https://tinyurl.com/y3xa9vmu
At the outset, this is a tribute to Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen who hve identified some signs of the Indus Script Corpora as equus hemionus. I had read some of these signs as ranku'antelope'; a correction is warranted in view of the identification of equus hemionus. Some of these signs have to read as khara, equus hemionus on rebus: khār'blacksmith'The reading of this unique animal is read in this monograph as an Indus Script hypertext:
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Kanmer, three identical tokens.
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Kanmer: Ancient Village or Settlement in India![]()
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m0517
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FS Fig. 103 Tiger with horns, leaps and looks back kolhe kō̃da कोँद kamar koḍ 'smelter kiln blacksmith, artisan’s workshop'.The hieroglyph of dhokaṛa 'an old female with breasts hanging down' and ligatured to the ḍhōṅgā 'buttock' of a bovine is also deployed on this Mohenjo-daro seal (FS Fig. 103); rebus: dhokra.dokra 'cire-perdue lost-wax metal casting artifice' PLUS dhangar'bull' rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith'; thus, the hypertext signifies: cire-perdue metalcaster smith. On a Mohenjo0daro seal this is reinforced by two hieroglyphs: kola 'tiger' rebus: kol 'working in iron' kolhe 'smelter (worker)'. kuṭhi 'tree' rebus: kuṭhi 'smelter'. Tiger's paws: panja 'feline paws' rebus: panja 'kiln, furnace' kũdā 'jumping' rebus: kō̃da कोँद 'furnace' (Kashmiri) koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop'.
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Mohenodaro seal. Pict-103 Horned (female with breasts hanging down?) person with a tail and bovine legs standing near a tree fisting a horned tiger rearing on its hindlegs.
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Sign 183. ranku 'antelope' + koḍa 'one' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' rebus: + Rebus: rango ‘pewter’. ranga, rang pewter is an alloy of tin, lead, and antimony (anjana) (Santali). Hieroglyhph: buffalo: Ku. N. rã̄go ʻ buffalo bull ʼ (or < raṅku -- ?).(CDIAL 10538, 10559) Rebus: raṅga3 n. ʻ tin ʼ lex. [Cf. nāga -- 2 , vaṅga -- 1 ] Pk. raṁga -- n. ʻ tin ʼ; P. rã̄g f., rã̄gā m. ʻ pewter, tin ʼ (← H.); Ku. rāṅ ʻ tin, solder ʼ, gng. rã̄k; N. rāṅ, rāṅo ʻ tin, solder ʼ, A. B. rāṅ; Or. rāṅga ʻ tin ʼ, rāṅgā ʻ solder, spelter ʼ, Bi. Mth. rã̄gā, OAw. rāṁga; H. rã̄g f., rã̄gā m. ʻ tin, pewter ʼ; Si. ran̆ga ʻ tin ʼ.(CDIAL 10562) B. rāṅ(g)tā ʻ tinsel, copper -- foil ʼ.(CDIAL 10567). Thus, ranku koḍ 'tin workshop'.
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https://journals.openedition.org/syria/2664?lang=en
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![Persian onagers Stock Photo - 33521700]()
Persian onagers.![]()
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![Asiatic Wild Ass.jpeg]()
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![Image result for equus hemionus khur]()
ghōṭakarūpa -- , *ghōṭāgāra -- .Addenda: ghōṭa -- : S.kcch. ghoṛo m. ʻ horse ʼ, WPah.kṭg. (kc.) ghòṛɔ, m. ʻ horse ʼ, kṭg. ghòṛu m. ʻ small horse, colt ʼ, Garh. ghoṛū m. ʻ horse ʼ, Brj. ghoṛo, ghoro m., ghoṛī, ghorī f.(CDIAL 4516)
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The equid kunga written BAR.AN in pre-Sargonic texts is a cross between an onager and a donkey. Kungas drew ceremonial and war chariots or wheeled vehicles.
https://www.persee.fr/doc/mom_1955-4982_2008_act_49_1_2721 (Jill A Weber, 2008, Elite equids: redefining equid burials of the mid- to late 3rd millennium BCE from Umm el-Marra, Syria, in: MOM Éditions Année 2008 49 pp. 499-519).
https://www.academia.edu/29514509/Assessing_Sacred_Asses_Bronze_Age_Donkey_Burials_in_the_Near_East_2010_
"...there was a special relationship between humans and equids in this region (from Egypt to Mesopotmia)." This comment of Francesco Alhaique et al 2015, relates to the discussion on the burial of 3rd m.BCE, of what appears to be an Equus Hemionus (Onager).
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Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284028299_A_Sumerian_equid_burial_from_Abu_Tbeirah_Southern_Iraq
https://www.academia.edu/18499730/A_Sumerian_equid_burial_from_Abu_Tbeirah_Southern_Iraq_POSTER
Alhaique, Francesca & Romano, Licia & Gabbianelli, Federica & Valentini, Alessio & D'Agostino, Franco. (2015). A Sumerian equid burial from Abu Tbeirah (Southern Iraq).Conference: 8° Convegno Nazionale AIAZ -- Associazione Italiana Archeo Zoologia.
