“What can we extract from an inscription?: the three Pāla inscriptions and their implications”

The 38th seminar cosponsored by Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia and ASNET will be held as follows. This seminar is open to public.

Date & Time:   20th November(Thu), 17:00-18:00

Venue:   Main Meeting Room, 3rd Floor, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo

Title:   “What can we extract from an inscription?: the three Pāla inscriptions and their implications”

Lecturer:   Ryosuke FURUI (Associate Professor, Department of South Asian Studies, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia)

Language:   Japanese

Entry:   Not required

Cosponsored by:   Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia & ASNET

Summary:   During my stay in Berlin, I was engaged in deciphering and re-reading both new and known inscriptions related to early medieval Bengal. The most important among them were the two copper plate charters and the one stone inscription of the Pāla period, which would necessitate a reappraisal of the historical process and social changes in North Bengal from the beginning of the ninth century to the middle of the eleventh. In this presentation, I will discuss their contents and historical importance. I will also reconsider the meaning of reading an inscription for the study of early medieval Bengal, for which the sources are not substantial in quantity.

Contact to:   Network for Research and Studies on Asia (ASNET)
Tel:03-5841-5868
e-mail: asnet[at]asnet.u-tokyo.ac.jp