenjo-daro, in archaeological contexts and hence included in the Indus Script corpora. In addition to the sizes making the discovery notable, the hieroglyphs deployed in the inscribed copper plates are also comparable to those used on Mohenjo-daro copper plates. That the artisans had the competence to create such inscriptions in bas relief (as raised script), on copper is also evidenced by the multiple solid copper tablets found in Harappa and reported by HARP. An example is provided by Kenoyer who was in the HARP project team:
Copper tablet (H2000-4498/9889-01) with raised script found in Trench 43 Source: http://www.harappa.com/indus4/351.html
“For example, the characteristic square steatite seals with animal motifs and short inscriptions begins in late Period 2 as noted above, is found in 3A and continues into Period 3C, but the carving style for both the animal motifs, and the inscriptions shows stylistic changes. The greatest variation and widespread use of such seals appears to be during Period 3B. Small rectangular inscribed tablets made from steatite begin to appear at the beginning of Period 3B and by the end of 3B there is a wide variety of tiny tablets in many different shapes and materials. They were made of fired steatite or of molded terracotta or faience. Some of the steatite tablets were decorated with red pigment and the faience tablets were covered with a thick blue-green glaze. These various forms of inscribed tablets continued on into Period 3C where we also find evidence for copper tablets all bearing the same raised inscription.” http://www.harappa.com/indus4/print.htmlKenoyer and Meadow date the Period 3 between c.600 BCE – 1900 BCE.(Period 3A c.2600BCE -2450BCE; Period 3B c.2450BCE – c. 2200BCEl Period 3C c. 2200BCE -1900BCE) This particular inscription on the tablet is one of the most frequently occurring texts in Indus Script corpora, in particular the hieroglyphs of ‘back-hone + rim-of-jar’
The full text is seen at http://www.ancient-asia-journal.com/article/view/63
(Readings for Plate 1 have been given at http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.com/2014/10/indus-script-on-copper-plate-reported.html).
Rebus Meluhha readings of hieroglyphs on the copper plates 2-8 are given below
Horned, scarfed standing person, wearing bangles: मंडन [ maṇḍana ] n (S) corruptly मंडण n Ornament or decoration: also the adorning material; jewels, trinkets &c. (Marathi) Rebus: meḍ (Ho.); mẽṛhet ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.)mẽṛh t iron; ispat m. = steel; dul m. = cast iron (Munda)
dhatu ‘scarf’ (WPah.) Rebus: धातु [ dhātu ] m pl (S) metals (Marathi)
meḍ ‘body’ (Santali) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Munda) काठी [ kāṭhī The frame or structure of the body (Marathi) Rebus: ‘fire-trench’ (Tamil)
koḍ ‘horns’ Rebus: koḍ‘workshop’.
पेंढें [ pēṇḍhēṃ ] n Weaver's term. A cord-loop or metal ring (as attached to the गुलडा of the बैली and to certain other fixtures).
पेंडकें [ pēṇḍakēṃ ] n Weaver's term. A cord-loop or metal ring. Rebus:
पेठ or पेंठ [ pēṭha or pēṇṭha ] f ( H) A manufacturing or trading town, an emporium, a mart: also a markettown.
Ta. meṭṭu mound, heap of earth; mēṭu height, eminence, hillock; muṭṭu rising ground, high ground, heap. Ma. mēṭu rising ground, hillock; māṭu hillock, raised ground; miṭṭāl rising ground, an alluvial bank; (Tiyya) maṭṭa hill. Ka. mēḍu height, rising ground, hillock; miṭṭu rising or high ground, hill; miṭṭe state of being high, rising ground, hill, mass, a large number; (Hav.) muṭṭe heap (as of straw). Tu. miṭṭè prominent, protruding; muṭṭe heap. Te. meṭṭa raised or high ground, hill; (K.) meṭṭu mound;
miṭṭa high ground, hillock, mound; high, elevated, raised, projecting; (VPK) mēṭu, mēṭa, mēṭi stack of hay; (Inscr.) meṇṭa-cēnu dry field (cf. meṭṭu-nēla, meṭṭu-vari). Kol. (SR.) meṭṭā hill; (Kin.) meṭṭ, (Hislop) met mountain. Nk. meṭṭ hill, mountain.
