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Presented  to  the 

UNIVERSITY  OF  TORONTO 
LIBRARY 

by  the 

ONTARIO  LEGISLATIVE 
LIBRARY 

1980 


THE  HERITAGE  OF  INDIA  SERIES 


T  .         {  The  Right  Reverend  V.  S.  AZARIAH, 
Editors  \  Bish°P  of  Dornakal. 

I  J.  N.  FARQUHAR,  M.A., 


FARQUHAR,  M.A.,  D.Litt.  (Oxon.). 


Already  published. 

The  Heart  of  Buddhism.    K.  J.  SAUNDERS,  M.A. 

Asoka.    J.  M.  MACPHAIL,  M.A.,  M.D. 

Indian  Painting.    PRINCIPAL  PERCY  BROWN,  Calcutta. 

Kanare_se  Literature,  2nd  ed.     E.  P.  RICE,  B.A. 

The    Sarhkhya    System.      A.  BERRIEDALE    KEITH,  D.C.L., 

D.Litt. 

Psalms  of  Maratha  Saints.    NICOL  MACNICOL,  M.A.,  D.Litt. 
A  History  of  Hindi  Literature.    F.  E.  KEAY,  M.A.,  D.Litt. 
The  Karma-Mimamsa.      A.  BERRIEDALE  KEITH,    D.C.L., 

D.Litt. 
Hymns  of  the  Tamil  Saivite  Saints.     F.  KINGSBURY,  B.A., 

and  G.  E.  PHILLIPS,  M.A. 

Rabindranath  Tagore.     E.  J.  THOMPSON,  B.A.,  M.C. 
Hymns  from  the  Rigveda.    A.  A.  MACDONELL,  M.A.,  Ph.D., 

Hon.  LL.D. 
Gotama  Buddha.    K.  J.  SAUNDERS,  M.A. 


Subjects  proposed  and  volumes  under  preparation. 

SANSKRIT  AND  PALI   LITERATURE. 
Anthology  of  Mahayana  Literature. 
Selections  from  the  Upanishads. 
Scenes  from  the  Ramayana. 
Selections  from  the  Mahabharata. 

THE  PHILOSOPHIES. 

An  Introduction  to  Hindu  Philosophy.    J.  N.  FARQUHAR  and 

PRINCIPAL  JOHN  MCKENZIE,  Bombay. 
The  Philosophy  of  the  Upanishads. 
Ibankera's  Vedanta.    A.  K.  SHARMA,  M.A.,  Patiala. 
Ramanuja's  Vedanta. 
The  Buddhist  System. 

FINE  ART  AND  MUSIC. 

Indian  Architecture.    R.  L.  EWING,  B.A.,  Madras. 
Indian  Sculpture. 


ii 

The  Minor  Arts.    PRINCIPAL  PERCY  BROWN,  Calcutta, 
Burmese  Art   and    Artistic    Crafts.      PRINCIPAL,    MORRIS, 
Insein,  Burma. 

BIOGRAPHIES  OF  EMINENT  INDIANS. 

Ramanuja. 

Akbar.    F.  V.  SLACK,  M.A.,  Calcutta. 

Tulsl  Das. 

VERNACULAR  LITERATURE. 

The  Kurral.     H.  A.  POPLEY,  B.A.,  Madras,  and  K.  T.  PAUL, 

B.A.,  Calcutta. 

Hymns  of  the  Alvars.    J.  S.  M.  HOOPER,  M.A.,  Nagari. 
Tulsi  Das's  Ramayana  in  Miniature.    G.  J.  DANN,  M.A., 

(Oxon.),Patna.  ' 
Hymns  of  Bengali  Singers.    E.  J.  THOMPSON,  B.A.,  M.C., 

Bankura. 
Kanarese  Hymns.    Miss  BUTLER,  B.A.,  Bangalore. 

HISTORIES  OF  VERNACULAR   LITERATURE. 

Bengali.    C.  S.  PATERSON,  M.A.,  Calcutta. 

Gujaratl. 

Marathi.    NICOL  MACNICOL,  M.A.,  D.Litt.,  Poona. 

Tamil. 

Telugu.  P.  CHENCHIAH,  M.A.,  Madras,  and  RAJA  BHUJANGA 

RAO,  Ellore. 

Malayalam.    T.  K.  JOSEPH,  B.A.,  L.T.,  Trivandrum. 
Urdu.    B.  GHOSHAL,  M.A.,  Bhopal. 
Burmese.    PROF.  TUNG  PE,  Rangoon. 
Sinhalese. 

NOTABLE   INDIAN   PEOPLES. 

The  Rajputs. 

The  Syrian  Christians.   K.  C.  MAMMEN  MAPILLAI,  Alleppey. 

The  Sikhs. 

VARIOUS. 

Modern   Folk   Tales.      W.   NORMAN    BROWN,  M.A.,   Ph.D., 

Philadelphia. 

Indian  Village  Government. 
Poems  by  Indian  Women.    MRS.  N.  MACNICOL. 
Classical  Sanskrit  Literature. 

Indian  Temple  Legends.     K.  T.  PAUL,  B.A.,  Calcutta. 
Indian  Astronomy  and  Chronology.     DEWAN  BAHADUR  L.  D. 

SWAMIKANNU  PiLLAi,  Madras. 
The  Languages  of  India.    PROF.  R.  L.  TURNER,  London. 


EDITORIAL   PREFACE 

"  Finally,  brethren,  whatsoever  things  are 
true,  whatsoever  things  are  honourable,  whatso- 
ever things  are  just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure, 
whatsoever  things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things 
are  of  good  report ;  if  there  be  any  virtue,  and 
if  there  be  any  praise,  think  on  these  things." 

No  section  of  the  population  of  India  can  afford  to 
neglect  her  ancient  heritage.  In  her  literature,  philo- 
sophy, art,  and  regulated  life  there  is  much  that  is 
worthless,  much  also  that  is  distinctly  unhealthy  ;  yet 
the  treasures  of  knowledge,  wisdom,  and  beauty  which 
they  contain  are  too  precious  to  be  lost.  Every  citizen 
of  India  needs  to  use  them,  if  he  is  to  be  a  cul- 
tured modern  Indian.  This  is  as  true  of  the  Christian, 
the  Muslim,  the  Zoroastrian  as  of  the  Hindu.  But, 
while  the  heritage  of  India  has  been  largely  explored 
by  scholars,  and  the  results  of  their  toil  are  laid  out  for 
us  in  their  books,  they  cannot  be  said  to  be  really 
available  for  the  ordinary  man.  The  volumes  are  in 
most  cases  expensive,  and  are  often  technical  and 
difficult.  Hence  this  series  of  cheap  books  has  been 
planned  by  a  group  of  Christian  men,  in  order  that 
every  educated  Indian,  whether  rich  or  poor,  may  be 
able  to  find  his  way  into  the  treasures  of  India's  past. 
Many  Europeans,  both  in  India  and  elsewhere,  will 
doubtless  be  glad  to  use  the  series. 

The  utmost  care  is  being  taken  by  the  General 
Editors  in  selecting  writers,  and  in  passing  manuscripts 
for  the  press.  To  every  book  two  tests  are  rigidly 
applied :  everything  must  be  scholarly,  and  everything 
must  be  sympathetic.  The  purpose  is  to  bring  the 
best  out  of  the  ancient  treasuries,  so  that  it  may  be 
known,  enjoyed,  and  used. 


O  O  t\J  t 

THE  HERITAGE  OF   INDIA  SERIES 
THE 

COINS  OF   INDIA 

BY 

C.  J.  BROWN,  M.A. 

READER  IN  ENGLISH  LITERATURE,  LUCKNOW  UNIVERSITY; 
MEMBER  OF      THE  NUMISMATIC  SOCIETY  OF  INDIA. 

With  Twelve  Plates 


"  Time,  which  antiquates  antiquities,  and  hath  an  art  to  make 
dust  of  all  things,  hath  yet  spared  these  minor  monuments." 

—SIR  THOMAS  BROWNE,  Hydriotaphia. 


ASSOCIATION  PRESS 

(Y.M.C.A.) 
5,  RUSSELL   STREET,  CALCUTTA 

LONDON:   OXFORD   UNIVERSITY  PRESS 

NEW    YORK,    TORONTO,    MELBOURNE 
BOMBAY,  CALCUTTA  AND  MADRAS 

1922 


The  Right  of  Translation  is  Reserved. 


PRINTED  IK  INDIA 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGB 

INTRODUCTION    . .            . .            . .            . .  . .  7 

ABBREVIATIONS  . .            . .            . .            . .  11 

I.    THE  EARLIEST  COINAGE  OF  INDIA          . .  . .  13 

II.    COINS  OF  THE    INDO-GREEKS,   THE    S"AKAS  AND 

PAHLAVAS         ..            ..            ..            ..  ..22 

III.  COINS  OF  THE  KUSHANA  KINGS    ..            ..  ..33 

IV.  THE  COINAGE  OF  THE  GUPTAS     . .            . .  40 

V.  THE  MEDIAEVAL  COINAGES  OF  NORTHERN  AND 
CENTRAL  INDIA  TILL  THE  MUHAMMADAN  CON- 
QUEST . .  . .  . .  . .  50 

VI.    THE  COINAGE  OF  SOUTHERN  INDIA         ..  ..  56 

VII.    THE  MUHAMMADAN  DYNASTIES  OF  DEHLI  . .  67 

VIII.    THE  COINAGES  OF  THE  MUHAMMADAN  STATES     . .  78 

IX.      COINS  OF  THE  SURIS  AND  THE  MuGHALS   .  .  . .  89 

X.    CONTEMPORARIES    AND    SUCCESSORS    OF    THE 

MUGHALS          ..            ..            ..            ..  ..  100 

SELECT  BIBLIOGRAPHY   . .            . .            . .  . .  110 

PRINCIPAL  COLLECTIONS  OF  INDIAN  COINS  ..  112 

INDEX  113 


LIST   OF    PLATES 

PLATB  NEAR  PAGE 

I.    EARLIEST  COINS  OF  INDIA            ..            ..  ..20 

II.    COINAGE  OF  THE  INDO-GREEKS,  ETC.        ..  ..21 

III.  COINAGE  OF  THE  INDO-SCYTHIANS,  ETC.  . .  . .     30 

IV.  KUSHANA  COINS  . .            . .            . .            . .  . .     31 

V.    COINAGE  OF  THE  GUPTAS              . .            . .  . .     38 

VI.    MEDIEVAL  COINAGE  OF  NORTHERN  INDIA  ..     39 

VII.    SOUTH  INDIAN  COINS       ..            ..            ..  ..48 

VIII.    COINS  OF  THE  SULTANS  OF  DEHLI             . .  . .     49 

IX.      COINS   OF  MUHAMMADAN    STATES                    .  .  .  .      54 

X.    SURI  AND  MUGHAL  COINS              . .            . .  . .     55 

XI.    MUGHAL  COINS   ..            ..            ..            ..  ..64 

XII.    COINS  OF  POST  MUGHAL  DYNASTIES,  ETC.  . .     65 
The  Key  to  each  Plate  will  be  found  on  the  page  facing  it. 


INTRODUCTION 

THIS  little  book  has  been  written  as  an  introduction 
to  the  study  of  the  subject  with  which  it  deals,  and  is 
intended  primarily  for  Indian  readers.  At  the  same 
time  the  writer  trusts  it  may  be  of  some  service  to 
students  and  collectors,  in  India  and  elsewhere,  as 
giving  a  general  conspectus  of  all  the  more  important 
series  of  Indian  coins.  Two  objects  have  been  kept 
prominently  in  view :  (1)  to  describe  the  evolution  of 
the  coinage  itself,  (2)  to  show  its  importance  as  a 
source  of  history,  or  as  a  commentary  upon  economic, 
social  and  political  movements.  In  attempting  this, 
certain  limits  have  naturally  imposed  themselves. 
Coins  purely  foreign  in  fabric,  as  those  of  the  Graeco- 
Bactrian  kings,  of  the  Portuguese,  and  of  the  various 
European  trading  companies,  even  when  struck  and 
current  in  India,  have  been  rigidly  excluded :  this 
exclusion  does  not,  however,  extend  to  money  issued 
by  resident  foreigners  with  the  permission  and  in  the 
style  of  Indian  rulers.  For  a  cognate  reason  the  year 
1857  has  been  fixed  as  the  downward  limit  in  this 
survey.  Again,  for  the  sake  of  simplicity,  technical 
topics,  such  as  weight-standards  and  metallurgy,  have 
only  been  touched  upon  where  discussion  appeared 
unavoidable. 

The  chief  desire  of  the  writer  has  been  to  arouse  in 
Indians  an  interest  in  their  country's  coinage,  in  the 
study  of  which  so  many  fields  of  research  lie  as  yet 


8  THE    COINS   OF    INDIA 

almost  untouched.  Although  India  has  no  coins  to 
show  comparable  to  the  supreme  artistic  conceptions  of 
the  Sicilian  Greeks,  the  study  of  her  coinage,  in  addi- 
tion to  its  exceptional  importance  as  a  source  of  history, 
is  attended  by  peculiar  advantages,  not  the  least  of 
which  is  the  fact  that  materials  for  study  lie,  as  it 
were,  almost  at  one's  door.  In  nearly  every  Indian 
bazar,  even  the  smallest,  in  the  shops  of  the  Sarrafs 
or  money-changers,  gold,  silver  and  copper  coins  are  to 
be  had,  sometimes  in  plenty,  and  can  be  bought  cheap- 
ly, often  at  little  more  than  the  metal  value.  There 
is  even  the  chance  of  obtaining  for  a  few  coppers, 
and — a  far  more  important  consideration — saving  from 
the  melting  pot,  a  coin  which  may  add  a  new  fact,  or  a 
name,  or  a  date  to  history. 

A  detailed  description  will  be  found  opposite  each 
of  the  plates,  giving  transliterations  and  translations  of 
the  coin  legends;  and  these,  with  the  list  of  selected 
authorities  at  the  end  of  the  book,  should  provide  the 
key  to  a  fuller  knowledge  of  the  subject.  To  almost  all 
the  works  mentioned  in  the  latter  the  writer  is  indebted, 
although  it  has  been  impossible  to  acknowledge  all  obli- 
gations in  detail.  Mention  must  also  be  made  of  Dr. 
George  Macdonald's  fascinating  little  study,  The  Evolu- 
tion of  Coinage  (The  Cambridge  Manuals  of  Science  and 
Literature),  as  well  as  of  the  late  Dr.  Vincent  Smith's 
Oxford  History  of  India,  which  has  in  general  been 
accepted  as  the  authority  for  the  historical  facts  and 
dates,  somewhat  plentifully  incorporated  throughout  the 
book. 

In  conclusion,  I  am  under  special  obligation  to  Mr. 
John  Allan,  of  the  Department  of  Coins  and  Medals, 
British  Museum,  for  continual  assistance,  for  kindly 


INTRODUCTION  9 

reading  through  my  manuscript  and  offering  numerous 
useful  suggestions,  and  particularly  for  his  help  in 
getting  casts  prepared  for  the  plates,  all  of  which  have 
been  taken  from  coins  in  the  British  Museum  ;  to  Mr. 
H.  Nelson  Wright,  I.C.S.,  who  also  kindly  read  through 
the  manuscript,  gave  me  invaluable  assistance  in  the 
transliteration  of  the  coin  legends,  and  freely  placed  at 
my  disposal  his  exact  and  extensive  knowledge  of  the 
Muhammadan  coins  of  India.  To  Mr.  J.  H.  Waller, 
Secretary  of  the  Association  Press,  I  am  also  consider- 
ably indebted  for  the  infinite  trouble  he  has  taken  in 
supervising  the  preparation  of  the  blocks  for  both 
figures  and  plates  which  illustrate  this  little  volume. 

Ranikhet,  C.  J.  BROWN. 

May,  1921. 

NOTE. —  The  Cambridge  History  of  India,  Volume  I,  Ancient 
India,  appeared  while  this  book  was  in  the  press.  Fortunately, 
it  has  been  possible  to  incorporate  the  conclusions  arrived 
at  in  that  work,  which  have  been  accepted  for  the  period  which 
it  covers.  The  view  of  the  Indo-Greek  and  later  coinages  taken 
by  Professor  Rapson  in  Chapters  XXII  and  XXIII  has  also  been 
generally  accepted  as  a  working  hypothesis. 


ABBREVIATIONS 

Anno  Domini     ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  A.D. 

Copper  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  JE. 

Hijri  Year          ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  A.H. 

Silver    ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  AR. 

Gold AV. 

Billon  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  Bil. 

British  Museum  Catalogue         ..  ..  ..  B.M.C. 

Grains  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  Grs. 

Indian  Antiquary  . .  . .  . .  . .  LA. 

Indian  Museum  Catalogue  ..  ..  ..  I.M.C. 

Journal  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal  . .  . .  J.A.S.B. 

Journal  of  Bombay  Branch  of  the  Royal  Asiatic 

Society         ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  J.B.B.R.A.S. 

Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society         . .  . .  J.R.A.S. 

Numismatic  Chronicle    ..  ..  ..  ..  Num.  Chron. 

Numismatic  Supplement  to  the  J.A.S.B.  . .  Num.  Supp. 

Obverse  . .  . .  . .  . .  . .  Obv. 

Catalogue  of  Coins  in  the  Pan  jab  Museum,  Lahore . .  P.M.  C. 

Regnal  Year      ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  R. 

Reverse  ..  ..  ..  ..  ..  Rev. 

Samvat  Year     . .  . .  . .  . .  . .  S. 

Weight  .   Wt. 


Fig.  1.    Phagunimitrasa  in  Early  Brahml  Script.     Cf.  PI.  I,  4. 

I 

THE  EARLIEST  COINAGE  OF  INDIA 

AMONG  primitive  peoples  trade  was  carried  on  by 
barter,  that  is,  exchange  in  kind.  Gradually,  with  the 
spread  of  civilising  influences  the  inconvenience  of  pro- 
miscuous exchange  made  itself  felt,  and  certain  media 
were  agreed  upon  and  accepted  by  the  community  at 
large.  Wealth  in  those  early  times  being  computed  in 
cattle,  it  was  only  natural  that  the  ox  or  cow  should  be 
employed  for  this  purpose.  In  Europe,  then,  and 
also  in  India,  the  cow  stood  as  the  higher  unit  of 
barter.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  scale,  for  smaller 
purchases,  stood  another  unit  which  took  various  forms 
among  different  peoples — shells,  beads,  knives,  and 
where  those  metals  had  been  discovered,  bars  of  copper 
or  iron.  In  India  the  cowrie-shell,  brought  from  the 
Maldive  Islands,  was  so  employed,  and  is  still  to  be  seen 
in  many  bazars  in  the  shops  of  the  smaller  money- 
changers. The  discovery  of  the  precious  metals  carried 
the  evolution  of  coinage  a  stage  further :  for  the  barter 
unit  was  substituted  its  value  in  metal,  usually  gold. 
The  Greek  stater  and  the  Persian  daric  certainly,  and 
possibly  the  Indian  suvarna,  so  frequently  mentioned  by 
Sanskrit  authors,  was  the  value  of  a  full-grown  cow  in 
gold,  calculated  by  weight.  However  this  may  be,  in 
ancient  India  gold  dust,  washed  out  of  the  Indus  and 
other  rivers,  served  the  purposes  of  the  higher  currency, 


14  THE   COINS    OF    INDIA 

and  from  518  B.C.  to  about  350  B.C.,  when  an  Indian  pro- 
vince or  satrapy  was  included  in  the  Achsemenid  Empire 
of  Persia,  360  talents  in  gold  dust  was,  Herodotus  tells 
us,1  paid  annuallyas  tribute  from  the  province  into  the 
treasury  of  the  Great  King. 