At the outset, this is a tribute to Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen who hve identified some signs of the Indus Script Corpora as equus hemionus. I had read some of these signs as ranku'antelope'; a correction is warranted in view of the identification of equus hemionus. Some of these signs have to read as khara, equus hemionus on rebus: khār'blacksmith'The reading of this unique animal is read in this monograph as an Indus Script hypertext:
khara, equus hemionus on Indus Script rebus: khār'blacksmith'
After Figure 15 in (Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen, 2011, opcit., p.70) An Indus seal stamp (a) and its impression (b), with the wild ass as its heraldic motif, excavated at Kanmer, Kutch,Gujarat, in 2009 (photos by (a)Indus Project of RIHN, (b)Jeewan Singh Kharakwal) Decipherment of Kanmer seal:
खांडा [ khāṇḍā
Pictorial motif:khara 'onager or equus heminonus' rebus: khār 'blacksmith'. Thus the inscription conveys the message: metal equipment (made by) blacksmith.
Hieroglyph: joint of stalk, arrow: kāˊṇḍa (kāṇḍá -- TS.) m.n. ʻ single joint of a plant ʼ AV., ʻ arrow ʼ MBh., ʻ cluster, heap ʼ (in tr̥ṇa -- kāṇḍa -- Pāṇ. Kāś.). [Poss. connexion with gaṇḍa -- 2 makes prob. non -- Aryan origin (not with P. Tedesco Language 22, 190 < kr̥ntáti). Prob. ← Drav., cf. Tam. kaṇ ʻ joint of bamboo or sugarcane ʼ EWA i 197] Pa. kaṇḍa -- m.n. ʻ joint of stalk, stalk, arrow, lump ʼ; Pk. kaṁḍa -- , °aya -- m.n. ʻ knot of bough, bough, stick ʼ; Ash. kaṇ ʻ arrow ʼ, Kt. kåṇ, Wg. kāṇ, kŕãdotdot;, Pr. kə̃, Dm. kā̆n; Paš. lauṛ. kāṇḍ, kāṇ, ar. kōṇ, kuṛ. kō̃, dar. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, kã̄ṛī ʻ torch ʼ; Shum. kō̃ṛ, kō̃ ʻ arrow ʼ, Gaw. kāṇḍ, kāṇ; Kho. kan ʻ tree, large bush ʼ; Bshk. kāˋ'n ʻ arrow ʼ, Tor. kan m., Sv. kã̄ṛa, Phal. kōṇ, Sh. gil. kōn f. (→ Ḍ. kōn, pl. kāna f.), pales. kōṇ; K. kã̄ḍ m. ʻ stalk of a reed, straw ʼ (kān m. ʻ arrow ʼ ← Sh.?); S. kānu m. ʻ arrow ʼ, °no m. ʻ reed ʼ, °nī f. ʻ topmost joint of the reed Sara, reed pen, stalk, straw, porcupine's quill ʼ; L. kānã̄ m. ʻ stalk of the reed Sara ʼ, °nī˜ f. ʻ pen, small spear ʼ; P. kānnā m. ʻ the reed Saccharum munja, reed in a weaver's warp ʼ, kānī f. ʻ arrow ʼ; WPah. bhal. kān n. ʻ arrow ʼ, jaun. kã̄ḍ; N. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, °ṛo ʻ rafter ʼ; A. kã̄r ʻ arrow ʼ; B. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, °ṛā ʻ oil vessel made of bamboo joint, needle of bamboo for netting ʼ, kẽṛiyā ʻ wooden or earthen vessel for oil &c. ʼ; Or. kāṇḍa, kã̄ṛ ʻ stalk, arrow ʼ; Bi. kã̄ṛā ʻ stem of muñja grass (used for thatching) ʼ; Mth. kã̄ṛ ʻ stack of stalks of large millet ʼ, kã̄ṛī ʻ wooden milkpail ʼ; Bhoj. kaṇḍā ʻ reeds ʼ; H. kã̄ṛī f. ʻ rafter, yoke ʼ, kaṇḍā m. ʻ reed, bush ʼ (← EP.?); G. kã̄ḍ m. ʻ joint, bough, arrow ʼ, °ḍũ n. ʻ wrist ʼ, °ḍī f. ʻ joint, bough, arrow, lucifer match ʼ; M. kã̄ḍ n. ʻ trunk, stem ʼ, °ḍẽ n. ʻ joint, knot, stem, straw ʼ, °ḍī f. ʻ joint of sugarcane, shoot of root (of ginger, &c.) ʼ; Si. kaḍaya ʻ arrow ʼ. -- Deriv. A. kāriyāiba ʻ to shoot with an arrow ʼ.(CDIAL 3023) Rebus: kaṇḍa 'equipment, metalware'.
After Figure 12 in (Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen, 2011, opcit., p.68) Naturalistic variants of the Indus script sign 46 (in the sign list of Parpola 1994: 70-78) (from CISI 1-3/1). This is comparable to Signs 182 to 184 (including variants) of Mahadevan ASI 1977 Signlist Concordance.
The tail of the animal (Fig. 12 a to n) signifies: kolom 'three' rebus: kolimi 'smithy' PLUS xoli 'tail' rebus:kol 'working in iron'.Thus, iron smithy, forge.
The ears of the animal:karṇī 'ears' rebus: karaṇī 'supercargo, representative of the merchant responsible for the cargo'.
