This cave is called Sonbundar, and is an object of worship with the Jain. In the middle is left a small kind of quadrangular pyramidal figure, on each side of which is carved an erect man with two arms. The chief figure is the same on all the four sides, but on each he is accompanied by different emblems. On the wall is a short inscription in a strange character. It probably contains the name of some pilgrim.”  Buchanan however does not describe anything about the treasure legend in his journal, but does call the cave as Son Bhandar, meaning thereby as being the storehouse of some treasure. He also confirms that the cave was being used as a place of worship by the Jains. 

After Buchanan, Kittoe was the next explorer of Rajgir in 1847, whose reports were published in Volume XVI of the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. He has also mentioned about the four faced figure and has also provided a sketch of the same.  Regarding the quadrangular pyramidal structure, it would be worthwhile to explore the writings of the later visitors. D. R. Patil mentions that inside the cave is placed a Jain Chaumukha with the figures of the first four Tirthankaras (viz. Rishabhanatha, Ajitanatha, Sambhavanatha and Abhinandana) carved on the four faces. The Chaumukha was noticed by Buchanan in 1812 inside this cave, as noted above.  

During my visit, I do not recall having noticed any such figure of Chaumukha, nor was it there in the few photographs that I had taken. I found that Cunningham and Stein were also silent about this Chaumukha noticed by Buchanan and Kittoe, and would look for it during my next visit. Cunningham has infact not noticed any statues and mentioned “The Son Bhandar cave has one door and one window. Inside there are no traces of seats, or of pedestals of statues, and the walls and roof are quite bare, excepting where a few scarcely legible inscriptions have been cut.”

To be continued....