Silver  from  natural  sources  was  at  that  time  less 
plentiful  in  India,  but  was  attracted  thither  in  large 
quantities  in  exchange  for  gold,  which  was  cheaper  there 
than  elsewhere  in  the  ancient  world.  The  transition 
from  metal  weighed  out  to  the  required  amount  to  pieces 
of  metal  of  recognized  weight  and  fineness  regularized 
by  the  stamp  of  authority  is  not  difficult  of  explanation. 
The  great  convenience  of  the  latter  would  recommend 
them  at  once  to  the  merchant,  and  to  the  ruler  as  the 
receiver  of  tribute  and  taxes.  Both  in  Asia  and  Europe 
this  transition  can  be  illustrated  from  extant  specimens  ; 
but,  whereas  in  Europe  and  Western  Asia,  from  the 
inscriptions  which  appeared  early  on  the  coins  them- 
selves and  from  outside  evidence,  we  know  the  origin  of 
the  earliest  coins  and  the  names  of  the  cities  or  districts 
which  issued  them,  the  origin  of  India's  earliest  coin- 
age, like  so  much  of  her  early  history,  is  still  shrouded 
in  mystery. 

This  much  can  be  said,  that  in  its  earliest  stages  the 
coinage  of  India  developed  much  on  the  same  lines  as 
it  did  on  the  shores  of  the  Aegean.  Certain  small  in- 
gots of  silver,  whose  only  mark  is  three  circular  dots, 
represent  probably  the  earliest  form  :  next  in  order  are 
some  heavy  bent  bars  of  silver  with  devices  stamped 
out  with  a  punch  on  one  side.2  These  two  classes  of 
coins  are  computed  to  have  been  in  circulation  as  coins, 
at  least  as  early  as  600  B.C.,  but  they  have  not  been 
found  in  any  quantity.  The  time  as  well  as  the  terri- 
tory in  which  they  circulated  was  probably  therefore 
restricted.  On  the  other  hand,  from  almost  every 
ancient  site  in  India,  from  the  Sundarbans  in  Bengal  to 

1  Herod  III,  94.  Quoted  in  Cunningham,  Coins  of  Ancient 
India,  p.  12. 

3  Cf.  I.M.C.,  p.  136,  Nos.  1,  2,  3  (ingots),  Nos.  4,  5,  6 
(bars). 


THE   EARLIEST    COINAGE    OF    INDIA      15 

Kabul,  and  as  far  south  as  Coimbatore,  have  been  re- 
covered thousands  of  what  are  known  to  numismatists 
as  "  Punch-marked  coins  "  and  to  Sanskrit  authors  as 
Puranas  ("ancient")  or  Dharanas.  These  are 
rectangular  (PL  I,  2)  and  circular  (PI.  I,  1)  flat  pieces 
of  thin  silver  (much  alloyed),  or  more  rarely  copper, 
cut  from  a  hammered  sheet  of  metal  and  clipped  to  the 
proper  weight.  One  side  (the  obverse)  is  occupied  by  a 
large  number  of  symbols  impressed  on  the  metal  by 
means  of  separate  punches.  In  the  oldest  coins  the 
other,  the  reverse  side,  is  left  blank,  but  on  the  majority 
there  appears  usually  one,  sometimes  two  or  three, 
minute  punch  marks  ;  a  few  coins  have  both  obverse  and 
reverse  covered  with  devices.  These  devices  appear  in 
wonderful  variety — more  than  three  hundred  have  been 
enumerated ;  they  comprise  human  figures,  arms,  trees, 
birds,  animals,  symbols  of  Buddhist  worship,  solar  and 
planetary  signs.  Much  further  detailed  study  of  these 
coins  will  be  needed  before  anything  can  be  definitely 
stated  about  the  circumstances  under  which  they  were 
minted.  It  seems  probable  that  in  India,  as  in  Lydia, 
coins  were  first  actually  struck  by  goldsmiths  or  silver- 
smiths, or  perhaps  by  communal  gilds  (seni) .  Coins  with 
devices  on  one  side  only  are  certainly  the  oldest  type, 
as  the  rectangular  shape,  being  the  natural  shape  of 
the  coin  when  cut  from  the  metal  sheet,  may  be 
assumed  to  be  older  than  the  circular  ;  on  the  other 
hand,  both  shapes,  and  also  coins  with  devices  on  one  as 
well  as  on  both  sides,  are  found  in  circulation  apparently 
at  the  same  time.  It  has  also  been  recently  shown1 
that  groups  of  three,  four,  and  sometimes  five,  devices 
on  the  obverse  are  constant  to  large  numbers  of  coins 
circulating  within  the  same  district.  It  may  perhaps 
therefore  be  conjectured  that  the  "punch-marked" 
piece  was  a  natural  development  of  the  paper  hundl,  or 
note  of  hand ;  that  the  coins  had  originally  been  struck 
by  private  merchants  and  gilds  and  had  subsequently 

1  By  Dr.  Spooner,  Dr.  Bhandarkar,  and  E,  H.  Walsh.  Cf. 
Journal  of  the  Bihar  and  Orissa  Research  Society,  1919,  pp.  16-72, 
463-94, 

2 


16  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

passed  under  royal  control ;  that  they  at  first  bore  the 
seal  of  the  merchant  or  gild,  or  combination  of  gilds, 
along  with  the  seals  of  other  gilds  or  communities  who 
accepted  them  j1  and  that,  when  they  passed  under  regal 
control,  the  royal  seal  and  seals  of  officials  were  first 
added  to,  and  afterwards  substituted  for,  the  private 
or  communal  marks.  Be  that  as  it  may,  we  see  here 
in  the  very  earliest  coinage  the  commencement  of 
that  fascination  which  the  square  coin  seems  to  have 
exercised  upon  Indian  moneyers  of  all  periods ;  for 
it  continually  reappears,  in  the  coins  of  the  Muham- 
madan  kingdoms  of  Malwa  and  Kashmir  for  example, 
in  some  beautiful  gold  and  silver  issues  of  the  Mughals, 
Akbar  and  Jahangir,  and  even  in  the  nineteenth  century 
in  copper  pieces  struck  by  the  Bahawalpur  State  in  the 
Panjab.  Most  writers  agree,  as  indeed  their  shape, 
form,  and  weight  suggest,  that  the  "punch-marked" 
coins  are  indigenous  in  origin,  and  owe  nothing  to  any 
foreign  influence.  In  what  part  of  India  they  originat- 
ed we  do  not  know  :  present  evidence  and  the  little 
knowledge  we  possess  of  the  state  of  India  in  those 
times  indicate  some  territory  in  the  north.  As  to  the 
period  during  which  they  were  in  active  circulation  we 
are  not  left  so  completely  at  the  mercy  of  conjecture. 
Finds  and  excavations  tell  us  something :  contemporary 
writers,  Indian  and  foreign,  drop  us  hints.  Sir  John 
Marshall  records,  during  the  recent  excavations  round 
Taxila,  the  find  of  160  "  punch-marked  "  coins  of  debased 
silver,  with  a  coin  in  fine  condition  of  Diodotos  of 
Bactria  (circ.  245  B.C.).2  Then  there  is  the  interesting 
statement  of  the  usually  trustworthy  Latin  writer, 
Quintus  Curtius,  that  Omphis  (Ambhi)  presented 
"Signati  argenti  LXXX  talenta  "— "  80  talents  of 
stamped  silver  " — to  Alexander  at  Taxila.  These  and 
similar  pieces  of  evidence  show  us  that  "  punch-marked  " 
coins  were  well  established  in  Northern  India  during 

1  Even  in  Mughal  times  bankers  were  in  the  habit  of  placing 
their  mark  on  the  rim  or  even  on  the  face  of  coins  which  passed 
through  their  hands. 

3  Guide  to  Taxila,  p,  117, 


THE   EARLIEST    COINAGE   OF   INDIA      17 

the  fourth  and  third  centuries  B.C.,  when  the  great 
Maurya  Empire  was  at  the  height  of  its  power.  The 
large  quantities  continually  being  unearthed  suggest  a 
long  period  of  circulation,  so  that  in  their  earliest 
forms  "  punch-marked"  coins  may  go  back  to  the  sixth 
century,  and  may  have  remained  current  in  some 
districts  of  the  north  as  late  as  the  second  century  B.C. 
At  some  period,  perhaps  during  the  campaigns  of  the 
great  Chandragupta  and  the  settlement  of  the  Empire 
under  his  grandson  Asoka,  these  coins  became  the 
established  currency  of  the  whole  Indian  peninsula, 
and  in  the  southern  districts,  at  least,  they  must  have 
remained  in  circulation  for  three,  perhaps  four,  centuries 
longer  than  in  the  north,  for  in  Coimbatore  district 
"  punch-marked  "  coins  have  been  found  along  with  a 
denarius  of  the  Roman  Emperor  Augustus ;  and  some 
of  the  earliest  individualistic  coinages  of  the  south, 
which  apparently  emerge  at  a  much  later  period,  the 
so-called  "  padmatankas,"  for  instance,  seem  to  be 
the  immediate  successors  of  these  "punch-marked" 
coins. 

.  Now  the  distinction  between  north  and  south  which 
has  just  been  drawn  in  tracing  the  history  of  this 
primitive  coinage  is  very  important ;  for  this  same 
distinction  enables  us  to  divide  the  remaining  ancient 
and  mediaeval  Indian  coins  down  to  the  fourteenth 
century  into  two  classes,  northern  and  southern.  The 
reason  for  this  is  that  Northern  India,  during  that  period, 
was  subjected  to  a  series  of  foreign  invasions  ;  the 
indigenous  coinages  of  the  north  were  therefore  con- 
tinually being  modified  by  foreign  influences,  which,  with 
a  few  exceptions  to  be  noted,  left  the  coinages  of  the 
south  untouched,  to  develop  by  slow  stages  on  strictly 
Indian  lines.  The  coins  of  the  south  will  be  described 
in  a  separate  chapter. 

To  return  to  Northern  India  :  at  the  time  of  Alex- 
ander's invasion  the  whole  of  North-Western  India  and 
the  Panjab  was  split  up  into  a  number  of  small  states, 
some,  like  the  important  state  of  Taxila,  ruled  by  a  king, 
Others  governed  by  "  aristocratic  oligarchies,"  Almost 


18  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

all  the  coins  about  to  be  dealt  with  are  either  of  copper 
or  brass, and  the  earliest  of  them  were  struck,  doubtless, 
by  the  ruling  authorities  in  these  states.  Even  after 
their  subjection  to  the  great  Maurya  Emperors  some  of 
these  states  may  have  retained  their  coining  rights,  for 
it  is  a  salient  fact  in  the  history  of  coins  that  coinage  in 
the  base  metals  in  India  and  elsewhere  has  not,  until 
quite  recent  times,  been  recognized,  like  coinage  in  gold 
and  silver,  as  the  exclusive  privilege  of  the  ruler.  A 
striking  example  is  afforded  in  the  copper  token  money 
issued  by  private  tradesmen  in  England  during  the 
eighteenth  and  early  nineteenth  centuries.  On  the 
break  up  of  the  Maurya  Empire,  at  the  close  of  the  third 
century,  a  number  of  small  independent  kingdoms 
sprang  into  existence,  and  these  proceeded  to  issue 
coins,  some  bearing  evident  traces  of  foreign  influence, 
but  on  the  whole  following  Indian  models  closely 
enough  to  be  included  here. 

No  attempt  can  be  made  to  deal  with  this  class  of 
coins  exhaustively  :  a  few  typical  examples  only  can  be 
selected  for  description  and  illustration.  The  reader 
who  wishes  to  pursue  the  subject  further  is  referred  for 
guidance  to  the  Bibliography  at  the  end  of  this  book  ; 
and,  since  at  present  little  attempt  has  been  made  to 
classify  or  examine  these  coins  in  any  detail,  fewer 
fields  of  research  are  likely  to  yield  a  richer  reward  to 
the  patient  student. 

The  earliest  of  these  copper  coins,  some  of  which 
may  be  as  early  as  the  fifth  century  B.C.,  were  cast. 
The  casting  of  coins  by  pouring  molten  metal  into 
a  cavity  formed  by  joining  two  moulds  together  must 
have  been  a  very  ancient  practice  in  India.  Sometimes 
the  moulds  of  several  coins  were  joined  together  for 
the  casting  process,  and  the  joins  thus  left  are  not 
infrequently  found  still  adhering  to  the  coins  (PI. 
I,  3).1  These  coins  are  for  the  most  part  anonymous. 

1  This  process  was  in  operation  in  Morocco  until  the  middle  of 
the  nineteenth  century.  Nearchus,  the  companion  of  Alexander, 
says  that  the  Indians  used  only  cast  bronze  but  not  hammered, 
Stmbo  XV,  C,  7ia, 


THE   EARLIEST   COINAGE   OF   INDIA      19 

Even  after  striking  from  dies  had  superseded  this 
clumsy  method  in  the  North-West,  we  find  cast  coins 
being  issued  at  the  close  of  the  third  century  by  the 
kingdoms  of  Kausambi,  Ayodhya  and  Mathura,  some  of 
which  bear  the  names  of  local  kings  in  the  Brahmi1 
script. 

The  earliest  die-struck  coins,  with  a  device  on  one 
side  of  the  coin  only,  have  been  assigned  to  the  end 
of  the  fourth  century  B.C.  Some  of  these,  with  a  lion 
device,  were  certainly  struck  at  Taxila,  where  they  are 
chiefly  found.  Others  present  various  Buddhist  symbols, 
such  as  the  bodhi-tree,  svastika,  or  the  plan  of  a  monas- 
tery, and  may  therefore  belong  to  the  time  of  Asoka, 
when  Buddhism  first  reached  the  North-West,  or 
Gandhara,  as  the  territory  was  then  called.  The 
method  of  striking  these  early  coins  was  peculiar,  in 
that  the  die  was  impressed  on  the  metal  when  hot,  so 
that  a  deep  square  incuse,  which  contains  the  device, 
appears  on  the  coin.  A  similar  incuse  appears  on  the 
later  double-die  coins  of  Panchala  (PI.  I,  4),  Kausambi, 
and  on  some  of  Mathura.  This  method  of  striking  may 
have  been  introduced  from  Persia,  and  was  perhaps  a 
derivative  from  the  art  of  seal-engraving. 

In  the  final  stage  of  die-striking,  devices  were  im- 
pressed on  both  sides  of  the  coin,  and  the  best  of  these 
"double-die"  coins  show  not  only  greater  symmetry  of 
shape,  either  round  or  square,  but  an  advance  in  the 
art  of  die-cutting.  Some  of  the  earliest  of  this  type 
have  been  classed  as  gild  tokens.  The  finest  were 
struck  in  Gandhara  :  among  these  one  of  the  commonest, 
bearing  a  lion  on  the  obverse,  and  an  elephant  on 
the  reverse(Pl.  I,  5),  is  of  special  importance,  since  an 
approximate  date  can  be  assigned  to  it,  for  it  was 
imitated  by  the  Greek  princes,  Pantaleon  (PI.  II,  2) 

1  Brahmi  (Fig.  1),  Phoenician  in  origin,  was  the  native  script 
of  Northern  India,  and  was  written  from  left  to  right.  Kharo- 
shthi  (Fig.  2)  was  a  derivation  from  the  Aramaic  script,  and  was 
written  from  right  to  left  ;  it  is  believed  to  have  been  introduced 
during  the  Persian  domination  of  Western  India,  and  continued 
in  use  on  the  North- West  frontier  until  about  the  fourth  century 
A.D. 


20  THE   COINS   OF    INDIA 

and  Agathokles,  who  reigned  on  the  North-West 
frontier  about  the  middle  of  the  second  century  B.C. 
In  the  execution  and  design  of  some  die-struck 
coins  from  the  North-West  there  are  undoubted  traces 
of  foreign  influences :  but  such  devices  as  the  humped 
bull,  the  elephant  and  the  religious  symbols  are 
purely  Indian.  There  is,  on  the  other  hand,  little 
foreign  influence  traceable  in  the  die-struck  coins, 
all  closely  connected  in  point  of  style,  which  issued 
during  the  first  and  second  centuries  B.C.  from  Panchala, 
Ayodhya,  Kausambi  and  Mathura.  A  number  of  these 
bear  Brahmi  inscriptions,  and  the  names  of  ten  kings, 
which  some  would  identify  with  the  old  Sunga  dynasty, 
have  been  recovered  from  the  copper  and  brass  coins  of 
Panchala,  found  in  abundance  at  Ramnagar  in  Rohilk- 
hand,  the  site  of  the  ancient  city  Ahichhatra.  Similarly 
twrelve  names  of  kings  appear  on  the  Mathura  coins, 
but  we  have  little  knowledge  of  these  kingdoms  beyond 
what  the  coins  supply.  Certain  devices  are  peculiar  to 
each  series :  thus  most  of  the  Ayodhya  coins  have  a 
humped  bull  on  the  obverse,  the  coins  of  Kausambi  a  tree 
within  a  railing. 

In  the  coins  of  Eran1  we  have  an  illustration,  as 
Rapson  says,  "  of  the  development  of  the  punch-marked 
system  into  the  die  system."  These  coins  are  rectangular 
copper  pieces  (PL  I,  6),  and  the  device  on  each  consists 
of  a  collection  of  symbols  like  those  which  appear  on 
the  "  punch-marked  "  coins,  but  struck  from  a  single  die. 
They  are  specially  interesting  in  that  they  represent 
the  highest  point  of  perfection  reached  by  purely  Indian 
money.  Some  of  these,  in  common  with  a  class  of 
round  coins  found  at  Ujjain  ( A vanti),  display  a  special 
symbol,  the  "cross  and  balls,"  known  from  its  almost 
universal  occurrence  on  the  coins  of  ancient  Malwa  as 
the  Malwa  or  Ujjain  symbol. 

Though  its  territory  lay  partially  in  Southern  India, 
it  will  be  convenient  to  include  here  the  coinage  of  the 

1  Eran,  or  Erakina,  the  capital  of  the  ancient  East  Malwa 
kingdom,  in  the  Saugor  district,  Central  Provinces. 


KEY  TO  PLATE  I 


1.  Round  punch-marked  coin.     AR. 

Wt.  about ;50  grs. 

Obv.,  an  animal,  solar  symbol,  etc. 
Rev.,  three  symbols. 

2.  Rectangular   punch-marked  coin. 

AR. 

Obv.,  bull,  solar  symbol,  etc. 
Rev.,  several  indistinct  "symbols. 

3.  Pair  of  cast  coins,  showing:  join. 

JR. 

Obv.,  three-arched   chaitya.  cres- 
cent above. 

Rev.,  elephant  to  left. 

4.  Panchala:      Phalgunimitra.      ^C. 

Wt.  about  220  grs. 
Obv.,  figure  standing  on  lotus,  to 

left  a  symbol. 
Rev.,  in  incuse,  in  early  Brahmi, 

Phagunimitrasa  "(Coin)  of  Phal- 

gunimitra  "  ;  above  3  symbols. 

5.  Taxila  ;  double  die  coin.    M.    Wt. 

about  180  grs. 

Obv.,  elephant  to  right,  above  a 
chaitya. 


Rev.,  in  incuse,  lion  standing  to 
left,  above  swastika,  to  left  chai- 
tya. 

6.  Eran  ;  punch-marked.    IE,. 
Obv.,  various    symbols,  including 

an  elephant  and  the  Ujjain  sym- 
bol. 

7.  Andhra :    Gotamiputra    Vilivaya 

kura.    Bil.    Wt.  about  200  grs. 

Obv.,  chaitya  within  railing,  above 
swastika,  to  right  a  tree. 

Rev.,  bow  and  arrow ;  around 
Rano  Gotamiputasa  Vilivayaku- 
rasa  "(Coin)  of  Raja  Gotami- 
putra Vilivayakura." 

8.  Mathura;   Rajuvala,    satrap.    Bil. 

Wt.  38  grs. 

Obv.,  diademed  bust  of  king  to 
right ;  corrupt  Greek  legend. 

Rev.,  Pallas  with  aegis  and 
thunderbolt  to  left ;  Kharoshthi 
legend,  Apratihatachakrasa  chha- 
trapasa  Rajavulasa  "(Coin)  of 
the  satrap  Rajavula,  invincible 
with  the  discus."  Kharoshthi 
letters  in  field. 


Note.— Where  it  has  been  impossible  to  ascertain  the  weight  of  the  particular 
coin  illustrated,  the  average  weight  of  coins  of  its  class  has  been  given ;  all 
such  weights  are  qualified  by  the  word  "  about." 