The stripes on body and neck on these images may be a scribe's style of identifying these body parts are semantic signifiers; for e.g.the rings on neck are read: kotiyum 'rings on neck' rebus: kod 'workshop'; G. koṭhɔ m., belly M. koṭhā m.(CDIAL 3545) rebus: kṓṣṭha2 n. ʻ pot ʼ Kauś., ʻ granary, storeroom ʼ MBh., ʻ inner apartment ʼ lex., ˚aka -- n. ʻ treasury ʼ, ˚ikā f. ʻ pan ʼ Bhpr. [Cf. *kōttha -- , *kōtthala -- : same as prec.?]
Pa. koṭṭha -- n. ʻ monk's cell, storeroom ʼ, ˚aka<-> n. ʻ storeroom ʼ; Pk. koṭṭha -- , kuṭ˚, koṭṭhaya -- m. ʻ granary, storeroom ʼ;WPah.kṭg. kóṭṭhi f. ʻ house, quarters, temple treasury, name of a partic. temple ʼ, J. koṭhā m. ʻ granary ʼ, koṭhī f. ʻ granary, bungalow ʼ; Garh. koṭhu ʻ house surrounded by a wall ʼ; Md. koḍi ʻ frame ʼ, <-> koři ʻ cage ʼ (X kōṭṭa -- ). -- with ext.: OP. koṭhārī f. ʻ crucible ʼ, P. kuṭhālī f., H. kuṭhārī f.; -- Md. koṭari ʻ room ʼ.(CDIAL 3546).
After Figure 13 (Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen, 2011, opcit., p.69) Schematic variants of the Indus script sign 46 (in the sign list of Parpola 1994: 70-78) (from CISI 1-2)."...the ass and the rhinoceros. These two animals are associated with each other also in the copper tablets of Mohenjodaro. Identical inscription on the obverse links the Indus sign depicting the wild ass on the reverse of the tablets M-516 (see Figure 13 c-d) and M-517 with the rhinoceros illustrated on the reverse of the tablet M-1481." (ibid.)
Kanmer, three identical tokens.
Reverse side of a clay "token" from Kanmer, Kutch, with incised signs depicting (from right to left) 'wild ass' and 'ladder' (photo by Indus Project of RIHN).
khara 'equus hemionus' rebus:khār 'blacksmith
śrēṣṭrī 'ladder' Rebus: seṭh ʻ head of a guild, Members of the guild (working with a furnace). Thus, guild-master of the guild of blacksmiths.
Three seal impressions of Kanmer are used on a string to constitute a set. The seal impressions are composed of the inscription:
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These two hieroglyphs read from r. to l.: koḍa 'one' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' PLUS khareḍo 'a currycomb' rebus kharada खरडें daybook PLUS karṇaka कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus kanahār 'helmsman'. Thus, the message is: khareḍo koḍ karṇaka rebus: khareḍo 'daybook' (of) koḍ 'workshop' (of) kanahār 'helmsman'. Together, the inscription message is: daybook of workshop of helmsman. Three such seal impressions on three tokens of Kanmer constitute the consolidated cargo to be compiled on a seal message.
khareḍo 'a currycomb' (G.) Rebus: kharādī ' turner' (Gujarati) Rebus: kharada
खरडें daybook
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Sign 38 is a hypertext composed of kharada खरडें daybook PLUS kanahār 'helmsman'. Thus, helmsman's daybook.
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Variants of Sign 176![]()
Sign 176 khareḍo 'a currycomb (Gujarati) Rebus: karaḍā खरडें 'daybook, wealth-
कर्णक m. du. the two legs spread out AV. xx , 133 'spread legs'; (semantic determinant) Rebus: kanahār'helmsman', karNI 'scribe, account''supercargo'. कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus: 'helmsman', karNi 'supercargo'; meṛed 'iron' rebus: meḍh 'merchant' ayo 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron' ayas 'metal'; 2. कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus: 'helmsman', karṇi 'supercargo' Indicative that the merchant is seafaring metalsmith. karṇadhāra m. ʻ helmsman ʼ Suśr. [kárṇa -- , dhāra -- 1 ]Pa. kaṇṇadhāra -- m. ʻ helmsman ʼ; Pk. kaṇṇahāra -- m. ʻ helmsman, sailor ʼ; H. kanahār m. ʻ helmsman, fisherman ʼ.(CDIAL 2836) Decipherment: कर्णक 'helmsman' PLUS mē̃d, mēd 'body' rebus: mē̃d, mēd 'iron', med 'copper' (Slavic). Thus the body hieroglyph signifies mē̃d कर्णक karṇi 'an iron helmsman seafaring, supercargo merchant.'