Ga. (S.3, LSB 20.3) meṭṭa high land. Go. (Tr. W. Ph.) maṭṭā, (Mu.) maṭṭa mountain; (M. L.) meṭāid., hill; (A. D. Ko.) meṭṭa, (Y. Ma. M.) meṭa hill; (SR.) meṭṭā hillock Konḍa meṭa id. Kuwi (S.) metta hill; (Isr.) meṭa sand hill.(DEDR 5058). Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Munda)
G. bhaṛ m. ʻ warrior, hero, opulent person ʼ, adj. ʻ strong, opulent ʼ, S.kcch. bhaṛ ʻ brave ʼ; Garh. (Śrīnagrī dial.) bhɔṛ, (Salānī dial.) bheṛ ʻ warrior ʼ.(CDIAL 9588) Rebus: baṭa‘iron’ (Gujarati)bhaṭa ‘furnace’ bhātaḍ n. ʻ bellows, quiver ʼ; <-> (X bhráṣṭra -- ?) N. bhã̄ṭi ʻ bellows ʼ, H. bhāṭhī f OA. bhāthi ʻ bellows ʼ (CDIAL 9424) bhráṣṭra n. ʻ frying pan, gridiron ʼ MaitrS. [√bhrajj]Pk. bhaṭṭha -- m.n. ʻ gridiron ʼ; K. büṭhü f. ʻ level surface by kitchen fireplace on which vessels are put when taken off fire ʼ; S. baṭhu m. ʻ large pot in which grain is parched, large cooking fire ʼ, baṭhī f. ʻ distilling furnace ʼ; L. bhaṭṭh m. ʻ grain -- parcher's oven ʼ, bhaṭṭhī f. ʻ kiln, distillery ʼ, awāṇ. bhaṭh; P. bhaṭṭh m., °ṭhī f. ʻ furnace ʼ, bhaṭṭhā m. ʻ kiln ʼ; N. bhāṭi ʻ oven or vessel in which clothes are steamed for washing ʼ; A.bhaṭā ʻ brick -- or lime -- kiln ʼ; B. bhāṭi ʻ kiln ʼ; Or. bhāṭi ʻ brick -- kiln, distilling pot ʼ; Mth. bhaṭhī, bhaṭṭī ʻ brick -- kiln, furnace, still ʼ; Aw.lakh. bhāṭhā ʻ kiln ʼ; H. bhaṭṭhā m. ʻ kiln ʼ, bhaṭ f. ʻ kiln, oven, fireplace ʼ; M. bhaṭṭā m. ʻ pot of fire’S.kcch. bhaṭṭhī keṇī ʻ distil (spirits) ʼ(CDIAL 9656)
aḍaren, ḍaren lid, cover (Santali) Rebus: aduru ‘native metal’ (Ka.) aduru = gan.iyinda tegadu karagade iruva aduru = ore taken from the mine and not subjected to melting in a furnace (Kannada) (Siddhānti Subrahmaṇya’ śāstri’s new interpretation of the Amarakośa, Bangalore, Vicaradarpana Press, 1872, p. 330)
dula ‘two’ Rebus: dul ‘cast metal’. Thus, native metal casting.
kana, kanac = corner (Santali); kañcu = bronze (Te.) kan- copper work (Ta.)
Pa. kuṭila— ‘bent’, n. ‘bend’; Pk. kuḍila— ‘crooked’, °illa— ‘humpbacked’, °illaya— ‘bent’ (CDIAL 3231) Rebus: kuṭila ’bronze’
‘Sloping’: ढाळदार [ ḍhāḷadāra ] a ( H) Sloping esp. steeply sloping.(Marathi) Rebus: ḍhāḷako ‘large ingot’ (Gujarati)
’rim of jar’: kaṇḍ kan-ka, ‘rim-of-jar’; rebus: ‘furnace-scribe’ (Santali). कारणी or कारणीक [ kāraṇī or kāraṇīka ] the supercargo of a ship &c. (Marathi)
See an earlier occurrence read rebus in the inscription. kuṭila ’curved’ Rebus: ‘bronze’
kolom ‘three’ Rebus: kolami ‘smithy, forge’ PLUS meṭa sand hill.(DEDR 5058). Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Munda) PLUS पिढें [ piḍhēṃ ] n (पीठ S) A sort of stool. Rebus: पेठ or पेंठ [ pēṭha or pēṇṭha ] f ( H) A manufacturing or trading town, an emporium, a mart: also a markettown. Vikalpa: Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ ‘fire-altar, furnace’ (Santali) kāṇḍa ’stone ore’.
kole.l‘temple’ Rebus: kole.l‘smithy’.
ranku ‘liquid measure’ Rebus: ranku ‘tin’ (Santali)
Rebus: baṭa‘quail’ Rebus: baṭa‘iron’ (Gujarati)bhaṭa ‘furnace’ baṭa = kiln (Santali).