PLATE  I 


PLATE  II 


KEY  TO  PLATE  II 


1.  Sophy tes  ( Saubhuti ).  AR.  Drachm. 

Wt.  58 '3  grs. 
Obv.,  helmeted  head  of   king   to 

right. 
Rev.,  cock  to  right,  above  cadu- 

ceus ;  in  Greek,  Sophutou. 

2.  Pantaleon.    JE.    Wt.  about  160  grs. 
Obv.,  in  incuse,  lion  to  right.    In 

Greek,     Basileos      Pantaleontos 
"(Coin)  of  king  Pantaleon."1 
Rev.,    Indian    dancing    girl.     In 
Brahmi,  Rajane  Patalevasha. 

3.  Apollodotos.    JE.    Wt.  235-255  grs. 
Obv.,  Apollo  clad  in  chlamys  and 

boots  standing  to  right,  holding 
an  _  arrow.  In  Greek,  Basileos 
soteros  Apollodotou ;  monogram 
to  left. 

Rev.,  tripod,  Kharoshthi  letters  in 
field.  In  Kharoshthi,  Maha- 
rajasa tratarasa  Apaladatasa 
"(Coin)  of  the  king,  the  saviour, 
Apollodotos." 

4.  Menander,     AR.       Hemidrachm. 

Wt.  377  grs. 

Obv.,  diademed  bust  of  king  to 
left,  thrusting  javelin  with  right 
hand.  In  Greek  as  No.  3,  but 
Menandrou . 

Rev.,  Pallas  to  left  with  aegis  on 
outstretched  arm,  hurling 
thunderbolt  with  right  hand. 
Monogram  to  right.  In  Kha- 
roshthi as  No.  3,  but  Menadrasa, 

5.  Hippostratos.  AR.  Didrachm.  Wt. 

143 '2  grs. 

Obv.,  diademed  head  of  king  to 
right.  _In  Greek,  Basileos  mega- 
lou  soteros  Hippostratou  "(Coin) 
of  the  great  king.the  saviour  H." 

Rev.,  king  in  full  panoply  on  horse 
to  right,  monogram  to  right.  In 
Kharoshthi,  Maharajasa  trata- 
rasa mahatasa  j  ayamtasa 
Hipustratasa  "(Coin)  of  the 
king,  the  great  saviour,  the 
conqueror  Hippostratos." 

6.  Menander.    JE.    Wt.  38  grs. 
Obv.,  elephant's  head   with    bell 

round  neck. 
Rev.,  club  of  Herakles  with   two 

symbols. 
Legends  as  No.  4. 


7.  Philoxenos.     AR.     Hemidrachm. 

Wt.  27'3  grs. 

Obv.,  helmeted  bust  of  king  to 
right.  In  Greek,  Basileos  anlketou 
Philoxenou. 

Rev.,  king  on  horseback  ;  to  right, 
Greek  letter  S,  and  monogram. 
In  Kharoshthi,  Mafia?  ajasa 
apadihatasa  Philasinasa  "(Coin) 
of  the  unconquered  king 
Philoxenos." 

8.  Antialkidas.     AR.     Hemidrachm. 

Wt.  37-9  grs. 

Obv.,  bust  of  king  to  right  wearing 
flat  "  kausia."  In  Greek,  Basileos 
nikephorou  Antialkidou. 

Rev.,  Zeus  on  throne  bearing  Nike 
on  outstretched  right  hand ; 
elephant,  retiring  to  left,  has 
snatched  away  her  crown.  Mono- 
gram in  field.  In  Kharoshthi, 
Maharajasa  jayadharasaAmtiali- 
kitasa.  "(Coin)  of  the  victorious 
king,  Antialkidas." 

9.  Hermaios     and     Kalliope.      AR. 

Hemidrachm. 

Obv.,  conjugate  busts  of  king  and 
queen  to  right ;  in  Greek,  Basileos 
soteros  Hermaiou  kai  Kalliopes. 

Rev.,  king  on  prancing  horse  to 
right.  Monogram  below.  In 
Kharoshthi,  Maharajasa  trata- 
rasa Heramayasa  Kaliyapaya. 

10.  Strato    I    with     Strato     II.    AR. 

Hemidrachm.    Wt.  37  grs. 
Obv.,  diademed  bust  of  aged  king. 
In      Greek,      Basileos      Soteros 
Strdtonos  uiou  Strdtonos.  (Mean- 
ing doubtful. ) 

Rev..  Pallas  to  left  with  segis 
and  thunderbolt.  In  Kharoshthi, 
Maharajasa  tratarasa  Stratasa 
potrasa  chasa  priyapita  Stratasa, 
"(Coin)  of  king  Strato  Soter  and 
of  his  grandson,  Strato  Philo- 
pater." 

.   11.  Nahapana.      AR.      Hemidrachm. 
|  Wt.  29'2  grs. 

Obv.,    head   of   satrap    to    right. 

Corrupt  Greek  legend. 
Rev.,  thunderbolt  and  arrow.  In 
Brahmi,  Rano  Chhaharatasa  ;  in 
Kharoshthi,  Nahapanasa^(Coin') 
of  the  Kshaharata  king 
Nahapana. 


In  these  bilingual  coins,  unless  otherwise  noted,  the  same  inscription  is 
reproduced  in  both  languages.  Technically  the  reverse  of  this  coin  is 
the  obverse,  as  being  the  impression  from  the  lower  die. 


THE   EARLIEST    COINAGE   OF   INDIA      21 

great  Andhra  dynasty,  since  several  of  its  issues  are 
closely  connected  with  the  currency  of  the  north.  The 
Andhras  probably  became  independent  about  the  year 
230  B.C.,  and  their  rule  lasted  for  four  and  a  half 
centuries.  Their  coins  of  various  types  have  been 
found  in  Malwa,  on  the  banks  of  the  Krishna  and 
Godavari  rivers,  the  original  home  of  the  race,  as  far 
south  as  Madras,  in  north  Konkan,  and  elsewhere  in  the 
Deccan  and  the  Central  Provinces.  The  earliest  to 
which  a  date  can  be  assigned  are  those  bearing  the 
name  of  a  king  Sri  Sata,  about  150  B.C.  Most  Andhra 
coins  are  either  of  billon1  or  lead,  with  Brahmi  legends 
on  both  obverse  and  reverse,  and  characteristic  devices 
are  the  elephant,  chaitya  (Buddhist  chapel),  and  bow 
(PI.  I,  7).  Sometimes  the  "Ujjain  symbol  "  appears  on 
the  reverse.  One  issue,  in  lead,  of  Vasishthiputra  Sri 
Pulumavi  (about  A.D.  130)  is  interesting,  in  that  it  has 
on  the  obverse  a  ship  with  two  masts,  and  was  evidently 
intended  for  circulation  on  the  Coromandel  coast. 
Coins  have  been  assigned  to  seven  Andhra  kings,  the 
latest  of  which,  Sri  Yajna  Satakarni  (about  A.D.  184), 
struck  not  only  the  usual  lead  and  billon  coins,  but 
restruck  and  imitated  the  silver  hemidrachms  of  the 
satrap  Nahapana  (PL  III,  1).  The  Andhra  lead  coinage 
was  copied  by  one  or  two  feudatory  chiefs  in  Mysore 
and  North  Kanara. 

1  Billon,  orpotin,  is  a  mixture  of  silver  and  copper  in  varying 
proportions. 


BAIIAEnZMETAA'A' 


Fig.  2.   Greek  Script  on  Coin  of  Hippostratos.   Cf.  PL  II,  5. 


II 

COINS  OF  THE  INDO-GREEKS,  THE  SAKAS 
AND  PAHLAVAS 

WE  have  seen  in  the  last  chapter  how  foreign 
influences  gradually  began  to  make  themselves  felt  in 
the  fabric  and  design  of  the  purely  native  coins  of  the 
North- West.  These  influences  gradually  widened  until 
the  whole  of  Northern,  Western  and  parts  of  Central 
India  were  affected.  Through  eight  centuries  these 
foreign  types  were  reproduced  on  the  coins  of  those 
territories ;  and  we  can  observe  the  gradual  debasement 
of  the  original  models  as  they  become  less  and  less 
intelligible  to  successive  strikers,  until  they  disappear 
in  trie  general  cataclasm  that  succeeded  the  terrible 
inroads  of  the  Huns  in  the  sixth  century.  In  the 
secluded  kingdom  of  Kashmir  one  type  did  indeed 
survive  as  late  as  the  fifteenth  century,  a  mere  shadow 
of  a  shade,  from  which  all  form  and  feature  had 
vanished.  The  coins  included  in  this  chapter  and  the 
next  are  those  of  the  invaders  who  brought  about  this 
important  change. 

But  a  further  and  a  greater  importance  attaches  to 
them.  Since  the  important  discovery,  in  1824,  by 
Colonel  Tod,  that  Greek  coins  had  once  been  struck 
in  India,  the  names  of  thirty-three  Greek  and  twenty- 


COINS   OP  THE   INDO-GREEKS,  ETC.      23 

six1  Indo-Scythianor  Saka  andlndo-Parthian  or  Pahlava 
princes,  ruling  territories  round  the  Indian  frontier,  have 
gradually  been  recovered  from  coin  legends,  and  not 
more  than  half-a-dozen  of  these  are  known  from  other 
sources.  Even  the  names  of  the  later  Kushana  kings 
were  first  deciphered  from  their  coins.  Thus  coins 
alone  have  been  responsible  for  the  recovery  of  a  whole 
period  of  Indian  history. 

Probably  no  class  of  Indian  coins  has  attracted  more 
attention  or  been  subjected  to  more  patient  examination 
than  these,  which  mark  the  first  intermingling  of  Eastern 
and  Western  culture  in  India  ;  yet,  as  the  relationship 
of  the  different  kings  and  dynasties  who  minted  them, 
their  dates,  and  the  territories  over  which  they  ruled 
are  still  largely  matters  of  conjecture,  it  will  be  well  to 
sketch  in  outline  the  probable  course  which  events  took 
in  Northern  India  and  the  adjacent  countries  from  the 
time  of  Alexander  to  the  first  century  of  our  era. 

In  October,_326  B.C.,  Alexander  began  his  retreat 
from  the  Panjab.  To  commemorate  his  victories  he 
struck  a  medal  ;2  about  the  same  time  an  Indian  prince, 
Sophytes  (Saubhuti),  struck  a  silver  coin  (PL  II,  1)  in 
the  Greek  style;  with  these  two  exceptions  scarcely 
a  mark  or  lasting  trace  of  his  invasion  remained. 
Eleven  years  after  Alexander's  death  his  general, 
Seleucos,  founded  the  Seleucid  kingdom  of  Syria.  Be- 
tween the  years  250-248  B.C.  two  of  the  chief  Syrian 
provinces  revolted  and  became  independent  kingdoms, 
Bactria  under  Diodotos  and  Parthia  under  Arsakes,  both 
events  fraught  with  important  consequences  for  India 
and  her  coinage.  The  fourth  Bactrian  king,  Demetrios 
(c.  190-150  B.C.),  son  of  Euthydemos,  as  the  Mauryan 
Empire  fell  into  decay,  was  able  to  extend  his  kingdom 
as  far  as  the  Panjab,  and  assumed  the  title  of  "  King  of 
the  Indians."  But  about  the  same  time  he  was  con- 
fronted with  a  rival,  Eukratides  (c.  175-155  B.C.),  who 
deprived  him  of  his  Bactrian  dominions,  and  even  of  a 

1  Three  fresh  names  have  been  added  as  recently  as  1913. 

2  The  sole  example  known  is  in  the   British  Museum  :  it  is 
figured  in  Vincent  Smith's  Oxford  History  of  India,  1920,  p.  63. 


24  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

portion  of  Gandhara  (the  present  districts  of  Peshawar 
and  Rawalpindi).  Henceforward  there  were  two  rival 
Greek  dynasties,  the  house  of  Eukratides,  including  the 
princes  Heliokles,  Antialkidas  and  Hermaios,  ruling  in 
Kabul,  Kandahar  and  Gandhara,  and  the  house  of  Euthy- 
demos,  of  whom  the  principal  rulers  were  Apollodotos, 
Menander,  Strato  I,  Zoilos  and  Hippostratos,  in  East 
Gandhara  and  the  Panjab.  Pantaleon,  Agathokles  and 
Antimachos,  of  the  latter  family,  appear  to  have  been 
petty  princes  ruling  north  of  Kabul  (c.  155-140  B.C.), 
and  there  must  have  been  similar  small  principalities 
elsewhere,  whose  rulers  were  contemporary.  About 
the  year  135  B.C.  Heliokles,  the  last  king  of  Bactria, 
was  driven  out  of  that  country  by  a  Scythian  tribe, 
the  Sakas,  and  fixed  the  headquarters  of  his  rule  at 
Kabul,  and  here  his  descendants  continued  to  reign  till 
some  time  after  40  B.C.,  when  the  last  of  them, 
Hermaios,  was  driven  out  by  the  Pahlavas.  Meanwhile, 
in  about  the  year  126  B.C.,  the  Sakas,  pressed  in  their 
turn  by  another  nomadic  tribe  from  Central  Asia,  the 
Yueh-chi,  were  driven  out  of  Bactria,  and  invaded 
India  by  way  of  Ariana  (Herat)  andDrangiana  (Seistan), 
fixing  their  headquarters  in  Sind  (Sakadvipa).  Moving 
thence  up  the  Indus  valley,  about  the  year  75  B.C.,  their 
chief,  Maues,  captured  Pushkalavati(  Peshawar) ,  and  thus 
drove  a  wedge  in  between  the  dominions  of  the  two 
Greek  houses.  His  successor,  Azes  I,  the  possible 
founder  of  the  Vikrama  era  in  58  B.C.,  finally  crushed 
the  house  of  Euthydemos,  in  the  person  of  Hippostratos, 
in  the  Eastern  Panjab,  some  time  after  40  B.C.  Closely 
related  to  the  Sakas  were  the  Pahlavas.  The  earlier 
Pahlava  princes,  Vonones,  Spalahores,  and  Spalirises 
ruled  in  Drangiana  and  Arachosia  (Kandahar),  whence, 
as  already  related,  they  overran  Kabul.  Later  on,  in  the 
first  century  A.D.,  probably  through  a  family  alliance, 
they  succeeded  the  Sakas  in  northern  India  and  we  find 
the  great  king  Gondopharnes  (A.D.  19-45)  ruling  in 
Taxila.  Associated  with  the  Saka  and  Pahlava  kings 
were  a  number  of  military  governors,  such  as  As- 
pavarma  and  Sasas,  whose  names  appear  on  coins  with 


COINS   OF   THE   INDO-GREEKS  25 

those  of  their  suzerains.     Other  rulers  like  Miaos  are 
more  difficult  to  place. 

I.    COINS   OF  THE  INDO-GREEKS 

The  splendid  series  of  portrait  coins  of  the  Greek 
kings  of  Bactria  does  not  come  within  the  scope  of  this 
work  :  their  gold  and  silver  pieces,  struck  on  the  Attic 
standard,1  were  never  current  in  India  proper,  where 
they  are  rarely  found,  and  they  really  belong  to  the 
history  of  Greek  coinage.  Nevertheless  they  are  of  the 
utmost  importance  for  our  subject,  for  in  following 
these  models  the  Indo-Greek  kings  introduced  Greek 
types,  and  among  them  the  portrait  head,  into  the  Indian 
coinage,  and  their  example  was  followed  for  eight 
centuries.  This  word  "type"  needs  some  definition. 
Originally  it  meant  the  particular  mark  of  authority 
on  a  coin  as  distinct  from  other  marks,  but  it  has 
come  to  imply  a  distinguishing  device  more  or  less 
artistic  in  character.  Such  devices  appear  on  all  Greek 
and  Roman  coins.  In  this  sense  the  coins  of  the 
Muhammadans  cannot  properly  be  said  to  display 
"types,"  for  both  obverse  and  reverse  are  usually 
occupied  entirely  by  the  inscription. 

Demetrios  was  the  first  Bactrian  king  to  strike 
square  copper  coins  of  the  Indian  type,  with  a  legend  in 
Greek  on  the  obverse,  and  in  Kharoshthi  on  the  reverse. 
His  rival,  Eukratides,  struck  these  bilingual  square  cop- 
per pieces  in  greater  abundance,  as  well  as  a  very  rare 
silver  coin  with  inscriptions  in  both  languages.  The 

*  On  the  Attic  standard,  adopted  by  Alexander,  the  Seleucid 
and  Bactrian  kings,  the  drachm  weighed  67'5  grains  ;  on  the 
Persian  standard,  adopted  by  the  Indo-Greeks  (and  hence  in 
some  works  called  the  Indian  standard),  it  weighed  88  grains,  but 
their  coins  rarely  reach  the  full  weight.  Mr.  Whitehead,  in  a 
recent  monograph,  "  The  Pre-Muhammadan  Coinage  of  North- 
Western  India"  {Numismatic  Notes  and  Monographs,  No.  13, 
The  American  Numismatic  Society,  New  York,  1922),  calls  the 
two  silver  denominations  of  the  Indo-Greeks  drachms  and  tetra- 
drachms,  thus  supposing  a  separate  Indian  standard.  I  have 
retained  the  hitherto  accepted  nomenclature,  hemidrachms  and 
didrachms  for  convenience  of  reference  to  standard  works. 


26  THE    COINS   OF   INDIA 

Gandhara  copper  coinage  of  Agathokles  and  Pantaleon 
(PI.  II,  2)  has  already  been  alluded  to.  After  the 
removal  of  the  seat  of  government  to  territory  south  of 
the  Hindu  Kush,  we  find  the  coinage  undergoing  a  radical 
change.  The  rare  gold  staters  and  the  splendid  tetra- 
drachms  of  Bactria  disappear.  The  silver  coins  of  the 
Indo-Greeks,  as  these  later  princes  may  conveniently 
be  called,  are  the  didrachm  (PI.  II,  5)  and  the  hemi- 
drachm.  With  the  exception  of  certain  square  hemidra- 
chms  of  Apollodotos  and  Philoxenos  (PL  II,  7),  they  are 
all  round,  are  struck  to  the  Persian  (or  Indian)  standard, 
and  all  have  inscriptions  in  both  Greek  and  Kharoshthi 
characters.  Copper  coins,  square  for  the  most  part, 
are  very  numerous  (PL  II,  6).  The  devices  are 
almost  entirely  Greek,  and  must  have  been  engraved 
by  Greeks,  or  Indians  trained  in  the  Greek  traditions, 
yet  "  the  engravers  .  .  .  were  no  slavish  copyists  of 
Western  models,  but  were  giving  free  and  spon- 
taneous expression  to  their  own  ideas."3  On  the 
reverse  is  ordinarily  to  be  found  some  god  or  god- 
dess— Herakles,  Zeus,  Pallas,  or  some  symbol  of  their 
worship;  the  "two  piloi "  (caps)  of  the  Dioskouroi  are 
of  frequent  occurrence.  A  notable  square  copper  coin 
of  Eukratides  has  the  figure  of  a  seated  Zeus,  accom- 
panied by  the  legend  in  Kharoshthi,  "  The  city  deity 
of  K&pisl"  suggesting  that  others  of  these  deities  may 
stand  as  the  patrons  of  cities.2  Other  reverse  devices 
are  the  tripod,  a  king  on  horseback,  and  various 
animals,  including  the  specially  Indian  elephant  and 
humped  bull.  The  portraits  on  the  obverse,  especially 
on  the  fine  didrachms,  are  realistic  and  boldly  drawn, 
and  show  us  clearly  what  manner  of  men  these  early 
European  rulers  in  India  were.  On  most  of  these  coins 
and  those  of  the  Saka  rulers  are  found  a  great  variety 
of  monograms  (Fig.  3)  formed  of  Greek  letters,  but 
the  significance  of  these  has  never  been  satisfactorily 
explained.  From  a  study  of  monograms  and  types, 

1  Marshall,  Guide  to  Taxila,  p.  27. 

2  For  other  city  types  see  Camb.  History  of  India,  Vol.  I, 
p.  557  sq. 


COINS   OF    THE   §AKAS  27 

and  particularly  from  observing  the  gradual  debasement 
in  style  which  takes  place,  experts  have  been  able  to 
arrange  these  kings  in  chronological  order.  Such  tests 
are  sometimes,  however,  delusive  ;  the  king,  Zoilos,  for 
example,  minted  two  types  of  hemidrachm,  one  in 
comparatively  fine  style,  the  other  very  debased. 

