I'll have to correct that: as was just pointed out to me off-list, what I read in haste as an 'e' stroke in fact belongs to a ha from the line above, and the semi-legible letter after kṛ is more probably ṣṇo, giving malikhadvālakṛṣṇo. A personal rather than place name? No verb, though, if this reading is correct.

Martin

Den 2026-09-02 kl. 17:21, skrev Martin Gansten:

Dear Priya and all,

I agree that this is intriguing, and it did occur to me that tu might properly be a part of what followed rather than a separate particle, but I didn't have the background knowledge to identify Tukoji Rao. I imagine, though, that this short prose phrase (dillīnagare tukorāvakaṭake) refers to the copying of the manuscript, whereas the verse dating speaks of the book itself being completed (kṛto gaṇitapustakam [sic]), so the date and the Tukoji reference don't necessarily go together. In fact, malikhadvāle in the verse looks like a possible place name and could refer to where the work itself was written, although I have no idea of what or where that is.

Best wishes,
Martin

Den 2026-09-02 kl. 16:12, skrev Priyamvada Nambrath via INDOLOGY:

It appears to me that the location sentence parses as 'dillīnagare tukorāva-kaṭake' - translating to 'in the military camp/ residence of Tuko Rao in the city of Delhi.'

Śaka 1693 translates, as you note, to 1771-72 CE, which aligns very nicely with Tukoji Rao Holkar I. In this exact period, Tukoji Rao was involved in a successful Maratha campaign against the Mughal Emperor, Shah Alam, in Delhi, and won some significant concessions. He is known more for his military accomplishments; so if it is the same person that is referred to here, the fact that a geometry textbook was being written inside his garrison while he was engaged in a battle with Delhi is fascinating.

All best,

Priya