ḍõgā trough, canoe, ladle (H.)(CDIAL 5568). Rebus: ḍānro term of contempt for a blacksmith (N.); ḍangar (H.) (CDIAL 5524) Vikalpa: muka ‘ladle’ muh ‘ingot’ (Santali) blacksmith (N.); ḍangar (H.) (CDIAL 5524) PLUS baṭa‘rimless pot’ Rebus: Rebus: baṭa‘iron’ (Gujarati)bhaṭa ‘furnace’ baṭa = kiln (Santali).. Thus, ingot kiln.
mogge ‘sprout’ Rebus: muh ‘ingot’ PLUS kolmo ‘paddy plant’ Rebus: kolami ‘smithy, forge’.
‘Sloping’: ढाळदार [ ḍhāḷadāra ] a ( H) Sloping esp. steeply sloping.(Marathi) Rebus: ḍhāḷako ‘large ingot’ (Gujarati)
ayo ‘fish’ Rebus: ayas ‘metal (alloy)’(Vedic); aya ‘iron’ (Gujarati)
See an earlier occurrence on a copper plate. kolom ‘three’ Rebus: kolami ‘smithy, forge’ PLUS meṭa sand hill.(DEDR 5058). Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Munda) PLUS पिढें [ piḍhēṃ ] n (पीठ S) A sort of stool. Rebus: पेठ or पेंठ [ pēṭha or pēṇṭha ] f ( H) A manufacturing or trading town, an emporium, a mart: also a markettown. Vikalpa: Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ ‘fire-altar, furnace’ (Santali) kāṇḍa ’stone ore’.
Second hieroglyph from right on the text is comparable to the ‘triple hillock’ motif read rebus above. Other hieroglyphs on the text are hazy and hence decipherment not done.
kol ‘tiger’ Rebus: kolhe ‘smelter’ kol ‘working in iron’ (Tamil) PLUS koḍ ‘horns’ Rebus: koḍ‘workshop’.
loa‘ficus religiosa’ (Santali) Rebus: lo ‘copper’ (Assamese. Bengali); loh id. (Sanskrit)
ḍaṅgra 'bull' Rebus: ḍāṅgar, ḍhaṅgar ‘blacksmith’ (Hindi).
पोळ [ pōḷa ] m A bull dedicated to the gods, marked with a trident and discus, and set at large. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.com/2013/06/asur-metallurgists.html Magnetite a type of iron ore is called POLA by the Asur (Meluhha).
aḍar ḍangra ‘zebu’ read rebus: aduru ḍhangar ‘native-unsmelted-metal blacksmith’ (Santali); aduru denotes ‘unsmelted, native metal’. ḍhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili) aduru ಗಣಿಯಿಂದ ತೆಗದು ಕರಗದೆ ಇರುವ ಅದುರು (Kannada) gan.iyinda tegadu karagade iruva aduru = ore taken from the mine and not subjected to melting in a furnace (Ka. Siddhānti Subrahmaṇya Śastri’s new interpretation of the Amarakośa, Bangalore, Vicaradarpana Press, 1872, p.330). adar = fine sand (Tamil) aduru native metal (Kannada); ayil iron (Tamil) ayir, ayiram any ore (Malayalam); ajirda karba very hard iron (Tulu)(DEDR 192). Rebus: ḍhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili)
khũṭ mʻ Brahmani bull ʼ (Kathiawar).(CDIAL 3899) (Kathiawar) khũṭro m. ʻ entire bull used for agriculture, not for breedingʼ(Gujarati). Rebus 1: khũṭ ‘community’ (Guild). Cf. khũṭ a community, sect, society, division, clique, schism, stock (Santali) kuṭhi, kut.i (Or.; Sad. koṭhi) the smelting furnace of the blacksmith.
kuṇṭha munda (loha) 'hard iron (native metal)'
kuṇṭha munda (loha) 'hard iron (native metal)'
dolucu ‘to make a hole’ Rebus: dul ‘cast metal’
‘Sloping’: ढाळदार [ ḍhāḷadāra ] a ( H) Sloping esp. steeply sloping.(Marathi) Rebus: ḍhāḷako ‘large ingot’ (Gujarati)kānḍ a‘notch’ Rebus:khānḍ a‘tools, pots and pans, meta-ware’. Rebus2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali)
kana, kanac = corner (Santali); Rebus: kañcu = bronze (Telugu) PLUS खांडा [ khāṇḍā ] m A jag, notch, or indentation (as upon the edge of a tool or weapon). Rebus: kāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans and metal-ware’ Thus, bronze metalware. + kāṭi 'body stature; Rebus: fireplace trench. Thus, furnace bronze metalware castings.
kolom ‘three’ Rebus: kolami ‘smithy, forge’ PLUS dula ‘two’ Rebus: dul ‘cast metal’.