The  extreme  rarity  of  the  money  of  a  few  kings, 
like  Apollophanes,  Polyxenos  and  Theophilos,  leads 
us  to  suppose  that  they  were  pretenders.  The  most 
important  kings,  judging  from  the  large  number  of 
their  coin-types,  were  Antialkidas,  king  of  Taxila,  circ. 
155-130  B.C.,  Apollodotos,  Menander  and  Strato  I. 
Antialkidas  appears  on  one  of  his  numerous  silver 
types  wearing  the  striking  flat  cap,  called  "kausia  " 
(PI.  II,  8).  Apollodotos'  coinage  is  remarkable  for  the 
large  variety  of  its  copper  types.  Particularly  notice- 
able are  the  large  round  pieces  which  he  introduced  (PI. 
II,  3).  Menander's  coins  (PI.  II,  4)  are  found  all  over 
Northern  India  in  great  quantities,  and  his  didrachms, 
with  three  distinct  styles  of  portrait,  are  the  finest  of 
the  series.  The  heads  of  two  queens,  Agathokleia  and 
Kalliope,  are  found  conjoined,  the  former  with  that  of 
her  son,  Strato  I,  the  latter  with  that  of  her  husband, 
Hermaios  (PI.  II,  9),  on  a  few  rare  coins.  The  debase- 
ment which  set  in  in  Strato's  reign  (PI.  II,  10)  in  the 
Eastern  Kingdom,  and  is  evidenced  not  only  in  the 
poorness  of  design  but  even  in  the  striking  of  coins  in 
lead,  reached  even  a  lower  point  in  the  coinage  of 
Hermaios.  On  one  type  of  copper,  with  the  head  of 
Hermaios  on  the  obverse,  the  name  of  Kujula  Kad- 
phises,  the  Kushana,  appears  on  the  reverse  (PI.  IV,  I).1 

II.    COINS   OF   THE   SAKAS   AND    PAHLAVAS 

After  the  conquest  of  Bactria  by  the  Sakas  in  135 
B.C.  there  must  have  been  considerable  intercourse, 

1  It  is  suggested  (Camb.  History  of  India,  p.  561)  that  the 
coins  of  Hermaios  extended  over  a  long  period,  and  that  it  was 
these  degenerate  posthumous  coins  which  Kujula  Kadphiseg 
copied, 


28  THE    COINS    OF    INDIA 

sometimes  of  a  friendly,  sometimes  of  a  hostile  charac- 
ter, between  them  and  the  Parthians,  who  occupied  the 
neighbouring  territory.  This  may  account  for  the 
Parthian  influence  which  appears  in  certain  features  on 
the  coins  of  the  Sakas,  particularly  in  the  title  Basileos 
BasileDn,  "King  of  Kings,"  which  all  these  kings, 
following  the  example  of  the  Arsacid  dynasty,  inscribed 
on  the  obverse  of  their  coins. 

Maues,  whose  coins  are  found  only  in  the  Panjab, 
was  the  first  king  of  what  may  be  called  the  Azes 
group  of  princes.  His  silver  is  not  plentiful ;  the  finest 
type  is  that  with  a  "biga"  (two-horsed  chariot)  on  the 
obverse,  and  to  this  type  belongs  a  square  hemidrachm, 
the  only  square  Saka  silver  coin  known.  His  com- 
monest copper  coins,  with  an  elephant's  head  on  the 
obverse  and  a"caduceus"  (staff  of  the  god  Hermes) 
on  the  reverse  (PL  III,  4),  are  imitated  from  a  round 
copper  coin  of  Demetrios.  On  another  copper  square 
coin  of  Maues  the  king  is  represented  on  horseback. 
This  striking  device  is  characteristic  both  of  the 
Saka  and  Pahlava  coinage  (PI.  Ill,  7);  it  first  appears 
in  a  slightly  different  form  on  coins  of  the  Indo-Greek 
Hippostratos  (PI.  II,  5)  ;  the  Gupta  kings  adopted  it 
for  their  "horseman"  type,  and  it  reappears  in 
Mediaeval  India  on  the  coins  of  numerous  Hindu  king- 
doms, and  was  even  employed  by  Muhammadan  invaders 
until  the  fourteenth  century. 

Silver  coins  of  Azes  I  and  Azilises,  especially  of  the 
former,  are  abundant.  As  on  Maues'  coinage,  Greek  gods 
and  goddesses,  Zeus,  Herakles,  Pallas  and  Poseidon, 
appear  on  both  silver  and  copper  of  these  two  kings, 
but  now  for  the  first  time  an  Indian  goddess,  Lakshmi, 
is  introduced.  A  favourite  device  on  the  silver  of 
Azilises  is  the  Dioskouroi  (PI.  Ill,  9).1  His  copper 
coins  are  all  square,  whereas  Azes'  commonest  type  is 
a  large  round  coin  with  a  bull  on  the  observe  and  a  lion 
on  the  reverse  (PI.  Ill,  5),  unquestionably  copied  from 

1  They  are  also  represented  on  horseback  as  on  Eukratides' 


COINS   OF   THE   §AKAS  29 

the  large  round  coins  of  Apollodotos  ;  for  some  of  Azes  I 's 
coins  are  restruck  on  those  of  Apollodotos  and  Hippo- 
stratos.  Another  copper  coin  shows  the  king  Azes  sit- 
ting cross-legged  in  the  Indian  fashion.  On  the  reverse 
of  another  copper  coin,  of  the  common  "  king  on  horse- 
back "  type,  appears  the  name  of  the  Indian  general, 
Aspavarma,  which  is  also  found  on  some  coins  of  the 
Pahlava  Gondopharnes :  this  is  a  most  important  piece 
of  evidence,  as  it  shows  a  connection  between  the  two 
dynasties.  The  earlier  Pahlava  kings,  which  we  may 
call  the  Vonones  group,  were  evidently  far  less  powerful 
than  the  Saka  rulers  ;  their  coins  are  scarcer,  didrachms 
particularly  so,  and  are  found  only  west  of  the  Indus 
valley.  On  no  coins  has  the  name  of  Vonones  been  found 
alone,  but  always  associated  either  with  Spalahores,  his 
brother,  or  his  nephew,  Spalagadames  ;  the  names  of  the 
two  latter  are  conjoined  on  another  coin  (PI.  Ill,  10). 
A  fourth  prince,  Spalirises,  strikes  coins  of  his  own 
and  also  in  conjunction  with  Azes  II.1  All  the  silver 
coins  of  this  group  are  of  the  usual  "king  on  horseback" 
type ;  their  copper  coins  are  with  one  exception  square. 

Like  the  Indo-Greeks,  the  Sakas  use  Greek  for  the 
obverse  and  Kharoshthi  for  the  reverse  legend. 

The  most  important  of  the  later  Pahlava  kings  was 
Gondophares,  or  Gondopharnes,  famous  as  the  King 
of  India  mentioned  in  the  traditional  stories  connected 
with  the  Apostle  St.  Thomas.  In  the  British  Museum 
there  is  a  silver  coin  of  his  struck  in  the  pure  Parthian 
style,  but  the  rest  of  his  didrachms — no  smaller  coins 
are  known — are  of  billon  (PI.  Ill,  8).  Several  types  of 
these  are  known,  but  all  have  the  usual  "  king  on  horse- 
back "  obverse.  On  the  reverse  of  one  type  the  god 
Siva  appears.  His  copper  coins,  all  of  them  round, 
have  a  bust  of  the  king  in  the  Parthian  style,  with 
either  a  figure  of  Nike  or  Pallas  on  the  reverse.  The 
coins  of  his  successors  or  contemporaries,  Abdagases, 
Orthagnes  and  Pakores,  closely  follow  in  type  those  of 
Gondopharnes. 

1  This  coin  seems  to  provide  the  family  link  between  tfte 
Sakas  and  Pahlavas, 


30  THE   COINS   OF    INDIA 

Connected  with  these  later  Pahlavas  are  a  few  princes 
who  call  themselves  "Satrap" — among  these  the 
most  prominent  is  Zeionises,  who  minted  some  rather 
striking  didrachms  in  pure  silver.  His  not  uncommon 
copper  coins  imitate  the  bull  and  lion  type  of  Azes. 
Lastly,  there  are  a  number  of  miscellaneous  rulers, 
such  as  Miaos  and  Hyrcordes,  whose  coins  present 
features  so  heterogeneous  that  it  has  been  impossible 
hitherto  to  assign  them  ancestry,  nationality  or  even  an 
approximate  date.  The  most  important  of  these  is  the 
"  nameless  king,"  whose  superscription  consists  of  the 
titles,  "  King  of  Kings,  the  great  Saviour"  written  in 
Greek  only.  His  coins,  all  of  copper,  are  well 
struck,  especially  the  commonest  type,  which  shows  a 
diademed  head  of  the  king  on  the  obverse  and  a  horseman 
on  the  reverse  (PI.  Ill,  6).  On  all  appears  his  special 
symbol,  a  three-pronged  fork  (Fig.  3,  v).1 

III.   COINS   OF  THE  WESTERN   SATRAPS   AND   OTHER 
IMITATORS   OF  THE   GREEK   MODELS 

The  coinage  of  the  Indo-Greek  kings  made  a  deep 
impression  upon  their  successors  and  neighbours,  just 
as  the  coinage  of  Bactria  had  impressed  the  conquering 
Sakas,  who  copied  it  extensively  in  that  country.  The 
crude  coins  of  Miaos  (or  Heraos)  and  of  Sapeleizes,  two 
very  obscure  rulers,  are  evidently  modelled  on  the  issues 
of  Heliokles  and  Eukratides.  Saka  princes,  like  Maues, 
as  we  have  seen,  while  adopting  many  Greek  features, 
employed  a  characteristic  coinage  of  their  own.  On 
the  other  hand,  we  find  Rajuvula,  one  of  the  Saka 
satraps  who  replaced  the  Hindu  kings  of  Mathura 
in  the  first  century  A.D.,  slavishly  copying  the  billon 
hemidrachms  of  Strato  II  (PI.  I,  8).  Nahapana,  a 
great  Saka  conqueror  who  founded  a  kingdom  in  the 

1  It  has  been  suggested  with  great  probability  that  the  title 
Soter  Megas  (Great  Saviour)  was  that  of  the  military  governor 
(strategos)  of  Taxila  under  the  Kushanas,  and  that  these  coins 
were  the  anonymous  issues  of  successive  str&tegoi.  Cf.  Cqmb, 
History  of  India,  Vol.  I,  p.  581, 


KEY  TO  PLATE  III 


1.  Andhra:  Gotamiputra  3ri  Yajna 
Satakarni.  AR.  Hemidrachm  . 
Wt.  34  grs. 

Obv.,  head  of  king:  to  right.  In 
Brahmi  ,  Rano  Gotamiputasa 
Siri  Yana  Satakanisa. 

Rev.,  Ujjain  symbol  and  chaitya. 
In  Southern  Brahmi,  Gotam  (a) 
putasha  Hiru  Yana  Hdtakanisfta 


2.  Western  Kshatrapa  :    Damasena. 

AR.    Wt.  34  grs. 

Obv.,  head  of  Satrap  to  right. 
Corrupt  Greek  inscription.  Date 
100  4"  50  4-  3  to  left. 

Rev.,  chaitya,  star  and  crescent. 
In  Brahmi,  Rano  Mahdkshatra- 
pasa  Rudrasl  fiasa  put  rasa  rano 
Mahdkshatrapasa  _  Ddmasenasa 
"(Coin)  of  king  Damasena,  the 
great  satrap,  son  of  king  Rudra- 
simha,  the  great  satrap." 

3.  Odumbara  :     Dharaghosha,     AR. 

Wt.  37'5  grs. 

Obv.,  standing  figure  of  Visva- 
mitra(?).  In  Brahmi,  Mahadevasa 
Rana  Dharughoshasa  Odumba- 
rtsa,  "(Coin)  of  the  Mahadeva, 
king  Dharughosha  of  Odum- 
bara"; across,  in  Kharoshthi, 
Visvamitra. 

Rev.,  trident,  battle-axe  and  tree 
within  railing.  Brahmi  legend 
as  on  obverse. 

4.  Maues.    JE.    Wt.  about  130  grs. 

Obv.,  head  of  elephant  to  right, 
bell  suspended  from  neck. 

Rev.,  caduceus  and  monogram. 
In  Greek,  Basileos  Mauou  "(Coin) 
of  king  Maues." 

5   Azes.    JE.    Wt.  about  220  grs. 

Obv.,  humped  bull  to  right, 
monogram  above.  In  Greek, 
Basileos  basileon  megalou  Azou. 

Rev.,  in  Kharoshthi,  Maharajasa 
rajatirajasa  makatasa  Ay  as  a 
"(Coin)  of  the  great  king  of 
Kings,  Azes/' 


6.  Nameless  king :  Soter  Megas,    JE. 

Obv.,  diademed  and  radiate  bust 
of  king  to  right  holding  a  lance  : 
king's  special  symbol  to  left. 

Revoking  on  horseback  to  right, 
symbol  to  right.  In  Greek,  Basi- 
leus  basileon  soter  megas,  "  King 
of  kings,  the  great  saviour." 

7.  Azes  I.  AR.    Didrachm.    Wt.  142 

grs. 

Obv..  king  on  horseback  to  right, 
holding  couched  lance.  Kharo- 
shthi letter  "  Sa "  below. 
Legend  as  on  No.  5. 

8.  Gondopharnes.     AR  (base).     Di- 

drachm.   Wt.  142  grs. 

Obv.,  king  on  horseback  to  right, 
right  arm  extended;  king's 
special  symbol  to  right.  In 
Greek,  Basileos  basileon  megalou 
Undopherou. 

Rev.,  Zeus  standing  to  right,  right 
arm  extended ;  monogram  to 
right,  Kharoshthi  letters  to  left. 
In  Kharoshthi,  Maharaja  rajati- 
raja  tratara  devavrada  Gudu- 
pharasa,  "  The  king  of  kings, 
the  great  Gondopharnes, devoted 
to  the  gods." 

9.  Azilises.    AR.  Didrachm. 

Obv..  king  on  horseback  holding 
elephant-goad  in  right  hand, 
symbol  to  right.  In  Greek  as  on 
No.  5,  but  Azilisou. 

Rev.,  Discouroi  standing  side  by 
side,  armed  with  spears.  Legend 
as  No.  5,  but  Ayilishasa. 

10.  Spalyris  with  Spalagadames.     JE. 

Obv.,  in  square  frame  the 
king  on  horseback.  In  Greek, 
Spalurios  dikaiou  adelphou  tou 
basileos  "  (Coin)  of  Spalyris  the 
just,  the  brother  of  the  king." 

Rev.,  naked  diademed  Herakles, 
with  club,  sitting  on  a  rock  ; 
monogram  to  left.  In  Kharo- 
shthi, Spalahoraputrasa  dhra- 
miasa  Spalagadamasa  "  (Coin) 
of  Spalagadames,  son  of  Spala- 
hores  (Spalyris)  the  just  " 


PLATE  III 


PLATE  IV 


KEY  TO  PLATE  IV 


1.  Hermaios  and  Kujula  Kadphises. 

JE. 

Obv-,  diademed  bust  of  king  to 
right.  In  Greek,  Basileos 
sterossu  Hermaiou.  (Meaning: 
obscure. ) 

Rev.,  Herakles  facing,  with  lion's 
skin  and  club.  In  Kharoshthi, 
Kujula  Kasasa  Kushana  yavugasa 
dhramafhidasa  "(Coin)  of  Kujula 
Kasa,  chief  of  the  Kushanas, 
steadfast  in  the  law." 

2.  Kujula  Kadaphes— imitation   of  a 

Roman  type.    IE,. 

Obv.,  diademed  head  to  right.  In 
corrupt  Greek,  Khoranou  zaoou 
Kozola  Kadaphes. 

Rev.,  king  seated  to  right  on  a 
chair,  behind  him  a  monogram. 
In  Kharoshthi,  .  .  .  Kaphsasa1 
sachadhramathitasa  Khushanasa 
yiiasa  "(Coin)  of  Kapsha,  chief 
of  the  Kushanas,  steadfast  in 
the  true  law." 

3.  Vima    Kadphises.     AV.     Double 

stater.    Wt.  244'2  grs. 

Obv.,  king  seated  cross-legged, 
wearing  crested  helmet  and 
diadem,  thunderbolt  in  right 
hand ;  symbol  to  left.  Legend 
in  Greek  letters,  Basileus  Ooemo 
Kadphises. 

Rev.,  isiva  radiate,  standing  in 
front  of  bull,  long  trident  in 
right  hand ;  symbol  to  left.  In 
Kharoshthi,  Maharajasa  raja- 
dhirajasa  sarvaloga  isvarasa 
Mahisvarasa  Vima  Kathphisasa 
tradara  "(Coin)  of  the  great 
king,  the  king  of  kings,  lord  of 
the  world,  the  Mahesvara,  Vima 
Kathphisa,  the  defender."* 

4.  Kanishka.    AV.    Wt.  122  grs. 
Obv.,   king    radiate,    standing    to 

left  sacrificing  at  a  small  altar, 
spear  in  left  hand.  In  Greek 
characters,  Shdonanoshao  Kanesh- 
ki  Koshdno  "(Coin)  of  the  king 
of  kings, Kanishka  the  Kushana." 
Rev.,  Buddha  facing  nimbate, 
wallet  in  left  hand;  to  right 
symbol.  In  Greek,  Boddo. 

5.  Kanishka.    AV.    Wt.  30'8  grs. 
Obv..    half-length  portrait  of  king 


to  left,  spear  in  left  hand. 
Legend  as  on  No.  4. 
Rev.,  bearded  deity  to  left,  with 
fillet  in  right  hand  and  tongs  in 
left.  To  left  symbol,  to  right 
Athsho. 

6.  Kanishka.    JB. 

Obv.,  as  No.  4,  but  legend  Shdo 

Kaneshki. 
Rev.,   Wind-god,    undraped     and 

radiate,  running   to  left;  to  left 

symbol,  to  right  Oado. 

7.  Huvishka.    AV.    Wt.  120'9  grs. 
Obv.,  king  riding  on  an  elephant 

to  right,  holds  sceptre  and 
elephant-goad.  Legend  as  on 
No.  4,  but  Oeshki. 

Rev.,  goddess  to  right,  holding  cor- 
nucopiae  in  both  hands ;  to 
right  symbol,  to  left  Ardokhsho. 

8.  Huvishka.    AV.    Wt.  123  grs. 
Obv.,   king    seated   cross-legged. 

turning  to  left;  goad  in  left 
hand,  sceptre  in  right.  Legend 
as  on  No.  7. 

Rev.,  bearded  Herakles,  with  club 
and  lion's  skin,  standing,  apple 
in  left  hand ;  to  left  symbol,  to 
right  Herakilo. 

9.  Vasudeva.    AV.    Wt.  122*3  grs. 
Obv.,  similar  to  No.  4,  but  king 

wears  suit  of  chain-mail;  also 
name  Bazodeo  in  legend. 
Rev.,  many-headed  3iva,  standing 
in  front  of  bull,  trident  in  left 
hand;  symbol  to  right,  to  left 
Oesho. 

10.  Later  Great   Kushana.  AV.    Wt. 

121-4  grs. 

Obv..  as  No.  4,  but  corrupt  legend, 
Nagari  letters,  to  left  "  ha,"  to 
right  "vi." 

Rev.,  goddess  seated  on  throne 
facing,  holding  noose  in  right, 
cornucopiae  in  left  hand  ;_left, 
above  symbol,  below  Nagari 
"  la  "  ;  to  right  Ardokhsho. 

