What it says
The Sanskrit verses say a king named Chandra, who defeated the Vangas and crossed the seven mouths of the Sindhu to conquer the Vahlikas, set up this lofty standard of Vishnu on the hill called Vishnupada. Most scholars identify Chandra with Chandragupta II. A later short inscription names Anangapala, the Tomara king.
What it proves
Metallurgists, among them R. Balasubramaniam of IIT Kanpur, showed its high phosphorus iron forms a thin protective film, proof of forging skill on a scale Europe did not reach for many centuries.
