gems, glyptic, antique gems, engraved gems, rings

Discusses engraved gems discovered at Kandahar and their significance for the study of the ancient cultures of Afghanistan. Torrens examines their inscriptions, devices, and workmanship, comparing them with other engraved stones and numismatic evidence from Bactria, Persia, and India in an attempt to establish their date and cultural attribution. The note forms part of the early nineteenth-century documentation of gems and seals recovered in the Kandahar region and reflects contemporary efforts to reconstruct the history of ancient Afghanistan through glyptic and numismatic evidence.