11.  Yaudheya.    JB. 

Obv.,  soldier  standing,  holding 
spear  in  right  hand.  In  Brahmi, 
Yaudheyaganasya  iaya  dvi  .  .  . 
"  Of  the  clan  of  Yaudheyas  (?)" 

Rev.,  standing  figure,  symbol  on 
either  side. 


1  Four   different   Kharoshthi    forms     appear    on     coins— Kasa,   Kaphsa, 
Kadapha  and  Kau.    It  is  uncertain  how  many  persons  they  denote. 
*  Mahesvara  (Mahesh)  is  a  name  of  £iva. 


COINS   OF   THE   WESTERN   SATRAPS      31 

Western-Ghats  at  about  the  same  period,  also  reproduced 
the  Greek  hemidrachm  (PI.  II,  11),  as  did  the  Andhra 
king,   Sri  Yajna  Gotamiputra   (PI.    Ill,   1).     Another 
Saka  chieftain,  Chashtana,  about  A.D.  115,  founded  a 
kingdom  in  Malwa,  striking  hemidrachms  like  those  of 
Nahapana  on  the  Greek  model,  and  resembling  most 
nearly  the  coins  of  Apollodotos.     The  coins   of  both 
these  princes  preserve  the  remains  of  Greek  characters 
on  the  obverse,  and  on  the  reverse  are  inscriptions  in 
both   Nagari1   and   Kharoshthi,  but   after  the  death  of 
Chashtana  the  Kharoshthi  inscription  disappears.     His 
successors,  known  as  the  Western  Satraps,  extended  his 
dominions  by  conquests  from  the  Andhras  until   they 
embraced  all  the  flourishing  ports  on  the  west  coast  with 
their    valuable    sea-borne    trade.      Their   hemidrachms 
are  found  in  great  abundance  throughout  Western  India  : 
on   the   reverse   of    all   appears   the    Buddhist    chaitya 
copied  from  the  Andhra  coinage  ;  the  portraits  on  the 
obverse  are  distinctly  Scythian  in  appearance.      These 
coins  are  of  special  historical  importance  ;  for  in  the  reign 
of  the  fifth   satrap,  Jivadaman,  dates   in   the   so-called 
Saka  era,2  recording  the  year  of  issue, were  added  to  the 
inscription  (PI.  Ill,  2);  and  these  are  of  the  greatest 
service  in  helping  to  date  events  here  and  elsewhere  in 
India   down   to  the  year  A.D.   395,  when  the  Guptas 
conquered  the  country,  and  the  long  and   monotonous 
series  of  Western  Satrap  coins  came  to  an  end.     The 
Guptas  in  their  turn  struck  silver  of  the  same  type  ;  and 
these  degenerate  descendants  of  the  Greek  hemidrachm 
had  a   further   lease    of   life,  when,  imported   by    the 
Guptas  from  their  western  (PI.  VI,  1)  to  their  central 
dominions  (PI.  VI,   2),  they  were   adopted  by  several 
minor  dynasties,  including  the  Maukharis,  and  were  even 
struck  by  the  invading  Huns  (PI.  VI,  7). 

Imitation  of  both  Greek  and  Saka  models  is  notice- 
able in  the  coins  of  the  Hindu  state  of  Odumbara. 
(PI.  Ill,  3),  the  modern  Pathankot ;  both  these  and  the 

1  Nagari  is  a  later  form  of  Brahmi  script. 
1  The  Saka  era  started  in  A.D.  78  ;  this  date  is  now  considered 
to  mark  the  first  year  of  Kanishka's  reign. 

3 


32  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

earlier  silver  coins  of  the  Kunindas,  who  occupied  hilly 
districts  near  the  river  Satlej,  have  legends  in  Brahmi 
and  Kharoshthi;  both  may  be  assigned  to  the  first 
century  B.C. 


Fig.  3.    Kharoshthi  Script  on  Coin  of  Hippostratos. 
Cf.  PL  II,  5. 


Fig.  3.    Monograms  on  Indo-Greek  Coins,  etc. 
Ill 

COINS  OF  THE  KUSHANA  KINGS 

THE  Yueh-chi,  who  drove  the  Sakas  out  of  Bactria 
about  the  year  126  B.C.,  were  destined  to  create  "one 
of  the  greatest  empires  of  ancient  India. "  At  some  date 
after  A.D.  25,  one  of  the  five  tribes  of  which  they  were 
composed,  the  Kushanas,  became  supreme,  and  under 
the  leadership  of  the  head  of  that  tribe,  Kujula  Kad- 
phises,  they  passed  south  of  the  Hindu  Kush,  and 
overwhelmed  the  Pahlavas,  then  ruling  in  the  Kabul 
valley.  The  deposition  of  Pacores,  successor  of 
Gondopharnes  to  the  Pahlava  kingdom  of  Taxila,  must 
have  taken  place  between  the  years  A.D.  45  and  A.D. 
64,  and  was  effected  by  Vima  Kadphises,  the  second 
Kushana  king.  Henceforward  there  is  less  confusion 
of  dynasties.  We  know  the  names  and  the  chronological 
order  of  these  powerful  Kushana  princes — Kujula 
Kadphises,  Vima  Kadphises,  Kanishka,  Huvishka,  Vasu- 
deva  ;  the  names  of  the  three  last  are  even  recorded  in 
several  inscriptions.  It  seems  to  be  now  generally 
accepted  that  Kanishka  was  the  founder  of  the  so-called 
£aka  era,  and  that  consequently  his  reign  started  in 
A.D.  78. *  The  chief  remaining  difficulty  is  the  attribu- 
tion of  certain  copper  coins  bearing  the  title  Kujula 

1  Cambs.  History  of  India,  Vol.  I,  p.  583. 

Note. — The  monograms  in  Fig.  3  occur  on  coins  of  the 
following:  (1)  Eukratides,  (2)  Apollodotos,  (3)  Apollodotos, 
Maues,  (4)  Azes  I,  (5)  Soter  Megas,  (6)  Gondopharnes  and 
Aspavarma. 


34  THE  COINS  OP  INDIA 

Kadaphes  (Kharoshthi — Kuyula  Kaphasa]  ;  this  must 
remain  for  the  present  unsettled. 

The  commoner  type  of  these  Kadaphes  coins 
deserves  special  attention  (PI.  IV,  2);  for  the  head 
on  the  obverse  is  directly  copied  from  the  coins  of 
one  of  the  earlier  Roman  Emperors,  probably  Augustus, 
and  bears  evidence  to  that  Roman  influence  which  is  so 
marked  in  the  gold  coinage  of  the  Kushanas,  and  which 
is  partly  traceable  to  the  intercourse  between  the 
Yueh-chi  and  the  Roman  Empire  before  their  invasion 
of  India,  an  intercourse  which  resulted  in  Kushana 
ambassadors  being  actually  sent  to  the  court  of 
Augustus.  But  the  plentiful  issues  in  gold  of  Vima 
Kadphises  and  his  two  successors,  all  struck  on  the  same 
standard  as  the  Roman  aureus,  are  due  also  to 
other  causes.  Exports  from  India  to  different  pro- 
vinces of  the  Roman  Empire,  carried  by  sea  from  the 
south,  and  by  the  overland  routes  in  the  north,  were 
paid  for  in  Roman  gold ;  and  the  aureus  had,  like  the 
English  sovereign  in  more  recent  times,  at  this  period 
acquired  that  status  as  a  current  coin  in  India,  which  it 
already  possessed  in  those  parts  of  Asia  more  directly 
under  the  influence  of  the  imperial  power.  It  was  only 
natural  that  these  Kushana  invaders  should  seek  to  win 
acceptance  for  their  new  gold  currency  by  placing  it 
on  an  equality  with  the  popular  Roman  gold.  There 
was,  moreover,  at  this  time  a  world  shortage  of  silver  : 
not  only  do  we  find  the  Pahlava  kings  striking  didrachms 
in  debased  silver,  but  the  silver  denarius  itself  was, 
during  the  early  empire,  being  reduced  in  weight 
and  fineness.  This  accounts  for  the  disappearance  of 
silver  and  the  important  place  of  gold  in  the  Kushana 
coinage,  and  is  probably  also  partly  the  reason  why  the 
Western  Satraps  struck  only  small  hemidrachms,  and 
these  often  in  inferior  silver. 

The  coins  of  Kujula  Kadphises  are  all  of  copper. 
Those  which  he  struck  in  the  style  of  Hermaios  have 
the  head  of  the  Greek  king  on  the  obverse  (PI.  IV,  1), 
and  he  used  the  same  type  after  the  name  of  Hermaios 
had  disappeared  from  the  inscriptions  ;  both  these  types 


COINS   OF   THE   KUSHAtfA   KINGS         35 

were  current  in  the  Kabul  province.  Another  type, 
akin  to  the  Saka  coins,  has  a  bull  on  the  obverse  and 
a  Bactrian  camel  on  the  reverse.  In  one  of  his  inscrip- 
tions, for  which  like  his  successor  he  uses  both  Greek 
and  Kharoshthi,  he  is  styled  "  The  Great  King,  King  of 
Kings,  the  Son  of  Heaven" 

The  gold  of  Vima  Kadphises  (c.  A.D.  45-78)  was 
struck  in  three  denominations,  the  double  stater  (PI.  IV, 
3),  the  stater  or  dinar  a?  as  the  Kushanas  called  it  (=  the 
Roman  aureus  of  124  grains  weight),  and  the  quarter 
stater.  On  the  obverse  of  these  appears  either  the 
king's  head  or  bust,  or  the  king  seated  cross-legged  on 
a  couch,  or,  as  on  a  rare  stater  in  the  British  Museum, 
sitting  in  a  two-horsed  chariot.  On  the  copper  coins, 
which  are  of  three  sizes,  the  king  is  almost  invariably 
standing,  with  his  right  hand  placing  an  offering  upon 
a  small  altar  at  his  side.  The  portrait  of  the  king  is 
most  realistic,  though  hardly  flattering — a  corpulent 
figure  with  a  long  heavy  face  and  a  large  nose,  he 
appears  wearing  the  long  Kushana  cloak  and  tall 
"  Gilgit  "  boots,  on  his  head  a  conical  hat  with  streamers. 
Vima  Kadphises  must  have  been  a  zealous  convert  to 
the  worship  of  the  Hindu  god  Siva,  for  the  god  or  his 
emblem,  the  trident  battle-axe,  is  the  invariable  device 
on  the  reverse  of  all  his  coins.  The  title  "Soter  Megas" 
on  this  king's  copper  coins  indicates  a  relationship 
between  him  and  the  so-called  "nameless  king"  men- 
tioned in  the  previous  chapter,  whose  coins  bear  the 
same  legend. 

Kanishka,  the  real  founder  of  the  great  Kushana 
empire,  which  stretched  from  Kabul2  to  the  banks  of  the 
Ganges,  may  have  belonged  to  another  branch  of  the 

1  Dinara  is  derived  from  the  Roman  denarius.  It  affords  an 
interesting  example  of  the  vicissitudes  which  so  many  coin  names 
have  experienced.  The  first  letter  of  the  same  word  d  (enarius) 
now  signifies  copper  in  English  money. 

1  The  province  of  Kabul  must  be  reckoned  Indian  territory 
from  the  time  of  Chandragupta  Maurya  till  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury. It  was  reunited  to  India  by  the  Mughal  Emperor  Babur 
in  the  sixteenth  century  and  lost  again  in  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth. 


36  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Yueh-chi — he  was  not,  at  any  rate,  nearly  related  to  Vima 
Kadphises,  whose  coins  are  distinct  in  many  respects 
from  those  of  Kanishka  and  his  successors.  One 
marked  distinction  is  the  use  of  Greek  legends  only  by 
these  later  kings.  The  Greek  is  often  very  debased, 
and  the  reason  suggested  for  its  employment  is  that 
Khotanese,  the  native  tongue  of  the  Kushanas,  was  first 
reduced  to  writing  in  the  Greek  character.  Kanishka 
also  introduced  the  Iranian  title,  Shaonanoshao — "  King 
of  Kings  " — in  place  of  the  Greek  form  Basileos  BasileOn. 
On  the  reverse  side  of  the  extensive  gold  (full  and 
quarter  staters  only)  and  copper  coinage  of  Kanishka 
and  Huvishka  is  portrayed  a  whole  pantheon  of  gods 
and  goddesses ;  among  them  are,  the  Greek  gods, 
Helios,  Herakles  (PI.  IV,  8),  Selene;  the  Hindu  god, 
Siva  (Oesho  on  the  coins);  the  Iranian  deities,  Athro, 
11  Fire,"  Oado,  the  wind  god,  Ardokhsho  and  Nana,  and 
even  the  great  Buddha  himself  (PI.  IV,  4),  who  had 
previously  appeared  on  a  copper  coin  of  Kadaphes. 
The  representation  of  this  "mixed  multitude  "  was  pro- 
bably intended  to  conciliate  the  religious  scruples  of 
the  numerous  peoples  included  within  the  vast  territory 
of  the  Kushana  Empire.  A  standing  figure  of  the  king 
appears  on  the  obverse  of  Kanishka's  gold  staters,  on 
the  small  quarter  staters  is  a  half  (PI.  IV,  5)  or  quarter 
length  portrait.  On  Huvishka's  gold  the  standing 
figure  never  appears ;  the  portrait  is  either  half  length 
or  merely  the  king's  head ;  on  one  coin  the  king  is 
seated  cross-legged  ;  on  another  (exceedingly  rare)  he 
is  riding  an  elephant  (PL  VI,  7).  Vasudeva  closely 
imitates  Kanishka's  standing  figure  type  on  his  gold. 

Kanishka's  copper  coinage  is  of  two  types  :  one  has 
the  usual  "standing  king"  obverse  (PI.  IV,  6);  and  on 
the  rarer  second  type  the  king  is  sitting  on  a  throne. 
Huvishka's  copper  is  more  varied;  on  the  reverse,  as 
on  Kanishka's  copper,  there  is  always  one  of  the 
numerous  deities  ;  on  the  obverse  the  king  is  portrayed 
(1)  riding  on  an  elephant,  or  (2)  reclining  on  a  couch, 
or  (3)  seated  cross-legged,  or  (4)  seated  with  arms 
raised. 


COINS   OF   THE    KUSHANA   KINGS          37 

Kanishka  had  been  a  great  patron  of  Buddhism. 
Vasudeva  was  evidently  a  convert  to  Hinduism  and  an 
ardent  devotee  of  Siva.  On  the  reverses  of  his  coins 
the  deity  is  almost  invariably  Siva  accompanied  by  his 
bull  (PI.  IV,  9),  but  there  is  a  rare  copper  piece  on 
which  the  word  "  Vasu  "  in  Brahmi  occupies  the  obverse, 
and  the  special  symbol  of  Vasudeva  the  reverse. 
About  half  a  dozen  other  symbols,  which  take  the  place 
of  the  monograms  of  the  Indo-Greeks,  appear  on  the 
coins  of  the  Kushanas. 

After  the  death  of  Vasudeva,  in  A.D.  220,  the  Kushana 
power  declined,  though  the  descendants  of  Kanishka 
held  the  Kabul  valley  till  A.D.  425.  The  coins  of  these 
kings,  principally  of  two  classes,  are  degenerate  copies 
of  the  gold  coins  of  Kanishka  and  Vasudeva.  One 
continues  the  standing-king  type  with  the  Siva  and  bull 
reverse ;  the  second  has  the  standing-king  obverse, 
with  the  deity  Ardokhsho,  who  was  by  this  time 
identified  with  the  Indian  Lakshmi,  represented  as 
sitting  on  a  throne  and  holding  a  cornucopia  on  the 
reverse  (PI.  IV,  10).  Certain  Brahmi  letters,  now 
unintelligible,  seem  to  have  distinguished  the  coins  of 
successive  rulers.  It  was  this  latter  type,  current 
throughout  the  Panjab,  that  the  Gupta  kings  took  as  the 
model  for  their  earliest  coinage.  In  A.D.  425  a  tribe 
of  the  Little  Yueh-chi,  under  a  chief  named  Kidara, 
replaced  the  great  Kushana  dynasty  at  Kabul ;  but  they 
were  driven  out  fifty  years  later  by  an  inroad  of  the 
Ephthalites,  or  White  Huns,  and  settled  in  the  Chitral 
district  and  in  Kashmir.  There  they  struck  coins  in 
much  alloyed  gold  and  also  in  copper  of  this  same 
standing-king  and  seated-goddess  type,  and  there  it 
survived  in  a  hardly  recognizable  form  in  the  later  coins, 
until  the  Muhammadans  put  an  end  to  the  Hindu  king- 
dom in  the  fourteenth  century.  Certain  kingdoms  in 
the  Panjab  also  copied  the  large  copper  coins  of  the 
Kushanas  :  the  most  striking  of  these  minor  coinages  is 
that  of  the  Yaudheyas,  whose  territory  included  the 
modern  state  of  Bahawalpur.  One  type  of  their  coins 
shows  a  female  standing  figure  on  the  obverse,  and  a 


38  THE   COINS   OF    INDIA 

soldier  with  a  Brahmi  inscription  on  the  reverse  (PL  IV, 
11).  The  earliest  coins  of  Nepal  current  from  the  fifth 
to  the  seventh  century  also  show  traces  of  Kushana 
influence.  These  large  copper  pieces  give  the  names  of 
at  least  four  kings,  Mananka,  Gunanka/Ansuvarmanand 
Jishnugupta.  Various  devices  are  used,  among  them 
the  goddess  seated  cross-legged.  The  coins  of  Ahsu- 
varman,  of  the  seventh  century,  have  a  cow  standing 
to  the  left  on  the  obverse  and  a  winged  horse  with  the 
king's  name  on  the  reverse  (PI.  V,  1). 

The  reigns  of  Kanishka  and  Huvishka  coincide  with 
the  most  flourishing  period  of  the  great  Gandhara 
school  of  sculpture,  which  had  arisen  during  the  rule 
of  the  Saka  princes.  Hellenistic  influence  is  very 
strongly  marked  in  that  art,  and  it  may  be  interesting 
to  consider  here  briefly  what  contribution  the  coins 
make  to  the  vexed  question  of  the  respective  parts 
played  by  Greek  and  Indian  ideals  in  moulding  its  char- 
acter. A  careful  inspection  of  the  successive  coinages 
of  the  Indo-Greeks,  the  Sakas  and  the  Kushanas  will 
show  that  the  strongest  influences  of  pure  Greek  art 
had  passed  away  before  the  reign  of  Kanishka.  With 
the  establishment  of  Greek  rule  south  of  the  Hindu 
Kush,  traces  of  the  Indian  craftsman's  hand  begin 
to  appear.  As  time  goes  on  these  become  more 
apparent,  until,  in  the  Kushana  period,  the  whole  fabric 
of  the  coins,  if  not  entirely  Indian,  is  far  more  Oriental 
than  Greek.  That  purely  Indian  influences  were 
strongly  at  work  is  very  evident  in  the  cult  of 
Siva  as  expressed  on  the  coins  of  Vima  Kadphises 
and  Vasudeva  for  instance  ;  in  the  Buddha  coins  of 
Kadaphes  and  Kanishka,  and  in  the  typical  Indian 
cross-legged  attitude  in  which  Kadphises  II  and 
Huvishka  are  depicted ;  and,  after  all  is  said,  the 
art  was  produced  in  India  and  must  have  been  largely  if 
not  entirely  the  work  of  Indian  craftsmen.  Originality 
in  art  does  not  so  much  consist  in  evolving  something 

1  It  has  been  suggested  with  great  probability  that  these  are 
really  compound  words  signifying  "  the  mark  or  device  of  Mana, 
of  Guna," 


KEY  TO  PLATE  V 


1.  Nepal:  Amsuvarman.    M. 
Obv.,  cow  to  left,  Kdmadehl,  "  The 

cow  that  yields  every  wish." 
Rev.,  winged  lion  to  left,  Sryamsu- 
varnta. 

2.  Samudragrupta.      Standard    type. 

AV.    Wt.  116  grs. 

