ASCA OBSERVATIONS OF THE UNIDENTIFIED EGRET SOURCE 2EGS J1418-6049

In a 40 ks ASCA exposure of the GeV EGRET error box of the unidentifie d source 2EGS J1418-6049, we observe diffuse emission surrounding seve ral unusual hard spectrum X-ray sources. Two of these sources have pla usible identifications as absorbed active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our best candidate for the EGRET source counterpart is an extended nonther mal object, which we argue to be a wind nebula surrounding a pulsar wi th characteristic age tau similar to 10(4.5) yr. We also discuss optic al and radio data supporting the proposal that the GeV source is a you ng energetic pulsar. This analysis demonstrates how hard X-ray observa tions can significantly constrain the nature of GeV gamma-ray sources.