khoṇḍ, kõda 'young bull-calf' खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. (Marathi) ‘Pannier’ glyph: खोंडी [ khōṇḍī ] f An outspread shovelform sack (as formed temporarily out of a कांबळा, to hold or fend off grain, chaff &c.) Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (Bengali) kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker’. कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi)
Kanmer
PLUS 
These two hieroglyphs read from r. to l.: koḍa 'one' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' PLUS khareḍo 'a currycomb' rebus kharada खरडें daybook PLUS karṇaka कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus kanahār 'helmsman'. Thus, the message is: khareḍo koḍ karṇaka rebus: khareḍo 'daybook' (of) koḍ 'workshop' (of) kanahār 'helmsman'. Together, the inscription message is: daybook of workshop of helmsman. Three such seal impressions on three tokens of Kanmer constitute the consolidated cargo to be compiled on a seal message.khareḍo 'a currycomb' (G.) Rebus: kharādī ' turner' (Gujarati) Rebus: kharada
खरडें daybook
Sign 38 is a hypertext composed of kharada 
Variants of Sign 176
Sign 176 khareḍo 'a currycomb (Gujarati) Rebus: karaḍā खरडें 'daybook, wealth-कर्णक m. du. the two legs spread out AV. xx , 133 'spread legs'; (semantic determinant) Rebus: kanahār'helmsman', karNI 'scribe, account''supercargo'. कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus: 'helmsman', karNi 'supercargo'; meṛed 'iron' rebus: meḍh 'merchant' ayo 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron' ayas 'metal'; 2. कर्णक 'spread legs' rebus: 'helmsman', karṇi 'supercargo' Indicative that the merchant is seafaring metalsmith. karṇadhāra m. ʻ helmsman ʼ Suśr. [
khoṇḍ, kõda 'young bull-calf' खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. (Marathi) ‘Pannier’ glyph: खोंडी [ khōṇḍī ] f An outspread shovelform sack (as formed temporarily out of a कांबळा, to hold or fend off grain, chaff &c.) Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (Bengali) kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker’. कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi)
Kanmer
Kanmer: Ancient Village or Settlement in India
Source:Kharakwal, JS, YS Rawat and Toshiki Osada, Excavations at Kanmer: A Harappan site in Kachchh, Gujarat, Puratattva, Number 39, 2009
koḍa 'one' rebus: koḍ'workshop' PLUS meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' hieroglyph: karNaka 'legs spread' rebus: karNI 'Supercargo' (responsible for products of brazier's workshop). Three seal impressions of Kanmer relate to three braziers whose products are entrusted to the Supercargo in charge of the shipment.
Khirsara1a tablet
Decipherment:Hypertext of ![]()
Sign 336 has hieroglyph components: muka 'ladle' (Tamil)(DEDR 4887) Rebus: mū̃h'ingot' (Santali).PLUS![]()
Sign 328 baṭa 'rimless pot' rebus: baṭa 'iron' bhaṭa 'furnace'. The hypertext reads: mū̃h bhaṭa 'ingot furnace'
Sign 336 has hieroglyph components: muka 'ladle' (Tamil)(DEDR 4887) Rebus: mū̃h'ingot' (Santali).PLUS
Sign 328 baṭa 'rimless pot' rebus: baṭa 'iron' bhaṭa 'furnace'. The hypertext reads: mū̃h bhaṭa 'ingot furnace'khara 'equus hemionus' rebus:khār 'blacksmith [Alternative: ranku ‘antelope’; rebus: ranku ‘tin’ (Santali)]
śrēṣṭrī 'ladder' Rebus: seṭh ʻ head of a guild, Members of the guild (working with a furnace). [Alternative: panǰā́r ‘ladder, stairs’ (Bshk.)(CDIAL 7760) Rebus: pasra ‘smithy’ (Santali)]
Thus, guild-master of the guild of blacksmiths.
badhi ‘to ligature, to bandage, to splice, to join by successive rolls of a ligature’ (Santali) batā bamboo slips (Kur.); bate = thin slips of bamboo (Malt.)(DEDR 3917). Rebus: baḍhi = worker in wood and metal (Santali) baṛae = blacksmith (Ash.)
kolmo ‘three’ (Mu.); rebus: kolimi ‘smithy’ (Te.)
khaṇḍ ‘division’; rebus: kaṇḍ ‘furnace’ (Santali) khaḍā ‘circumscribe’ (M.); Rebs: khaḍā ‘nodule (ore), stone’ (M.)
bharna = the name given to the woof by weavers; otor bharna = warp and weft (Santali.lex.) bharna = the woof, cross-thread in weaving (Santali); bharni_ (H.) (Santali.Boding.lex.) Rebus: bhoron = a mixture of brass and bell metal (Santali.lex.) bharan = to spread or bring out from a kiln (P.lex.) bha_ran. = to bring out from a kiln (G.) ba_ran.iyo = one whose profession it is to sift ashes or dust in a goldsmith’s workshop (G.lex.) bharant (lit. bearing) is used in the plural in Pan~cavim.s’a Bra_hman.a (18.10.8). Sa_yan.a interprets this as ‘the warrior caste’ (bharata_m – bharan.am kurvata_m ks.atriya_n.a_m). *Weber notes this as a reference to the Bharata-s. (Indische Studien, 10.28.n.2)
kuṭi = a slice, a bit, a small piece (Santali.lex.Bodding) Rebus: kuṭhi ‘iron smelter furnace’ (Santali)
Hieroglyph ḍhaṁkaṇa 'lid' rebus dhakka 'excellent, bright, blazing metal article'
meḍhi 'plait' meḍ 'iron'; daürā 'rope' Rebus dhāvḍā 'smelter'
See A11 and B5 in figure.
