[INDOLOGY] Lead cubes with Indic numeration found in Thames River

Thu May 14 00:20:44 UTC 2020

The same site Jacob referenced for the coins also offers cubes: https://www.nanubhaiindia.com/category/1472-lead-ramal.aspx <https://www.nanubhaiindia.com/category/1472-lead-ramal.aspx>.

Elliot

> On May 13, 2020, at 7:55 PM, Richard G. Salomon via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:
> 
> "... in rivers in England, America, Canada, and New Zealand" --  but not in India?
> 
> Rich Salomon
> 
> On Wed, May 13, 2020 at 4:29 PM Jacob Schmidt-Madsen via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info <mailto:indology at list.indology.info>> wrote:
> The grids on the sides of the cubes are indeed magic squares. Every row 
> of numbers, whether read orthogonally or diagonally, adds up to 36, 
> which identify the magic squares as associated with Rāhu. This is also 
> borne out by the inscriptions at the bottom which read: "aum rāhave 
> namaḥ".
> 
> A quick search online reveals several reports of circular and triangular 
> tokens with magic squares of either Rāhu or Ketu turning up in rivers in 
> England, America, Canada, and New Zealand. E.g.:
> 
> [1] http://www.worldofcoins.eu/forum/index.php?topic=20365.0 <http://www.worldofcoins.eu/forum/index.php?topic=20365.0>
> 
> [2] 
> http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/what/286825-lead-elephant-coins-lead-bull-squares.html <http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/what/286825-lead-elephant-coins-lead-bull-squares.html>
> 
> A poster on the latter forum states that: "I saw this a few summers ago 
> in St. Louis MO. There was a whole family beside the river and two were 
> throwing these type coins in and a few other items. Didn't ask anything 
> as you could tell they were trying to keep it private."
> 
> I did not find any reports about cubes, but the circular tokens can, for 
> instance, be bought here:
> 
> https://www.nanubhaiindia.com/products/283-rahu-yantra-coin.aspx <https://www.nanubhaiindia.com/products/283-rahu-yantra-coin.aspx>
> 
> I wonder if it would be considered inauspicious to pick them up, or 
> whether they would already have served their ritual purpose (whatever 
> exactly that might have been)?
> 
> Best,
> Jacob
> 
> Jacob Schmidt-Madsen
> Postdoctoral Researcher
> University of Copenhagen
> Denmark
> 
> Richard G. Salomon via INDOLOGY skrev den 2020-05-14 00:30:
> > How strange! I wonder if these are "magic squares," which Allen
> > Thrasher studied years ago (but I don't know if he's on this list).
> > 
> > Rich Salomon
> > 
> > On Wed, May 13, 2020 at 1:58 PM Valerie Roebuck via INDOLOGY
> > <indology at list.indology.info <mailto:indology at list.indology.info>> wrote:
> > 
> >> Intriguing. However, not the River Thames, but the River Sowe at
> >> Coventry (the city in the MIdlands where Lady Godiva took her famous
> >> ride).
> >> 
> >> Valerie J Roebuck
> >> Manchester, UK
> >> 
> >>> On 13 May 2020, at 20:31, Charles DiSimone via INDOLOGY
> >>> <indology at list.indology.info <mailto:indology at list.indology.info>> wrote:
> >>> 
> >>> Dear friends,
> >>> 
> >>> Is anybody familiar with the lead cubes in the attached picture?
> >>> These were intriguingly found in the Thames River recently. The
> >>> story from a local periodical is here:
> >>> 
> >> 
> > https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/mystery-60-peculiar-cubes-inscriptions-18232422 <https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/mystery-60-peculiar-cubes-inscriptions-18232422>
> >>> 
> >>> I imagine these were deposited in the river rather recently, but
> >>> maybe someone knows more. I’m curious what the ritual
> >>> surrounding depositing such items in a body of water might be.
> >>> 
> >>> All my best,
> >>> Charles
> >>> 
> >>> --
> >>> 
> >>> Dr. Charles DiSimone
> >>> Ghent University _______________________________________________
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Elliot M. Stern
552 South 48th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19143-2029
emstern1948 at gmail.com
267-240-8418

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