Obv.,  king  standing  to  left,  holding 
standard  in  left  hand,  sacrificing 
at  altar  to  his  right ;  behind 
altar  Garuda-headed  standard ; 
beneath  king's  arm,  Samudra ', 
around,  Samarasatavitatavija vo 
jitaripur  ajito  divam  ja\ati, 
"The  unconquered  one,  whose 
victories  extend  over  a  century 
of  battles,  having  conquered  his 
enemies,  wins  heaven." 

Rev.,  goddess  Lakshim  on  a 
throne,  her  feet  on  a  lotus  ;  to 
left  symbol,  to  right  Pardkramah, 
"  The  [king]  of  supreme  might." 

3.  Id:  Lyrist  type.  AV.  Wt.  119'5  grs. 
Obv.,  king  seated  cross-legged  on 

high-backed  couch,  playing  on  a 
lyre  ;  beneath  couch  a  foot-stool 
inscribed  St.  Legend,  Mahdrdjd- 
dhirdja  Sri  Samudraguptah. 
Rev.,  Lakshrni  seated  on  wicker 
stool,  holding  fillet  in  right 
hand,  cornucopiae  on  left  arm  ; 
to  right  Samudraguptah. 

4.  Id:     Chandragupta  I    type.     AV. 

Wt.  118  grs. 

Obv.,  Chandragupta  on  right,  hold- 
ing crescent-topped  _  standard, 
offering  ring  to  Kumaradevi  on 
left ;  on  right  Chandragupta ; 
on  left  £ri  Kumaradevi. 

5.  Id:    Asvamedha  type.     AV.  Wt. 

118'6  grs. 

Obv.,  horse  stands  to  left  before  a 
sacrificial  post ;  beneath  horse 
Si ;  around,  parts  of  Rajddhi- 
rdjah  prithiwvijitva  divam  ja- 
yatyd  hrtavdjimedhah,  "  The  king 
of  kings,  having  conquered  the 
earth,  wins  heaven,  being  the 
restorer  of  the  Asvamedha." 

6.  Chandragupta  II.      Archer    type. 

AV.    Wt.  124'3  grs. 

Obv.,  king  standing  to  left,  draw- 
ing arrow  from  a  quiver ;  Garuda 
standard  on  left ;  under  left  arm, 
Chandra :  around,^  Deva  Sri 
Mahardjddhirdja  Sri  Chandra- 
guptah. 

Rev.,  goddess  seated  facing,  on 
lotus  ;  lotus  in  left,  fillet  in  right 
hand ;  symbol  to  left ;  to  right, 
Sri  Vikrama. 

7.  Id :   Chattra  type.  AV.  Wt.  119  grs. 
Obv.,  king  standing  to  left,  casting 

incense  on  altar;    behind  him 


dwarf  attendant  holds  a 
"  chattra "  over  his  head. 
Around,  Ksitim  avajitya  sucari- 
tair  divam  jayati  Vikramddityah, 
"  Vikramaditya,  having  con- 
quered the  earth,  wins  heaven 
by  good  deeds." 

Rev.,  goddess  Lakshmi  standing 
facing,  holding  fillet  and  lotus ; 
symbol  to  left ;  to  right,  Vikra- 
mddityah. 

8.  Id :  Horseman  type.  AV.  Wt.  1207 

grs. 

Obv.,  king  riding  on  fully  capari- 
soned horse  to  left,  holding  a 
bow.  Around,  Paramabhdgavata 
Mahardjddhirdja  Sri  Chandra- 
guptah,  "  Supreme  among  Bha- 
gavatas,  king  of  kings,"  etc. 

Rev.,  as  No.  3.  To  right,  Ajitavik- 
ramah,  "  He  whose  prowess  is 
unsurpassed." 

9.  Kumaragupta  I.    Lion-slayer  type. 

AV.    Wt.  125'6  grs. 

Obv.,  king  standing  to  right  shoots 
a  lion,  which  falls  backward. 
Around,  Kumdragupto  yudhi 
sinhavikkramah,  "Kumaragupta, 
who  has  the  valour  of  a  lion  in 
battle." 

Rev.,  goddess  Ambika-Lakshmi 
seated  facing,  on  a  lion,  holding 
fillet  and  lotus.  To  right,  Sinha- 
makendrah,"Thelion  Mahendra." 

10.  Id :  Peacock  type.  AV.  Wt.l28'5grs. 
Obv.,  king  standing  to  left,  feeding 

peacock  with  a  bunch  of  grapes. 
Legend  uncertain. 
Rev.,  Karttikeya,  riding  on  his 
peacock,  Parvani,  spear  in  left 
hand,  sprinkling  incense  on  altar. 
To  right,  Mahendrakumdrah. 

11.  Prakasaditya.      Horseman     type. 

AV.    Wt.  1451  grs. 
Obv.,  king    slaying    a    lion    from 

horseback;  Garuda  standard  on 

right.    Legend  incomplete. 
Rev.,  goddess  seated  as  on  No.  6. 

To  right,  Sri  Prakasaditya. 

12.  S"asanka.    king    of    Gauda.     AV. 

Wt.  145  grs. 
Obv.,  S"iva    nimbate,  reclining  on 

bull  (Nandi);  moon  above  on  left. 

On  right,  Sri  Sa  ;  below,  jaya. 
Rev.,  Lakshmi    seated   on    lotus, 

elephants  above  on  either  side 

sprinkling    water   on    her.     On 

right,  Sri  Sasahka. 

13.  Chandragupta  II.  Chattra  type.  JE. 
Obv.,  as  on  No.  7. 

Rev.,  Garuda  standing  facing,  with 
outspread  wings  and  human 
arms.  Below,  portions  of  Maha- 
raja Sri  Chandraguptah. 


PLATE  V 


PLATE  VI 


KEY  TO  PLATE  VI 


1.  Kumaragupta  I.  W.  Provinces 
type.  AR.  Wt.  33'5  grs. 

Obv.,  bust  of  king:  to  right;  cor- 
rupt Greek  letters. 

Rev.,  Garuda  standing:  facing:, 
with  outstretched  w  I  n  g  s  . 
Around,  Paramabhdgavata  Ma- 
harajddhiraja  Sri  Kumaragupta 
Mahendradityah. 

2  Skandagupta.  Central  Provinces 
Type.  AR.  Wt.  321  grs. 

Obv.,  bust  of  king  to  right ;  to 
right,  date  in  Brahrai  numerals. 

Rev.,  peacock  standing  facing, 
with  wings  and  tail  outspread; 
border  of  dots.  Around,  Vijita- 
vanir  avanipati  jayati  divam 
Skandagupto  'yam,  "  This  Skand- 
agupta,  having  conquered  the 
world,  [as]  world-lord,  wins 
heaven." 

3.  Siladitya      (Harshavardhana)    of 

Thanesar.     AR.    Wt.  about    36 

Obv.,  bust  of  king  to  left ;  to  left, 
Sa  and  uncertain  date. 

Rev.,  peacock  as  on  No.  2. 
Around,  Vijitdvanir  avanipati. 
Sri_Sildditya  divam  jayati,  "  3ri 
Siladitya  having  conquered  the 
world,  [as]  world-lord,  wins 
heaven." 

4.  Mihiragula.    AR.    Wt.  54'2  grs. 
Obv.,  bust  of  king  to  right ;  in  front, 

bull-standard;     behind,   trident. 
Legend,  Jayatu  Mikirakula. 
Rev.,  debased  fire-altar  and  atten- 
dants. 

5.  Napki  Malik.    AR  (base).    About 

52gnrs. 
Obv.,  bust  of  king  with  winged 

head-dress;  above,  buffalo's  head 

facing.    Pahlavi     legend,  Napki 

Malik. 
Rev.,  Fire-altar  and  attendants, 

wheel  over  head  of  each. 

6.  Indian     imitation     of     Sassanian 

coin.    AR  (base). 
Obv,  and    Rev.,  as  on  No.  4,  but 
very  barbarous. 

7.  Toramana.    AR.    Wt.  32'8  grs. 
Obv.,  as  on  No.  3. 

Rev-,  as  on  No.  3,  but  Sri  Tora- 
mana. 


8.  Gadhiya  paisa.    AR  (base).     Wt. 

60  grs. 

Obv.,  head  of  king  to  right. 
Rev.,    fire-altar.      More     debased 

than  No.  6. 

9.  Mahoba  :  Hallakshanavarma.  AV. 

Dramma.    Wt.  63  grs. 
Obv.,       four-armed      goddess 

seated  facing. 
Rev.,    Srimad    Hallakshanavarma 

Deva. 

10.  Dahala  :  Gangeya-deva.  AV.  Wt. 

'  62  grs. 

Obv.,  as  on  No.  9. 
Rev-,  Srimad  Gangeya  deva. 

11.  Dehli  and  Ajmer:    Prithvi  Raja. 

Bil.    Wt.52grs. 
Obv.,    horseman      to    right;     Sri 

Prithvi  Raja  deva. 
Rev.,    recumbent    bull     to    left  ; 
A sdvari  Sri  Sdmanta  deva.1 

12.  Shahis     of      Ohind:      Spalapati- 

deva.    AR.    Wt.  50  grs. 
Obv.,  horseman  to  right.    Inscrip- 
tion in  undeciphered  characters. 
Rev.,  recumbent  bull  to  left.    Sri 
Spalapali  deva. 

13.  Narwar:Chahada-deva.    JE.    Wt. 

52  grs. 
Obv..  as  No.  11,  but  legend  Sri 

Chdhacfa  deva. 
Rev.,  as  No.  11. 

14.  Kashmir;      Harsha-deva.         AV. 

Wt.  73  grs. 
Obv..  horseman  to  right ;   Harsha 

deva. 
Rev.,  seated  goddess. 

15.  Id:  Didda  Rani.    JE.  Wt.  about  85 

grs. 

Obv.,  standing  king  to  right. 
Rev.,    seated   goddess.      To   left, 

Sri  ;  to  right,  Didda. 

16.  Td:  Yasovarman.  AV(base).  Wt. 

112  grs. 
Obv.,   standing   king ;  under  left 

arm,  Kida  (ra). 
Rev.,  seated  goddess,  Sri   Yaso- 

varma. 


1  Asavari  is  said  to  be  a  name  of  Durga  ;    £ri  Samanta  deva  is  borrowed 
from  the  coinage  of  Ohind. 


COINS   OF   THE   KUSHAtfA   KINGS         39 

which  has  never  existed  before,  but  rather  in  the  ability 
to  absorb  fresh  ideas  and  transmute  them  into  a  new 
form.  And  thus  it  was  in  the  time  of  Kanishka  :  Indian 
mysticism  allowed  itself  to  be  clad  in  Greek  beauty  of 
form.  Eastern  feeling  ran,  as  it  were,  into  Western 
moulds  to  create  this  wonderful  aftermath  of  Hellenic 
art,  which  left  an  indelible  mark  upon  every  country 
of  the  Orient  where  the  cult  of  the  Buddha  penetrated. 


Fig.  4.     Gupta  Script  on  coin  of  Chandragupta  II. 
Cf.  PI.  V,  7  (obverse). 


IV 
THE  COINAGE  OF  THE  GUPTAS 

THE  Gupta  period,  computing  it  roughly  as  lasting 
from  A.D.  320  to  480, synchronises  with  a  great  revival  of 
Hinduism,  and  along  with  it  of  literature,  the  arts  and 
sciences.  The  Gupta  monarchs,  as  is  evident  from 
their  coins,  although  orthodox  devotees  of  Vishnu, 
were  liberal  patrons.  Kalidasa  and  other  writers  raised 
literary  Sanskrit  to  a  point  of  perfection  never  equalled 
before  or  since  ;  the  cave  frescoes  of  Ajanta  bear  wit- 
ness to  the  genius  of  the  Gupta  painters  ;  the  architec- 
ture and  sculpture  of  the  period  show  an  equally  high 
level  of  attainment ;  all  the  greatest  Hindu  mathe- 
maticians and  astronomers  flourished  in  the  fifth  and 
sixth  centuries.  It  is,  in  fact,  evident  that  when  the 
Hindu  of  to-day  harks  back  to  the  Golden  Age  of 
Hinduism,  the  picture  he  draws  in  his  mind  is  coloured 
by  traditions,  which  have  come  to  him  from  books  or 
hearsay,  of  the  age  of  the  Guptas,  rather  than  by  the 
fainter  glimmerings  of  more  heroic  times  from  the 
Vedas  or  the  great  Epics.  So,  too,  the  splendid  gold 
coinage  of  the  Guptas,  with  its  many  types  and  infinite 
varieties  and  its  inscriptions  in  classical  Sanskrit,  now 


THE   COINAGE   OF   THE   GUPTAS  41 

appearing  on  Indian  coins  for  the  first  time,  are  the  finest 
examples  of  purely  Indian  art  of  this  kind  we  possess. 
The  origin  of  the  Gupta  family  is  obscure.  This 
much  seems  certain,  that  the  family  was  not  of  high 
caste,  perhaps  of  the  lowest.  The  territory  which 
the  Guptas  are  first  found  ruling  lay  near  Pataliputra, 
the  modern  Patna  ;  it  was  much  enlarged  by  one  Gupta, 
on  the  decline  of  the  Kushana  power  in  its  eastern 
territories  ;  he  was  succeeded  by  a  son,  Ghatotkacha, 
who  assumed  the  title  of  Maharaja,  which  brings  us  out 
into  the  light  of  history  ;  for  with  the  year  of  his  son 
Chandragupta  I's  accession,  A.D.  320,  the  Gupta  era 
starts.  It  may  appear  strange  that  this  monarch  should 
have  issued  no  coins  of  his  own,  but  there  seems  little 
reason  now  to  doubt  that,  to  his  son  and  successor, 
Samudragupta,  the  real  founder  of  the  Gupta  Empire, 
should  be  assigned  those  coins  (PL  V,  4)  which  bear 
the  portraits  of  Chandragupta  and  his  wife  Kumaradevi,1 
a  member  of  the  illustrious  Lichchavi  family  reigning 
at  Vaisali2  as  early  as  the  seventh  century  B.C.  Samudra- 
gupta's  conquests,  as  we  learn  from  his  Allahabad 
pillar  inscription,  carved  out  for  him  an  empire  which 
extended  north  to  the  base  of  the  Himalayas,  east  to 
the  Brahmaputra  river,  south  to  the  banks  of  the 
Narbada,  and  west  to  the  Jumna  and  the  Chambal,  with 
a  number  of  protected  states  on  his  frontier  between 
those  rivers  and  the  Chinab.  On  the  completion  of 
his  conquests  he  revived  an  ancient  Hindu  rite  in 
celebrating  the  Asvamedha,  or  Horse-sacrifice.  Now 
the  states  under  Samudragupta's  protection  in  the 
Panjab  were  the  districts  of  the  old  Kushana  Empire 
in  which  the  gold  coinage  current  at  this  time  was, 
as  we  saw  in  the  last  chapter,  a  degraded  form  of 
the  Kushana  "standing  king"  and  "  seated  goddess," 
Ardokhsho-Lakshmi  type :  it  was  from  these  coins 
(PI.  IV,  10)  that  the  earliest  and  commonest  form  of 
Samudragupta's  issues,  the  Standard  type  (PI.  V,  2) 

1  Cf.  B.M.C.,  "  Coins  of  the  Gupta  Dynasties,"  Introduction, 
pp.  Ixiv-lxviii. 

1  Situated  in  Tirhut,  Bengal, 


42  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

was  imitated.  The  earliest  specimens,  though  much 
superior  in  workmanship,  follow  their  model  very 
closely  :  the  "  standing  king"  still  wears  Kushana  dress; 
a  Kushana  symbol  still  appears  on  the  reverse  ;  only, 
on  the  obverse,  in  place  of  Siva's  trident,  appears  a 
Garuda-headed  standard  (Garudadhvaja) ,  emblem  of 
the  cult  of  Vishnu.  This  coinage  appears  to  have  been 
introduced  about  the  middle  of  the  reign :  such  legends 
as  "  The  invincible  one,  the  lord  of  the  earth  "  suggest,  as 
indeed  is  obvious,  that  only  rich  plunder  made  such 
a  varied  and  plentiful  gold  currency  possible.  Samudra- 
gupta  struck  only  gold.  In  such  abundance  did 
the  Kushana  kings  mint  copper  money  that  it  may 
be  said  without  exaggeration  to  have  remained  in 
circulation  in  the  Pan  jab  down  to  the  nineteenth 
century  ;  in  the  time  of  the  Guptas  the  bazars  must 
have  been  full  of  it.  But  for  gold  there  is  always 
an  insatiable  demand  in  India,  and  seven  other  distinct 
varieties  appeared  during  this  reign.  Of  these  the 
Archer  type,  the  commonest  and  most  characteristic 
Gupta  coin  (El.  V,  6),  struck  by  at  least  eight  succeed- 
ing kings,  is  a  natural  development  of  the  Standard 
type,  of  which  also  further  modifications  are  to  be  found 
in  the  Battle-axe  and  Kacha  types.  On  the  obverse  of 
the  former  a  second  attendant  figure  is  introduced,  and 
a  battle-axe  instead  of  a  standard  is  in  the  king's  left 
hand.  In  the  Kacha  coins  the  change  takes  place  on 
the  reverse,  where  a  standing  figure  of  Lakshmi  facing 
left  takes  the  place  of  the  seated  goddess :  the  reverses 
of  the  Tiger-slayer  and  Asvamedha  coins  present  varia- 
tions of  this  motif.  The  Tiger-slayer  type,  of  which 
four  specimens  only  are  at  present  known,  is  the  proto- 
type of  the  Lion-slayer  issues  of  later  kings,  and 
represents  the  king,  dressed  for  the  first  time  in  an 
Indian  waistcoat  and  turban,  trampling  on  a  tiger  as 
he  shoots  it.  There  remain  the  Chandragupta  I, 
Asvamedha  (PI.  V,  5)  and  Lyrist  types,  all  three  ob- 
viously in  the  nature  of  commemorative  medals,  and 
perhaps  intended  as  pious  gifts  (dakshina)  to  Brahmans. 
The  Lyrist  coins  (PI,  V,  3),  the  rarest  of  the  three, 


THE   COINAGE  OP  THE  GUPTAS          43 

merit  special  attention.  Evidently  intended  as  a  grace- 
ful tribute  to  the  king's  accomplishments,  he  is  portrayed 
in  Indian  dress,  sitting  cross-legged  on  a  high-backed 
rather  ornate  couch,  playing  on  a  vina,  or  Indian  lute. 
On  the  reverse  appears  the  goddess  Lakshmi  seated  to 
left  on  a  mora  (wicker  stool).  The  excellent  modelling 
of  the  king's  figure,  the  skilful  delineation  of  the 
features,  the  careful  attention  to  details,  and  the  general 
ornateness  of  design  in  the  best  specimens  constitute 
this  type  as  the  highest  expression  of  Gupta  numis- 
matic art. 

Chandragupta  II  Vikramaditya  (—  Sun  of  Power), 
who  succeeded  to  the  throne  in  A.D.  375,  extended  still 
further  the  boundaries  of  the  empire,  and  at  some  time 
during  his  long  reign,  which  lasted  till  A.D.  413,  removed 
the  capital  from  Pataliputra  to  Ayodhya.  His  gold 
coinage  is  even  more  abundant  than  his  father's,  two  of 
whose  types,  the  Archer  and  Lion-slayer  (Tiger-slayer), 
he  continued ;  but  on  his  later  Archer  coins  (PI.  V,  6) 
the  goddess  Lakshmi  sits  upon  a  lotus  instead  of  a 
throne  ;  and  in  the  second  type,  besides  the  substitution 
of  a  lion  for  a  tiger,  there  is  a  change  on  the  reverse, 
Lakshmi  being  seated  on  a  lion  in  various  attitudes.  The 
figure  of  the  Lion-slayer  on  the  obverse  is  sometimes 
turned  to  the  right  and  sometimes  to  the  left ;  and  a 
unique  coin  in  the  Lucknow  Museum  shows  him  attack- 
ing the  lion  with  a  sword.  The  very  rare  Couch  design 
of  Chandragupta  is  a  derivative  of  Samudragupta's 
Lyrist  type.  In  the  new  Chattra  type  coins  (PI.  V, 
7)  we  have  yet  a  further  variant  of  the  Standard  type  : 
on  the  obverse  of  these,  behind  the  "standing  king," 
appears  a  boy  or  dwarf,  holding  an  umbrella  (chattra) 
over  his  head ;  the  reverse  shows  the  goddess  Lakshmi 
standing  on  a  lotus.  An  entirely  new  design  is  furn- 
ished by  this  king's  Horseman  coins  (PI.  V,  8).  A  king 
on  horseback  was,  as  we  have  seen,  employed  by  the 
Indo-Greeks,  and  was  characteristic  of  the  issues  of  the 
Sakas.  The  Gupta  rendering  of  the  motif  is  new  and 
spirited.  The  horse  is  fully  caparisoned,  facing  in 
some  coins  to  the  right,  on  others  to  the  left,  and  the 


44  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

king,  either  fully  clad  or  sometimes  only  in  a  waistcoat, 
carries  either  a  sword  or  a  bow ;  the  reverse  resembles 
that  of  the  Lyrist  type. 