Field symbol: short-tailed caprid kid: ranku ‘antelope’ rebus: khara 'equus hemionus'rebus:khār'blacksmith' or ranku ‘tin’ + xolā 'fish tail' rebus: kolhe 'smelter',
kol 'working in iron'
Text A11: Glyph ‘mountain’: మెట్ట [ meṭṭa ] or మిట్ట meṭṭa. [Tel.] n. Rising ground, high lying land, uplands. A hill, a rock. ఉన్నతభూమి, మెరక, పర్వతము, దిబ్బ. மேடு mēṭu , n. [T. meṭṭa, M. K. mēḍu.] 1. Height; உயரம். (பிங்.) 2. Eminence, little hill, hillock, ridge, rising ground; சிறுதிடர். (பிங்.) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Munda.Ho.) med 'copper' (Slavic)
khaṇḍa 'division'. rebus: kaṇḍa 'implements'
kanka, karṇika 'rim of jar' rebus: karṇī 'supercargo, scribe, helmsman'
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. ge ṇḍɔ mi rg m. ʻ rhinoceros ʼ, Md. genḍā ← H.(CDIAL 4000) rebus: kaṇḍa .'fire-altar','equpment'
Field symbol: feeding trough + rhinoceros:pattar 'trough' rebus: pattar 'goldsmiths' guild' PLUS : kāṇṭā'rhinoceros. Rebus: kāṇḍa 'tools, pots and pans and metal-ware' (Gujarati)
Text B5: మెట్ట [ meṭṭa ] or మిట్ట meṭṭa. [Tel.] n. Rising ground, high lying land, uplands. A hill, a rock. ఉన్నతభూమి, మెరక, పర్వతము, దిబ్బ. மேடு mēṭu , n. [T. meṭṭa, M. K. mēḍu.] 1. Height; உயரம். (பிங்.) 2. Eminence, little hill, hillock, ridge, rising ground; சிறுதிடர்.
(பிங்.) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Munda.Ho.) med 'copper' (Slavic)
khaṇḍa 'division'. rebus: kaṇḍa 'implements'
kanka, karṇika 'rim of jar' rebus: karṇī
'supercargo, scribe, helmsman'
m0517
The person with upraised arm and bovine legs and tail is a blacksmith: eraka 'upraised arm' rebus: 'moltencast' + dhangar 'bull' rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith'. Some details at http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.com/2018/04/orthographic-hypertext-devices-eg-tiger.html
The tree behind the Fig. 103, composite image (zebu+decrepit woman+horns) is the wealth accounting ledger classifier. I think it signifies a smelter.
FS Fig. 103 Tiger with horns, leaps and looks back kolhe kō̃da कोँद kamar koḍ 'smelter kiln blacksmith, artisan’s workshop'.The hieroglyph of dhokaṛa 'an old female with breasts hanging down' and ligatured to the ḍhōṅgā 'buttock' of a bovine is also deployed on this Mohenjo-daro seal (FS Fig. 103); rebus: dhokra.dokra 'cire-perdue lost-wax metal casting artifice' PLUS dhangar'bull' rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith'; thus, the hypertext signifies: cire-perdue metalcaster smith. On a Mohenjo0daro seal this is reinforced by two hieroglyphs: kola 'tiger' rebus: kol 'working in iron' kolhe 'smelter (worker)'. kuṭhi 'tree' rebus: kuṭhi 'smelter'. Tiger's paws: panja 'feline paws' rebus: panja 'kiln, furnace' kũdā 'jumping' rebus: kō̃da कोँद 'furnace' (Kashmiri) koḍ 'horn' rebus: koḍ 'workshop'. Hieroglyph: Tiger looking back: krammara 'look back' (Telugu) kamar 'smith, artisan' (Santali)
Reading of Text 1357 on Mohenjo-daro seal: gō̃ṭu an ornamental appendage to the border of a cloth, fringe' rebus: goṭa 'laterite, ferrite ore' khoṭa 'ingot, wedge'. ḍato 'claws or pincers (chelae) of crabs'; ḍaṭom, ḍiṭom to seize with the claws or pincers, as crabs, scorpions; rebus: dhatu 'mineral (ore)' xoli 'fish-tail' rebus: kolhe 'smelter', kol 'working in iron' dula 'two' rebus: dul 'metal casting'.
Mohenodaro seal. Pict-103 Horned (female with breasts hanging down?) person with a tail and bovine legs standing near a tree fisting a horned tiger rearing on its hindlegs.
Sign 183. ranku 'antelope' + koḍa 'one' rebus: koḍ 'workshop' rebus: + Rebus: rango ‘pewter’. ranga, rang pewter is an alloy of tin, lead, and antimony (anjana) (Santali). Hieroglyhph: buffalo: Ku. N. rã̄go ʻ buffalo bull ʼ (or < In addition to the reading ranku 'antelope', the reading khara'equus hemionus' rebus: khār 'bloacksmith' is also semantically valid.
“The mammal sign of M-290 (no. 46 in the sign list published in Parpola 1994: 70-78, Figure 5.1) occurs nine times in Mohenjo-daro and nine times in Harappa (all occurrences in Harappa are moulded duplicates of one and the same text: H-1934, H-1935, H-2024, H-2026 to H-2031 in CISI 3:1). The more realistic renderings of this animal are shown in Figure 12 (a-n) comprising 14 photographs of the sign, in five original seal stamps and their modern impressions, and in three of the moulded tablets from Harappa. From these illustrations it can be seen that the animal has relatively high legs, an upheld relatively long neck and a relatively big head with large upwards or sideways pointing ears but no horns, and an upright tail ending in a tuft. The same characteristics are found in the less realistic,simplified variants of the sign illustrated in Figure13 (a-i)23. Comparing these characteristics with several books of South Asian animals I had come to the conclusion that the animal is most likely to be the Asiatic wild ass. The tail of this animal ends in a tuft, but it was not held in an upright position in any of the pictures accessible to me.”(Asko Parpola and Juha Janhunen, 2011, opcit., pp.69-70).