Boar. Allograph: ‘rhinoceros’: gaṇḍá4 m. ʻ rhinoceros ʼ lex., °aka -- m. lex. 2. *ga- yaṇḍa -- . [Prob. of same non -- Aryan origin as khaḍgá --1: cf. gaṇōtsāha -- m. lex. as a Sanskritized form ← Mu. PMWS 138]1. Pa. gaṇḍaka -- m., Pk. gaṁḍaya -- m., A. gãr, Or. gaṇḍā. 2. K. gö̃ḍ m., S. geṇḍo m. (lw. with g -- ), P. gaĩḍā m., °ḍī f., N. gaĩṛo, H. gaĩṛā m., G. gẽḍɔ m., °ḍī f., M. gẽḍā m.Addenda: gaṇḍa -- 4. 2. *gayaṇḍa -- : WPah.kṭg. geṇḍɔ mirg m. ʻ rhinoceros ʼ, Md. genḍā ← H. (CDIAL 4000). காண்டாமிருகம் kāṇṭā-mirukam , n. [M. kāṇṭāmṛgam.] Rhinoceros; கல்யானை. (Tamil) Rebus: kāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans and metal-ware’ (Gujarati)
kana, kanac = corner (Santali); Rebus: kañcu = bronze (Telugu)
ayo ‘fish’ Rebus: ayas ‘metal (alloy)’(Vedic); aya ‘iron’ (Gujarati)
‘Sloping’: ढाळदार [ ḍhāḷadāra ] a ( H) Sloping esp. steeply sloping.(Marathi) Rebus: ḍhāḷako ‘large ingot’ (Gujarati) PLUS dula ‘two’ Rebus: dul ‘cast metal’
’rim of jar’: kaṇḍ kan-ka, ‘rim-of-jar’; rebus: ‘furnace-scribe’ (Santali). कारणी or कारणीक [ kāraṇī or kāraṇīka ] the supercargo of a ship &c.
(Marathi)
kana, kanac = corner (Santali); Rebus: kañcu = bronze (Telugu)
miṇḍāl 'markhor' (Tōrwālī) meḍho a ram, a sheep (Gujarati)(CDIAL 10120); rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Munda.Ho.) mr̤eka, melh 'goat' (Telugu. Brahui) Rebus: melukkha 'milakkha, copper. Text of inscription is smudged.
Text of inscription is smudged; but, the traces do attest to their authenticity when compared with frequently used metalwork hieroglyphs on thousands of inscriptions in Indus script corpora.
Vasant Shinde and Rick Willis have demonstrated the possible use of such copper plates to create printouts. Hopefully such prints will be found on birchbarks or silk or cloth as 2000 sites of the civilization get explored fully in the Sarasvati River Basin. Such finds will reinforce the purport of the Indus Script to create metalwork catalogs founded on Meluhha speech.
A note on line engraving in the history of printing is reproduced below.
[quote]Line engraving has a very long history. Developed during the fifteenth century, engraving was at first traditionally regarded as a branch of the goldsmith's art. During the latter 15th century and into the 16th century the art of engraving was developed to a very high degree by the Italian school, often by artists who turned their hands to engraving. Rapidly following them the Nuremburg school in Germany (Martin Schongauer, Durer, Van Mechens) took engraving to new heights of technical perfection. After this time the art of engraving gradually spread throughout Europe, England had resident engravers and the start of a school by around 1600.
The Technique -
Most plates that are classed as engraved start out by having parts of the main design etched first. (See Etching.) Etching gives a greater freedom and ease in laying down bold areas of design, the finishing and detail then being added by pure engraving.
The engraver used a burin (illustration above), or graver, which was a prism shaped bar of hardened steel with a sharp point and wooden handle. This was pushed across the surface of the plate away from the artist, the palm was used to push the burin and it was guided by the thumb and forefinger. The action of engraving produced thin strips of waste metal and left thin furrows in the plate's surface, to take the ink. Any burr left on the edge of the engraved lines was removed with a 'scraper'.[unquote]
Excerots from: http://www.antiqueprints.com/Info/engraving.php
S. Kalyanaraman
Sarasvati Research Center