Kumaragupta  I  (413-455J  struck  a  few  very  rare 
Asvamedha  coins,  closely  resembling  those  of  Samudra- 
gupta,  except  that  they  are  far  inferior  in  execution,  and 
the  sacrificial  horse  on  the  obverse  is  standing  to  the 
right  instead  of  to  the  left. 

He  also  continued  to  issue  the  Archer,  Horseman 
and  Lion-slayer  (PL  V,  9)  types  of  his  predecessors. 
Kumaragupta's  Tiger-slayer  coins  closely  resemble 
their  prototype  struck  by  Samudragupta,  except  that  on 
the  reverse  the  goddess  Lakshmi  is  depicted  feeding  a 
peacock.  Four  new  designs  appear  on  the  gold  of  this 
reign.  The  Swordsman  coins  present  still  another 
modification  of  the  Standard  type,  their  distinguishing 
mark  being  that  the  king's  left  hand  rests  on  his  sword- 
hilt  instead  of  grasping  a  standard  ;  on  the  reverse  is 
the  usual  goddess  seated  on  a  lotus.  Kumaragupta 
held  the  god  Karttikeya,  one  of  whose  names  was 
Kumara,  in  special  veneration.  The  Peacock  type 
(PL  V,  10)  bears  evidence  to  this,  for  on  the  reverse 
the  god  himself  appears  riding  on  his  peacock,  Para- 
vani,  and  on  the  obverse  the  king  is  shown  standing  and 
feeding  a  peacock  from  a  bunch  of  grapes.  The  rare 
Elephant-rider  type  shows  the  king  on  the  obverse 
riding  on  an  elephant  trampling  on  a  tiger  ;  and  the 
obverse  of  the  still  rarer  Pratapa  type,  so  called  from  the 
legend  on  the  reverse,  is  evidently  an  adaption  from 
some  foreign,  probably  Roman,  model. 

Skandagupta,  the  last  of  the  great  Gupta  kings, 
who  succeeded  his  father  in  A.D.  455,  was  occupied 
during  the  earlier  part  of  his  reign  in  defending  his 
empire  against  the  inroads  of  the  Huns,  over  whom  he 
appears  to  have  gained  a  decisive  victory.  This 
probably  accounts  for  the  comparative  scarcity  of  his 
gold,  of  which  only  two  types  are  known.  He 
continued  the  favourite  device  of  the  Archer  with  the 
11  seated  goddess  "  reverse,  and  introduced  a  new  type, 
on  the  obverse  of  which  the  king  appears  standing  on 


THE   COINAGE   OF   THE   GUPTAS  45 

the  left,  facing  the  goddess  Lakshmi  on  the  right,  with 
the  Garuda  standard  between  them.  But  in  this  reign 
the  gold  coinage  underwent  an  important  change  of  a 
different  character.  Hitherto  all  the  Gupta  gold  pieces 
had  been  dinaras  and  followed  the  weight  standard 
adopted  by  the  Kushana  kings  from  the  Romans.  All 
Skandagupta's  coins  are,  on  an  average,  heavier  than 
those  of  his  predecessors  ;  and  certain  of  his  Archer 
coins  evidently  represent  a  new  standard  of  about  142 
grains,  based,  perhaps,  on  the  ancient  Hindu  suvarna ; 
but  along  with  the  increase  in  weight  there  is  a 
corresponding  depreciation  in  the  purity  of  the  gold. 

The  successors  of  Skandagupta — Puragupta,  Nara- 
sinhagupta,  Kumaragupta  II,  Chandragupta  III  and 
Vishnugupta,  whose  relationship  and  dates  are  some- 
what doubtful,  struck  gold  coins  only  of  the  Archer 
type,  showing  a  gradual  deterioration  in  design  and 
execution.  On  a  few  coins  of  the  same  type  are  found 
portions  of  names,  such  as  Ghato  and  Jaya,  even  more 
difficult  to  identify.  A  certain  Prakasaditya,  perhaps 
identical  with  Puragupta,  struck  coins  on  which  the 
king  appears  on  horseback  slaying  a  lion,  a  combination 
of  the  Horseman  and  Lion-slayer  types  (PL  V,  11). 

The  inscriptions  on  Gupta  coins  are  scarcely  inferior 
to  the  designs  in  interest :  they  vary  with  each  succes- 
sive type  and  frequently  bear  a  close  relation  to  them. 
Thus  on  Samudragupta's  Battle-axe  issue  the  king  is 
described  as  "Wielding  the  axe  of  Kritanta  "  (=  Yama, 
the  god  of  Death),  while  on  his  Tiger-slayer  coins  he  is 
given  the  title  Vyaghraparakramah,  "He  who  has  the 
prowess  of  a  tiger."  Sometimes  varieties  of  the  same 
type  are  marked  by  a  difference  in  the  inscription  :  no 
less  than  seven  different  legends  are  found  on  Kumara- 
gupta I's  Archer  coins  alone.  The  obverse  legend, 
which  encircles  the  design,  usually  takes  the  form  of  a 
verse  in  Upagitior  some  other  Sanskrit  metre,  celebrat- 
ing in  highly  ornate  language  the  king's  glory  on  the 
earth  and  his  future  bliss  in  heaven,  attained  through 
his  merit  acquired  by  sacrifice.  On  the  gold  of 
Samudragupta  six  such  metrical  legends  appear ; 


46  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Chandragupta  II  has  only  three  ;  while  at  least  twelve 
are  employed  by  Kumaragupta  I.  As  an  example  the 
obverse  inscription  on  one  class  of  Chandragupta  II 's 
Chattra  coins  (Fig.  4)  may  be  taken:  "  Vikramaditya, 
having  conquered  the  earth,  wins  heaven  by  good  works  "; 
or  the  more  ornate  legend  on  a  variety  of  Kumaragupta 
I's  Horseman  type  :  "  The  unconquered  Mahendra,  invin- 
cible^ the  moon  in  the  sky  of  the  Gupta  line,  is  victorious" 
When  a  verse  appears  on  the  obverse,  the  reverse 
legend  is  distinct,  consisting  of  a  title,  sometimes  the 
repetition  of  one  which  appears  already  in  the  metrical 
obverse  inscription,  such  as  Apratirathah,  "  The  invinc- 
ible one,"  on  the  Archer  coins  of  Samudragupta.  Some- 
times the  king's  name  and  titles  only  appear,  and  then  the 
legend  on  both  obverse  and  reverse  is  often,  though  not 
always,  continuous,  but  here  again  the  reverse  inscrip- 
tion, which  appears  to  the  right  of  the  device,  consists  of 
a  single  title.  Thus  on  Chandragupta  II's  Archer  type 
appears  the  following :  obverse,  Deva-Srl-Maharajd- 
dhiraja-Srl-Chandragiiptah ;  reverse,  Sri  Vikramah. 
Entirely  distinct  in  point  of  their  inscriptions  from  all 
other  Gupta  coins  are  those  struck  by  Samudragupta  in 
memory  of  his  father  and  mother,  known  as  the 
Chandragupta  I  type  ;  on  the  obverse  appear  the  two 
names  Chandragupta  and  Kum&radevl,  and  on  the 
reverse  his  mother's  family  name,  Lichchavayah.  This 
relationship  was  evidently  a  matter  of  pride  to  the 
striker.  Finally,  on  the  obverse  of  all  coins  of  the 
Archer  and  most  of  the  allied  types  appears  vertically, 
under  or  near  the  king's  left  arm,  part  of  the  king's 
name,  as  Samudra,  Chandra  or  Kumar  a.  This  vertical 
method  of  inscription  can  be  traced  back  through  the 
later  Kushana  coins  to  a  Chinese  source.1 

Whether  the  symbols  which  occur  regularly  on  all 
Gupta  gold  are  anything  more  than  ornaments  is  doubtful. 

The  silver  coinage  of  the  Guptas  starts,  as  has  been 
already  noticed,  with  the  overthrow  of  the  Western 

1  Coins  have  been  found  in  Khotan  with  a  Chinese  legend  on 
the  obverse  and  a  Kharoshthi  inscription  on  the  reverse.  Cf. 
P.M.C.,  Vol.  I,  p.  167,  Nos.  134,  135. 


THE    COINAGE   OF   THE   GUPTAS  47 

Satraps  by  Chandragupta  II.  His  issues  follow  those 
of  the  conquered  nation  very  closely,  except  that  on  the 
obverse  appears  a  figure  of  Vishnu's  sacred  bird,  Garuda, 
in  place  of  the  c/iaztya,  and  the  dates  are  computed  in 
the  Gupta  instead  of  in  the  Saka  era.  Obviously  these 
were  intended  for  circulation  in  the  recently  annexed 
provinces.  Kumaragupta,  while  striking  large  quantities 
of  the  Garutfa-type  coins  in  the  west  (PI.  VI,  1), 
extended  the  silver  coinage  to  the  Central  Provinces  of 
his  Empire.  This  latter  class  of  money  is  entirely 
distinct  in  character  :  the  head  on  the  obverse  is  drawn 
in  a  crude  but  quite  original  manner,  and  is  probably 
intended  as  a  portrait  of  the  king ;  on  the  reverse  the 
king's  devotion  to  Karttikeya  is  once  more  displayed  in 
the  representation  of  a  peacock  with  outstretched 
wings.  A  third  class  of  silver-plated  coins,  with  a  rude 
figure  of  Garutfa  on  the  reverse,  seems  to  have  been 
intended  for  the  tributary  state  of  Valabhi.1  Skandagupta 
continued  the  Garutfa  and  Peacock  types  (PI.  VI,  2)  of 
his  father,  and  introduced  two  new  ones.  The  coins,  of 
very  base  silver,  with  Siva's  sacred  bull  Nandi  on  the 
reverse,  were  probably  current  in  Kathiawar  ;  but 
commoner  than  any  of  the  preceding  are  certain  ill- 
shaped  pieces  with  an  altar  on  the  reverse.  None  of 
the  direct  descendants  of  Skandagupta  appears  to  have 
struck  silver,  but  a  few  coins  of  the  Peacock  type 
were  issued  by  Budhagupta,  a  king  of  Eastern  Malwa, 
about  A.D.  480.  The  dates  which  appear  on  these  coins 
to  the  left  of  the  obverse  head  in  the  Western,  and  to 
the  right  in  the  Central,  issues  are  frequently  defective 
or  illegible.  Inscriptions  are  confined  to  the  reverse, 
on  the  Peacock  type  always  a  metrical  legend,  on  all 
other  types  the  king's  name  accompanied  by  high- 
sounding  titles. 

The  copper  coinage,  which  is  practically  confined  to 
the  reign  of  Chandragupta  II,  is  far  more  original  in 
design.  Eight  out  of  the  nine  types  known  to  have 

1  In  the  Kathiawar  peninsula,  forming  part  of  what  was  then 
known  as  Surashtra, 


48  THE   COINS    OF   INDIA 

been  struck  by  him  have  a  figure  of  Garufla  on  the 
reverse,  usually  accompanied  by  the  name  of  the 
king,  while  the  obverse  is  occupied  by  the  bust  or  head 
of  the  king,  or  by  a  three-quarter  length  portrait.  In 
one  class  this  is  varied  by  the  reproduction  of  the  gold 
Chattra  type  obverse  (PI.  V,  13).  The  tiny  coins  which 
constitute  the  ninth  type  have  the  word  Chandra  in  the 
obverse  and  a  flower  vase  (kalasa)  on  the  reverse. 
Only  four  copper  pieces  are  at  present  known  of  Kuma- 
ragupta. 

After  the  death  of  Skandagupta,  in  A.D.  480,  *  the 
Gupta  Empire  rapidly  broke  up.  The  inferiority  and 
comparative  scarcity  of  his  own  gold  coins,  the  still  more 
debased  issues  of  his  brother  Puragupta  and  subsequent 
kings,  and  the  disappearance  of  silver  money,  bear 
ample  evidence  to  their  curtailed  territory. 

The  impression  produced  by  the  magnificent  coinage 
of  the  Guptas  upon  the  peoples  of  Northern  India  was 
undoubtedly  as  great  as  that  created  by  the  currency  of 
their  Kushana  predecessors  ;  but,  after  the  general  devas- 
tation caused  by  the  inroads  of  the  Huns,  few  princes 
could  have  retained  sufficient  wealth  in  their  treasuries  to 
imitate  it.  It  is  significant  then  that  the  most  notable 
imitations  were  the  product  of  a  mint,  secured  by  its 
remoteness  from  the  ruthless  hand  of  the  invader,  in 
Central  Bengal.  These  remarkable  and  not  uncommon 
coins,  with  Siva  reclining  on  his  bull  Nandi  on  the 
obverse,  and  the  goddess  Lakshmi  seated  on  a  lotus  on 
the  reverse  (PI.  V,  12),  were  struck  by  Sasanka,  king 
of  Gauda  (circ.  600-625),  notorious  as  the  assassinator  of 
Harshavardhana's  elder  brother,  and  a  great  "persecutor 
of  Buddhism."  In  Bengal,  too,  for  many  years  after 
the  passing  of  the  Gupta  Empire,  were  current  flat 
gold  pieces  with  crude  reproductions  of  Gupta  designs, 
and,  with  the  exception  of  the  word  Sri  on  the  obverse, 
completely  illegible  inscriptions.  Another  rather  strik- 
ing coin  connected  with  the  Gupta  series,  with  a  stand- 

1  Or  according  to  Mr.  Panna  Lai,  "  Dates  of  Skandagupta  and 
His  Successors,"  Hindustan  Review,  January,  1918,  in  A.D.  467. 


KEY  TO  PLATE  VII 


1.  Gold  globule,  with  faint    punch- 

mark  on  reverse.    Wt.  about  52 
grs. 

2.  Padma-tanka.    AV.    Wt.  57  grs. 
Obv.,    eight-petalled    lotus,    sur- 
rounded by  "  Sarika  "  and  two 
other  symbols.    Inscription  in  a 
form  of  Nagari. 

3.  Pandya.    AV.    Wt.  57  grs. 

Obv.,  two  fishes  under  canopy  ; 
to  right,  lamp,  to  left,  "  chauri " 
(fly-whisk). 

Rev.,  undeciphered  inscription. 

4.  Eastern      Chalukya:      Rajaraja. 

AV.    Wt.  66'8  grs. 

Obv.,  in  centre,  boar  to  right; 
around,  £rt  Rajaraja  Sa  (mvat) 
35. 

5.  Kongudesa.    AV.    Wt.  60'2  grs. 
Obv.,  ornate  elephant  to  right. 
Rev.,  floral  scroll  design. 

6.  Chola.    AR.    Wt.  52  grs. 

Obv.  and  Rev.,  tiger  seated  under 
a  canopy,  behind  it  a  bow,  in 
front  two  fish,  whole  flanked 
by  two  fly-whisks.  In  Nagari, 
below,  Sri  RdjendraJi. 

7.  Ceylon :  Parakrama  Bahu.    JE. 
Obv.,  standing  king. 

Rev.,  seated  goddess.  In  Nagari, 
Sri  Parakramabahu. 


8.  Pallava     or    Chalukya  (?).      AR. 

Wt.  103-9  grs. 

Obv.,  lion  to  right. 

Rev.,  vase  on  stand,  circle  of  rays. 

9.  Kerala.    AR.    Wt.  36'3  grs. 
Obv.,  undeciphered  inscription. 
Rev.,  in  Nagari, £ri  Virakeralasya. 

10.  Kalikut:  Tipu.  AV.    Fanam.   Wt. 

about  5'2  grs. 

Obv.,  Persian  "he"  (—  Haidar). 
Rev.,  in  Persian,  Kalikut,  1199. 

11.  Vijayanagar :  Krishna  Deva  Raya. 

AV.    Half  pagoda.     Wt.  about 
26  grs. 

Obv.,  Vishnu  seated  with  discus 
and  conch. 

Rev.,  in  Nagari,  Sri  Pratapa 
Krishna  Raya. 

12.  Id:     Harihara     II.     AV.      Half 

pagoda.    Wt.  25  grs. 

Obv.,  god  and  goddess  seated. 

Rev.,  in  Nagari,  £ri  Pratapa 
Harihara. 

13.  Kananur:  'AH  Raja.    AV. 

Obv.,  in  Arabic,  Al-waliu-l-mulk 
'Alt  Raja,  "  The_guardian  of  the 
kingdom,  'AH  Raja." 

Rev.,  Bi-l-hijrati  as-sina  1194,  "  In 
the  Hijri  year  1194." 


PLATE  VII 


PLATE  VIII 


-  .ri?jj.- :  m~J*~*z^- -a 


.if: 


^m?l 

llia^a 


KEY  TO  PLATE  VIII 


1.  Altamsh.    A3. 

Obv.,  in  hexagon,  'Adi. 
Rev.,   In   square,  inscribed  in    a 
circle,  As-suUdn. 

2.  Id :  AR.    Wt.  about  165  grs. 
Rev.,   in   square,   inscribed   in    a 

circle,  As-sultanu-l-a 'zam  Sham- 
su-d-dunyd  wa-d-din"  abu-l-mu- 
zaffar  Altamsh  as-sulfdn,  "  The 
supreme  sultan,  the  sun  of  the 
world  and  the  faith,  the  father 
of  the  victorious,  Altamsh  the 
sultan."  Marginal  legends  in- 
complete. 
3.  Raziya.  Bil.  Wt.  about  54  grs. 

Obv.,  horseman  to  right.  Around, 
in  Nagari.  Sri  Hamirah  (  =the 
Amir). 

Rev.,  in  Arabic,  As-sultanu-l-a! 'zam 

Raziyatu-d-dunyd  wa-d-dln. 
4.  Ghiy5su-d-din  Balban.     Bil.    Wt. 
about  55  grs. 

Obv.,  in  circle,  in  Arabic,  Balban ; 
around,  in  Nagari,  Sri  Sultan 
Giydsudin. 

Rev.,  in  Arabic,  As-sul^dnu-l-a'zam 

Ghiyasu-d-dunyd  wa-d-din. 
5<  'Alau-d-din    Muhammad.     Dehli. 
698  A.H.    AV.'  Wt.  170  grs. 

Obv.,  in  a  circle,  Sikandaru-s- 
sdni  yaminu-l-khildfati  ndsiru 
amiru-l-mominin,  "The  second 
Alexander,  the  right  hand  of  the 
Khalifate,  the  helper  of  the 
commander  of  the  faithful"; 
margin,  Zuriba  hazihi-s-sik- 
katu  bi  ha'zrali  Dehli  ft  sinate 
samdna  wa'tis  'aina  wa  sittanti 
'a/a,  "  Struck  this  coin  at  the 
capital,  Uehli,  in  the  year  eight 
and  ninety  and  six  hundred." 

Rev.,  as  on  No.  2,  but  title,  'Alau-d- 
dunya  wa-d-din,  and  name 
Muhammad  Shah. 

6.  Qutbu-d-din   Mubarak.     719  A.H. 

Bil.    Wt.SOgrs. 