Encyclopedia Judaica:ONAGER (Heb. פֶּרֶא, Wild Ass; Job 39:5, also עָרוֹד). Two sub-species of the wild ass, the Equus hemionus hemihippus, the Syrian onager, and the Equus hemionus onager, the Arabian onager, existed in the Syrian desert up to the present century. The onager is described as loving freedom (Jer. 2:24) and fearless (Job 39:5–8). Its habitat is in waste places (Isa. 32:44 and Job 39:6), and Ishmael who was to dwell in the desert is called a wild ass of a man (Gen. 16:12). It appears that from time to time efforts were made to domesticate the wild ass. An ancient Sumerian picture shows it harnessed to a wagon, and the Tosefta (Kil. 5:5) forbids the yoking of an ass with an onager. It was sometimes employed for turning millstones (Av. Zar. 16b). It would appear that the wild ass flourished in the talmudic period, and its flesh was used to feed animals in the arena (Men. 103b). In Babylon fields were fenced in to prevent the onagers from doing damage (BB 36a).
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Y. Aharoni, Torat ha-Ḥai, 1 (1923), 99–101; Lewysohn, Zool, 143; J. Feliks, Animal World of the Bible (1962), 29–30. ADD. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Feliks, Ha-Ẓome'aḥ, 264.[Jehuda Feliks] https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/onager
After Fig. 3 in: Rita Dolce, 2014, Equids as Luxury Gifts at the Centre of Interregional Economic Dynamics in the Archaic Urban Cultures of the Ancient Near East, in: Syria, Archeologie Art et Histoire, 91, 2014.
After Fig. 4 ibid. Ukresh Ishar-beli seal impression (Note: I suggest that the signifiers of onager and buffalo are indicative of the nature of wealth these animals represent in Indus Script Cipher. The onager is: khara 'onager' rebus: khar 'blacksmith' ranga 'buffalo' rebus: ranga 'pewter'.10567 *raṅgapattra ʻ tinfoil ʼ. [raṅga -- 3 , páttra -- ]B. rāṅ(g)tā ʻ tinsel, copper -- foil ʼ. 10562 raṅga3 n. ʻ tin ʼ lex. [Cf. nāga -- 2 , vaṅga -- 1 ]Pk. raṁga -- n. ʻ tin ʼ; P. rã̄g f., rã̄gā m. ʻ pewter, tin ʼ (← H.); Ku. rāṅ ʻ tin, solder ʼ, gng. rã̄k; N. rāṅ, rāṅo ʻ tin, solder ʼ, A. B. rāṅ; Or. rāṅga ʻ tin ʼ, rāṅgā ʻ solder, spelter ʼ, Bi. Mth. rã̄gā, OAw. rāṁga; H. rã̄g f., rã̄gā m. ʻ tin, pewter ʼ; Si. ran̆ga ʻ tin ʼ.(CDIAL)
https://journals.openedition.org/syria/2664?lang=en
Rein ring decorated with bull figurine. "This harness fitting would have been attached to the shaft of a chariot. The reins of the draught animals went through the two rings, which prevented them from tangling and facilitated the charioteer's task. Rein rings of this sort are rare; only about twenty pieces are known. Some were found in the tombs of warriors buried with their chariots in the royal cemeteries of Ur and Kish. The most refined pieces are decorated with animal figurines." Cuivre W. 10.4 cm; H. 28.3 cmAO 31534.Louvre. c. 2650-2600 BCE. https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/rein-ring-decorated-bull-figurine
Equus heminous run at 48 to 51 km./hr. speed.
The wild half-ass or onager (equus hemionus) is called kulan in Central Asia.
Sumerian AN.ŚE, AN.ŚU 'ass', anse-edin-na 'ass of the desert' is often equated with an onager. Further investigations in pragmatics are warranted to see the link between AN.ŚU 'ass' and ancu 'iron' (Tocharian) which is cognate amśu 'Soma'.
The Tibetan wild ass is kiang.
Greek hēmí-onos, literally 'half-ass' denotes 'mule', i.e., the sterile hybrid of ass x horse. The Greek word for 'wild ass' is ónagros.
Persian onagers.
Male and female Mongolian wild ass (photo from Denzau and Denzau 1999: 131)
Equus hemionus khur or Baluchi wild-ass. called ghudkhur (Gujarati) or ghor-khur a semantic expression combingghōṭa'horse' PLUS khara 'ass'. An example of such an expression in a dialect is: Persian, 'wild ass, onager' is called also gōr-
χar. "Middle and New Persian χar has cognates in Younger Avestan χara-, Khotanese Saka khara,
Sogdian (Buddhist) γr-, (Manichean, Christian) χr-, and practically all Neo-Iranian languages.."
(cf. Parpola, Asko, and Juha Janhunen, 2011, opcit., p.79)
Ossetic χarag, χarag, Munji χara-, Tajik, Baluchi, Pashto, Yaghnobi χar, Parachi khȫr, Sanglichi χor, χōr, Yigdha χoro, Ishkashmi, Yazghulami χůr, Wakhi χur, Kurdish ker, (Gurānī) har, Sariqoli čer, šer, Bartangi šor, Roshani šur, Rushani, Khufi šōr, (fem.) šār (cf. Horn 1893: 104 no. 473; Steblin-Kamenskij 1999: 409). Gypsy (Palestinian) ḳar m. ḳari f., (Armenian) χari, (Greek) kher, (Rumanian) χeru, Kati kur, Prasun korū, Ashkun kɘrɘṭek, Shumashti χareṭa, Khowar khairanu 'donkey's foal'), Bashkarik kur, Dameli khar m., khari f., Tirahi khar, Pashai (Laurowani) khar m., khar f., Kalasha (Urtsun) khār, Phalura khār m., khari, Kashmiri khar m.,khuru f., Sindhi kharu m., Lahnda kharkām., kharkīf., Panjabi, Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi khar m. Old Marathi khari f. (Turner 1966 and 1985: no. 3818; McGregor 1993: 230a; a detailed analysis of the Nuristani and Dardic data in Fussman 1972 I: 60-62).
khara1 m. ʻ donkey ʼ KātyŚr., ˚rī -- f. Pāṇ.NiDoc. Pk. khara -- m., Gy. pal. ḳăr m., kắri f., arm. xari, eur. gr. kher, kfer, rum. xerú, Kt. kur, Pr. korūˊ, Dm. khar m., ˚ri f., Tir. kh*l r, Paš. lauṛ. khar m., khär f., Kal. urt. khār, Phal. khār m., khári f., K. khar m., khürü f., pog. kash. ḍoḍ. khar, S. kharu m., P. G. M. khar m., OM. khari f.; -- ext. Ash. kərəṭék, Shum. xareṭá; <-> L. kharkā m., ˚kī f. -- Kho. khairánu ʻ donkey's foal ʼ (+?).*kharapāla -- ; -- *kharabhaka -- .Addenda: khara -- 1 : Bshk. Kt. kur ʻ donkey ʼ (CDIAL 3818) Ta. kar̤utai ass. Ma. kar̤uta id.
Ko. kaṛt id.; kaḷd a term of abuse. To. katy ass. Ka. kar̤te,katte. Koḍ. katte. Tu. katte. Te. gāḍida.
Kol. ga·ḍdi. Nk. gāṛdi.Pa. gade, (S.) garad. Go. (G. Ko.) gāṛdi (Voc. 1073). Kuwi (Su.) gāṛde. / Cf. Skt. gardabha-; Turner, CDIAL, no. 4054.(DEDR 1364) gardabhá m. ʻ ass ʼ RV., ˚bhīˊ -- f. AV., ˚bhaka -- m. ʻ any- one resembling an ass ʼ Kāś. [√gard ]Pa. gaddabha -- , gadrabha -- m., ˚bhī -- f., Pk. gaddaha -- , ˚aya -- , gaḍḍaha -- m., gaddabhī -- f., Gy. as. ghádar JGLS new ser. ii 255 (< gadrabha -- ?), Wg. gadāˊ, Niṅg. gadə́, Woṭ. gadāˊ m., ˚daī f., Gaw. gadāˊ m., ˚deṛi f., Kho. gordóg (< gardabhaka -- ; → Kal. gardɔkh as the Kalashas have no donkeys, G. Morgenstierne FestskrBroch 150), Bshk. g*l dāˊ m., ˚dḗī f., Tor. godhṓ m., gedhḗi f., Mai. ghadā, Sv. gadaṛṓ, S. gaḍahu m., L. gaḍḍãh m., ˚ḍẽh f., (Ju.) gaḍ̠ -- hã̄ m., ˚hī f. ʻ ass, blockhead ʼ; P. gadhā m., ˚dhī f., WPah. pāḍ. cur. cam. Ku. gadhā, N. gadoho m., ˚dahi f., A. gādh m., ˚dhī f., B. gādhā m., ˚dhīf., Or. gadha m., ˚dhuṇī f. ʻ ass ʼ, gadhā ʻ blockhead ʼ; Bi. Mth. Bhoj. H. gadahā m., ˚hī f., OG. ghaddaü m., G. gaddhɔ m., ˚dhī f., M. gāḍhav m., ˚ḍhvī f. (lw. gadhḍā m.), Ko. gāḍhū, Si. gäḍum̆buvā (gadubuvā ← Pa.).Addenda: gardabhá -- : S.kcch. gaḍoṛī f. ʻ she -- ass ʼ; WPah.kṭg. (kc.) gáddhɔ m. ʻ donkey ʼ, Garh. gardhā, gadṛu, A. gādha (CDIAL 4054) ghōṭa m. ʻ horse ʼ ĀpŚr., ˚ṭī -- f. Aśvad., ˚ṭaka -- m. Pañ- cat., ˚ṭikā -- f. lex. [Non -- Aryan, prob. Drav., origin EWA i 361 with lit.]Pa. ghōṭaka -- m. ʻ poor horse ʼ; Pk. ghōḍa -- , ˚ḍaya -- m., ˚ḍī -- f. ʻ horse ʼ, Gy. as (Baluči) gura, pers. gôrá, pal. gṓri f., arm. khori ʻ horse ʼ, eur. khuro m., ˚rī f. ʻ foal ʼ, boh. pol. khuro ʻ stallion ʼ; Ash. gọ̄́ṛu m. ʻ horse ʼ, gọ̈̄räˊ f., Wg. gọ̄́ṛa, Pr. irí, Dm. gọŕɔ m., guŕi f., Paš. gōṛāˊ, Niṅg. guṛə́, Shum. gṓṛo, Woṭ. gōṛm., gēṛ f., Gaw. guṛɔ́ m., guṛīˊ f., Kal. urt. ghɔ́̄ŕ*l , Bshk. gór m., gēr f., Tor. ghō m., ghəē f. (aspirate maintained to distinguish from gō ʻ bull ʼ J. Bloch BSL xxx 82), Mai. ghå m., ghwī f., Chil. Gau. gho, Sv. ghuṛo m., g'uṛia f., Phal. ghūṛu m., ˚ṛi f., Sh. *gōu (→ Ḍ. gōwá), K. guru m., ˚rü f., (Islamābād) guḍü , rām. pog. ghōṛŭ, kash. ghuṛŭ, ḍoḍ. ghōṛō, S. ghoṛo m., ˚ṛī f., L. P. ghoṛā m., ˚ṛī f., in cmpds. ghoṛ -- , WPah. ghoṛo m., ˚ṛī f., ˚ṛu n. ʻ foal ʼ, Ku. ghoṛo, A. ghõrā, in cmpds. ghõr -- , B. ghõṛā m., ghũṛi f. (whence Chittagong ghunni ODBL 695), Or. ghoṛā, ˚ṛī, Bi. ghor, ˚rā, OAw. ghora, H. ghoṛ, ghoṛā m., ṛī f. (→ N. Bhoj. ghoṛā, N. ˚ṛi, Bhoj. ˚ṛī), Marw. ghoṛo m., G. ghoṛɔ m., ˚ṛī f., ˚ṛũ n. ʻ poor horse ʼ, M. ghoḍā m., ˚ḍī f., Ko. ghoḍo.
*
Persepolis.Bottom row shows an Indian bringing in the trophy or gift to the king of a khara 'wild ass'. rebus: khār'blacksmith'. The person carrying water bags is kuṭi'water carrier' rebus: kuṭhi'smelter.
Kharaputta-Jātaka (no. 386) speaks of 'sons of an ass' (kharaputta- in stanza 80) from Sindh as
yoked to the chariot of a king in ancient India.(Jātaka no. 386 p. 278 rājā c'eva ratheyuttasindhavā...
eko ratheyuttasindhavo...). The word of equus hemionus used to pull a royal chariot is thus khara 'wild ass'. The expression khara-gardabha-, is attested in Matsya-Purāṇa and 20th book of the Paippalāda-Saṃhitā of Atharvaveda (20,39,2). gōr signifies equus hemionus in Baloch and Urdu. غیره g̠ẖʿyaraʿh, s.f. (3rd) The wild ass or onager. Pl. يْ ey. (Pashto)
khara is attested in Niya documents of Sinkiang, Nuristani languages of Afghanistan,
and the Dardic Neo-Indo-Aryan languages of North Pakistan and Kashmir and Akkadian (at Mari in Syria) has a cognate ḫārum, ajarum 'donkey stallion' (cf. Mayrhofer 1992 I: 447)..
I suggest that these are phonetic variants of khara which is the ancient Meluhha form of 3rd m. BCE to signify equus hemionus.
Map showing the historical and current distribution of the Asiatic wild ass (after Feh et al. 2002: 63, Figure 5.1)
https://www.persee.fr/doc/mom_1955-4982_2008_act_49_1_2721 (Jill A Weber, 2008, Elite equids: redefining equid burials of the mid- to late 3rd millennium BCE from Umm el-Marra, Syria, in: MOM Éditions Année 2008 49 pp. 499-519).
https://www.academia.edu/29514509/Assessing_Sacred_Asses_Bronze_Age_Donkey_Burials_in_the_Near_East_2010_
"...there was a special relationship between humans and equids in this region (from Egypt to Mesopotmia)." This comment of Francesco Alhaique et al 2015, relates to the discussion on the burial of 3rd m.BCE, of what appears to be an Equus Hemionus (Onager).
Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284028299_A_Sumerian_equid_burial_from_Abu_Tbeirah_Southern_Iraq
https://www.academia.edu/18499730/A_Sumerian_equid_burial_from_Abu_Tbeirah_Southern_Iraq_POSTER
Alhaique, Francesca & Romano, Licia & Gabbianelli, Federica & Valentini, Alessio & D'Agostino, Franco. (2015). A Sumerian equid burial from Abu Tbeirah (Southern Iraq).Conference: 8° Convegno Nazionale AIAZ -- Associazione Italiana Archeo Zoologia.
Parpola, Asko, and Juha Janhunen, 2011. On the Asiatic wild asses and their vernacular names. Pp. 59-124 in: Toshiki Osada and Hitoshi Endo (eds.), Linguistics, archaeology and the human past: Occasional paper 12. Kyoto: Indus Project, Research Institute for Humanity and Nature.