Obv.,  in  circle,  Khali falu  'llah 
Mubarak  Shah,  "  The  Khalif  of 
God,  Mubarak  Shah  "  ;  around, 
As-sultan  al  wdsiqu  bi'  llah 
amiru-l-motninin,  "The  sultan, 
the  truster  in  God,  the  com- 
mander of  the  faithful," 

Rev.,  Al  imdmu-l-a'zam  Quijbu-d- 
dunyd  wa-d-din  a6u-l-muzaffar, 
"  The  Supreme  Imam,  Qutbu-d- 
din, the  father  of  the  victorious.' ' 

7.  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq.    Dehli. 

726  AH.    A.V.    Wt.  199  grs. 

Obv.,  in  circle,  Al  wdsiqu  bita'idu- 
r-rahman  ( "  The  truster  in  the 
help  of  the  Merciful")  Muham- 
mad Shah  as-sultdn.  Margin 
similar  to  that  on  No.  5,  but 
hazihi-d-dindr  and  date  726  in 
Arabic  words. 

Rev.,  Aslihadu  an  Id  ildha  illallaho 
wa  ashhadu  an  Muhammadan 


'abduhu  wa  rasuluhu,  "  I  testify 
that  there  is  no  god  but  God, 
and  I  testify  that  Muhammad  is 
his  servant  and  apostle." 

8.  Id :  in  the  name  of  the  Khalif  Al 

Hakim.    Bil.    Wt.  about  140  grs. 
Obv.,  within  quatrefoil,  Al  Hakim 

b'  amru'llah. 
Rev.,  within     quatrefoil.     Abu-l- 

'abbds  Ahmad. 

9.  Id:  Forced  Currency.  Tughlaqpur 

730  AH.  Brass.  Wt.  about  140 
grs. 

Obv.,  in  circle,  Man  a/a4  as-sulfdn 
faqad  a/a*  ar-rahmdn,  "  He  who 
obeys  the  sultan  surely  he 
obeys  the  Merciful";  margin,  in 
Persian,  Dar  i  qlim-i-  Tughlaq- 
inir  'urf  Tirhut  sal  bar  hafsad 
si  "  (Struck)  in  the  territory  of 
Tulghlaqpur.  alias  Tirhut,  in  the 
year  seven  hundred  and  thirty." 

Rev.,  in  Persian,  Muhar  shud 
tankah-i-rd'ij  dar  ruzgdh-i- 
bandah-t-ummidwdr  Muhammad 
Tughlaq,  "Stamped  as  a'tankah 
current  in  the  reign  of  the  slave, 
hopeful  (of  mercy),  Muhammad 
Tughlaq." 

10.  FirozSh5h.    Dehli.  773  A.H.    Bil. 

Wt.  140  grs. 

Obv.,  Al  Khali fatu  amiru-l-momi- 
nin khuldat  khilafatuhu  773, 
"The  Khalif  "of  the  Com- 
mander of  the  faithful,  may  the 
Khalifate  be  perpetuated." 

Rev.,  Firoz  Shdh  sulldni  zuriba 
bi  hazrati  Dehli,  cf .  "No.  5,'Obv., 
margin. 

11.  Firoz  Shah  Zafar.    AV.    Wt.  169 

grs. 

Obv.,  in  circle,  Fi  zamani-l-imdmi 
amiru-l-mominin  Abu  'Abdu- 
'llah  khuldat  khilafatuhu,  "In 
the  time  of  the  Imam,  the  com- 
mander of  the  faithful,  Abu 
'Abd-ullah,"  etc.;  margin  ille- 
gible. 

Rev.,  As-sulldnu-l-a'zam  Firoz 
Shdh  Zafar  Shdh "  ibn-i-Firoz 
Shdh  'sulldni,  "  The  supreme 
sultan.  Firoz  Shah  Zafar  Shah, 
son  of  Firoz  Shah,  sultan." 

12.  Abfibakr    Shah.     792    A.H.    JE. 

Wt.  about  102  grs. 
Obv.,  in  square,  Abubakr  Shdh;  in 

margin,    bin   Zafar    bin    Firoz 

ShdhsuUdni.  " 
Rev.,  Nd'ibi  amim-l-mominin  792, 

"  The  deputy  of  the  Commander 

of  the  faithful." 

13.  BahlolLodi.    Dehli.   858  A.H.  Bil. 

Wt.  140-146  grs. 

Obv.,  Fi  zamani  amiru-l-mominin 
khuldat  khilafatuhu  858. 

Rev.,  Al  mutawakkilu  'ala-r-ra/i- 
mdn  ("Trusting  in  the  Merciful 
one")  Bahlol  Shdh  sultan  bi 
hazrati  Dehli. 


THE   COINAGE  OP  THE  GUPTAS          49 

ing  bull  on  the  obverse,  bears  the  name  Sri  Virasena, 
but  who  Virasena  was  is  at  present  unknown.  A 
modification  of  the  seated  goddess  motif  was  preserved 
on  the  gold  coinage  of  certain  mediaeval  Rajput  king- 
doms. 

The  western  silver  coinage  of  the  Guptas  may  have 
been  imitated  by  some  of  the  powerful  Maitraka  rulers 
of  Valabhi,  who  asserted  their  independence  at  the  end 
of  the  fifth  century:  coins  bearing  the  name  Krishnaraja, 
at  present  unidentified,  are  copied  from  Skandagupta's 
bull  type.  Far  more  important  are  the  coins  struck  by 
Isanavarman,  the  Maukhari,  and  his  successors,  whose 
kingdom  was  in  Bihar.  These  follow  the  Central  Peacock- 
type,  but  the  head  on  the  obverse,  excepting  the  issue  of 
one  king,  is  turned  to  the  left  instead  of  to  the  right. 
These  otherwise  insignificant  coins  have  a  twofold 
interest:  they  were  copied  by  the  Hun  Toramana;  and, 
more  important  still,  the  name  appearing  on  the  last 
and  most  abundant  coins  of  the  series  is  Siladitya  (PI. 
VI,  3),  who  is  almost  certainly  to  be  identified  with  the 
great  Harshavardhana  of  Thanesar  and  Kanauj,  himself 
a  relation  of  the  Maukhari  princes.  What  further 
strengthens  this  conjecture  is  the  fact  that  the  dates  on  the 
Siladitya  coins  are  reckoned  in  a  new  era,  doubtless  that 
which  commenced  with  Harshavardhana's  coronation  in 
A.D.  606,  whereas  the  Maukhari  kings  use  the  Gupta 
era.  It  is  striking  testimony  to  the  havoc  wrought  by 
the  Hun  invasions  that  these  tiny  silver  pieces  are  the 
only  coins1  known  to  have  been  issued  by  this  great 
king,  who  built  up  on  the  ruins  of  Northern  India  an 
empire  scarcely  less  extensive  than  that  of  the  Guptas. 

The  copper  money  of  the  Guptas  was  copied  by  the 
Hun  princes,  Toramana  and  Mihiragula,  but  left  no 
legacy  behind,  unless  the  small  coins  which  record  the 
names  of  six  Naga  princes  of  Narwar  in  Northern  Raj- 
putana  may  have  been  derived  from  it. 

1  Certain  thin  silver  coins  of  Sassanian  type  have  been  doubt- 
fully ascribed  to  him.  Cf.  Rapson,  Indian  Coins,  p.  34,  §  122. 


Fig.  5.    Sri  Maj  Jajalla-deva,  in  old  Nagarl  Script. 


MEDI/EVAL  COINAGES  OF  NORTHERN 

AND  CENTRAL  INDIA  TILL  THE 

MUHAMMADAN   CONQUEST 

THE  centuries  which  elapsed  between  that  great 
turning  point  in  Indian  history,  the  Hun  invasions,  and 
the  coming  of  the  Muhammadans  in  the  twelfth  century, 
suggest  several  points  of  comparison  with  the  so-called 
Dark  Ages  of  European  history.  It  was  an  age  of 
transition,  pregnant  with  important  developments  for 
the  future,  but  individualistic  expression,  both  in  art  and 
literature,  remained  largely  in  abeyance.  This  want  of 
originality  is  particularly  marked  in  the  limited  coinage 
of  the  numerous  petty  kingdoms  which  flourished  and 
declined  during  the  seventh,  eighth  and  ninth  centuries. 
The  most  important  movement  of  the  time  was  the  rise 
of  the  Rajput  clans,  which  were  now  emerging  as  the 
dominant  powers  in  Hindustan.  The  Bull  and  Horseman 
type  in  the  Rajput  coinage  symbolises  this  new  force. 
In  addition  to  the  issues  of  the  Huns  and  the  Rajput 
dynasties  will  be  described  the  money  of  Kashmir,  which, 
protected  by  its  mountainous  frontiers,  ordinarily 
remained  shut  off  from  the  influence  of  political  events 
which  agitated  the  kingdoms  of  the  plains. 

I.   COINS   OF   THE   HUNS   AND  INDO-SASSANIANS 

The  military  occupation  of  India  by  the  Huns,  or 
Hunas,  lasted  but  thirty  years.  By  A.D.  500  Toramana, 


NORTHERN  MEDIEVAL    COINAGES       51 

leader  of  the  tribe  known  as  the  White  Huns  or 
Ephthalites,  had  established  himself  in  Malwa.  On  his 
death,  two  years  later,  his  successor,  Mihiragula,  com- 
pleted the  conquest  of  Northern  India,  fixing  his  capital 
at  Sakala  (Sialkot)  in  the  Panjab,  but  was  driven  out  by 
a  confederacy  of  Hindu  princes  under  the  leadership  of 
Yasodharman  of  Malwa  in  A.D.  528.  He  thereupon 
seized  the  kingdom  of  Kashmir,  where  he  ruled  till  his 
death  in  542.  Probably  there  were  other  Huna  chiefs 
who  struck  coins  in  India,  but  the  legends  on  their  coins 
are  so  fragmentary  that  their  names  have  not  as  yet 
been  satisfactorily  deciphered.  On  some  of  the  earliest 
Huna  imitations  of  Sassanian  silver  coins,  for  example, 
the  legend  Shahl  Javuvlah  appears,  but  whether  this  is 
the  name  of  a  king  or  merely  a  title  is  uncertain.  No 
Huna  coins  show  any  originality  of  design.  The  major- 
ity are  either  imitated  from  or  restruck  upon  Sassanian 
silver  pieces.  The  heads  of  both  Toramana  and 
Mihiragula  (PI.  VI,  4)  on  the  obverse  are  coarse  and 
brutal  to  the  last  degree  ;  on  the  reverse  appear  the 
usual  Sassanian  fire-altar  and  attendants ;  the  inscrip- 
tions are  generally  in  Nagari  script.  Toramana  also 
copied  the  silver  coinage  of  the  Maukharis  (PI.  VI,  7). 
The  copper  of  both  princes  show  traces  of  Sassanian 
and  Gupta  influence  ;  the  reverses  especially  recall  the 
fabric  of  Chandragupta  II's  copper  issues.  Kushana 
copper  was  imitated  by  Mihiragula,  probably  during  his 
reign  in  Kashmir. 

Although  the  Huns  were  mainly  instrumental  in 
introducing  Sassanian  types  into  India,  it  seems  certain 
that  shortly  after  their  invasion  a  Sassanian  dynasty,  or 
a  dynasty  acknowledging  the  suzerainty  of  Persia,  was 
established  in  Western  India ;  for  coins  with  bilingual 
inscriptions  in  Pahlavi  and  Nagari  have  been  found, 
directly  imitated  from  Sassanian  issues.  One  of  these 
bears  the  name  Shahi  Tigin,  and  the  Nagari  legend 
reads,  ''''King  of  India  and  Persia."  Another  class 
with  the  name  Vasudeva  is  directly  copied  from  a 
type  of  the  coinage  of  the  Sassanian  Khusru  Parviz 
struck  in  627 ;  but  the  best  known  and  the  most  finely 


52  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

executed  are  the  flat  copper  and  silver  pieces  (PI.  VI, 
5)  which  bear  the  name  Napkl  Malik  ;  but  whether  this 
prince  was  a  Persian  or  a  Hun  is  doubtful. 

These  Sassanian  coins  were  the  prototypes  of 
degenerate  base  silver  pieces  which  are  found  in  large 
quantities  throughout  Rajputana,  and  must  have  served 
as  currency  for  the  early  Rajput  states  there  for 
centuries.  At  first  they  preserve  the  thin  flat  fabric 
of  their  models  (PI.  VI,  6),  but  as  the  head  on  the 
obverse  and  the  fire-altar  on  the  reverse  become  more 
debased  they  grow  thicker  and  more  dumpy.  The 
curious  coins  known  as  Gadhiya  Paisa  (PI.  VI,  8), 
which  circulated  in  the  same  districts  and  also  in  Gujarat, 
probably  down  to  a  later  period,  also  show  traces  of  a 
Sassanian  origin.  The  silver  coins  with  the  legend 
Srlmad  Adivaraha  on  the  reverse,  and  Vishnu  in  his 
boar  avatar  (Varaha)  as  the  type  of  the  obverse,  retain 
traces  of  a  fire-altar  below  the  inscription.  These  have 
been  attributed  to  the  powerful  Bhoja-deva  of  Kanauj 
(840-890),  whose  family,  Gurjara  in  origin,  had  formerly 
ruled  in  south  Rajputana.  Very  similar  in  fabric  are 
those  inscribed  Sri  Vigraha^  assigned  to  Vigrahapala 
I,  circ.  A.D.  910,  of  the  Bengal  Pala  dynasty. 

All  these  debased  coins  follow  the  weight  standard 
of  their  Sassanian  originals,  which  represented  the 
Attic  drachma  of  67*5  grains,  and  in  inscriptions  they 
are  actually  called  "  drammas." 

II.   COINS   OF   THE   RAJPCT   DYNASTIES 

The  coins  of  the  various  Rajput  princes  ruling  in 
Hindustan  and  Central  India  are  usually  gold,  copper 
or  billon,  very  rarely  silver.  The  gold  coins  are  all 
"  drammas"  in  weight ;  the  usual  type,  which  appears  to 
have  been  struck  first  by  Gangeya-deva  Vikramaditya 
(1015-1040)  of  the  Kalachuri  dynasty  of  Pahala 
(Jabalpur),  bears  the  familiar  goddess  (Lakshmi)  on  the 
obverse  (PI.  VI,  10),  with  a  slight  deviation  from  the 
Gupta  device,  in  that  the  goddess  has  four  instead  of 
two  arms ;  on  the  reverse  is  an  inscription  giving  the 
king's  name  in  old  Nagarl  (Fig.  5).  Of  the  same  type 


NORTHERN   MEDIEVAL  COINAGES        53 

are  the  gold  coins  of  six  Chandel  kings  of  Mahoba  (PL 
VI,  9)  in  Bundelkhand  (circ.  1055-1280),  of  the  Tomara 
dynasty  of  Ajmer  and  Dehli  (978-1128),  and  of  the 
Rathor  kings  of  Kanauj  (1080-1193).  On  the  conquest 
of  Kanauj,  Muhammad  of  Ghor  actually  struck  a  few 
gold  pieces  in  this  style.  On  the  gold  of  the  last  three 
princes  of  the  Kalachuri  dynasty  of  Mahakosala,  in  the 
Central  Provinces  (circ.  1060-1140),  a  rampant  lion  is 
substituted  for  the  seated  goddess  on  the  obverse. 

The  seated  bull  and  horseman,  the  almost  invariable 
devices  on  Rajput  copper  and  billon  coins,  were  intro- 
duced by  the  Brahman  kings  of  Gandhara,  or  Ohind 
(circ.  860-950),  who  first  used  them  on  silver  ;  the  com- 
monest of  these  are  the  issues  of  Spalapati-deva  (Pl.VI, 
12)  and  Samanta-deva.  The  later  coins  of  the  dynasty, 
however,  degenerate  into  billon.  The  name  of  the 
king  in  Nagari  appears  along  with  the  bull  on  the 
reverse,  and  on  the  obverse  of  the  Ohind  coins  is  an 
inscription  hitherto  undeciphered,  but  probably  in  some 
Turanian  script.  Bull  and  Horseman  coins,  either 
copper  or  billon,  were  also  struck  by  the  Tomara  and 
Chauhan  dynasties  of  Dehli  (PI. VI, 11),  the  Rathors  of 
Kanauj,  Amritapala  Raja  of  Budayun  (Budaon),  and 
the  Rajput  kings  of  Narwar  (1220-1260;  PI.  VI,  13). 
Some  of  these  last,  in  imitation  of  the  Muhammadan 
invaders,  placed  dates  in  the  Vikrama  era1  on  their 
coins.  The  Narwar  horseman  on  later  coins  is  parti- 
cularly crude  in  design.  The  Maharajas  of  Kangra 
continued  to  strike  degenerate  Bull  and  Horseman 
coins,  from  1315  down  to  1625.  Deviations  from  this 
conventional  type  are  rare.  There  is  a  unique  coin  of 
Sri  Kamara,  king  of  Ohind,  with  a  lion  on  the  obverse 
and  a  peacock  on  the  reverse,  while  three  kings  of  the 
same  dynasty  issued  copper  with  an  elephant  obverse 
and  a  lion  reverse. 

A  few  copper  coins  of  the  Mahakosala  kings  and  of 
Jayavarma  of  Mahoba  have  a  figure  of  Hanuman  on  the 
obverse  and  a  Nagari  legend  on  the  reverse ;  and  a 

1  The  Vikrama  era  starts  in  58  B.C.     (See  page  24  ante.) 


54  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

similar  legend  takes  the  place  of  the  bull  on  some  cop- 
per pieces  of  Asalla-deva  and  Ganapati-deva  of  Narwar. 

HI.   THE  COINAGE   OF   KASHMIR 

The  early  history  of  Kashmir  as  an  independent 
kingdom  is  obscure  ;  trustworthy  annals  do  not  begin 
till  its  conquest  by  Mihiragula  in  the  sixth  century. 
From  that  time  down  till  about  1334,  when  it  was 
conquered  by  the  Muhammadans,  the  country  was  ruled 
by  four  successive  dynasties.  The  earliest  coins  are 
considered  to  be  those  with  the  head  of  a  king  on  the 
obverse  and  a  vase  on  the  reverse,  attributed  from  the 
inscription  Khingi  to  a  certain  Khingila  of  the  fifth 
century.  A  number  of  coins  of  the  eighth  century, 
struck  by  princes  of  the  Naga  dynasty,  are  known : 
these  are  for  the  most  part  of  very  base  gold,  and  were 
imitated  from  the  standing  king  and  seated  goddess 
issues  of  the  Little  Yueh-chi,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  con- 
quered Kashmir  about  the  year  475,  and  the  name  of 
the  original  leader  of  that  tribe,  Kidara,  still  appears 
written  vertically  under  the  king's  arm.  The  work- 
manship of  these  degenerate  pieces  (PL  VI,  16)  is  of 
the  rudest,  and  the  devices  would  be  quite  unintelligible 
without  a  knowledge  of  their  antecedents.  Some  copper 
coins  give  the  name  Toramana,  but  the  identification  of 
this  prince  with  the  famous  Huna  chief  presents  many 
difficulties. 

With  the  accession  of  Sankara  Varma,  the  first  of 
the  Varma  dynasty,  in  A.D.  833,  gold  practically  dis- 
appears. From  the  middle  of  the  ninth  century 
nearly  all  the  kings  whose  names  are  recorded  in 
Kalhana's  great  chronicle  history  of  Kashmir,  the 
Rajatarangim,  of  the  twelfth  century,  are  represented 
by  copper  coins,  but  the  uniform  degradation  of  the 
fabric  deprives  them  of  all  interest.  Among  these  are 
the  coins  of  two  queens,  Sugandha  and  Didda  (980-1003) 
(PL  VI,  15),  the  latter  chiefly  remarkable  for  an 
adventurous  career.  The  flourishing  state  of  sculpture 
and  architecture  during  the  eighth  and  ninth  centuries, 
and  tjie  natural  artistic  skill  of  the  Kashmiri  people. 


KEY  TO  PLATE  IX 


1.  Bengal:    Sikandar Shah.     Firoza- 

bad.  783  A.H.  AR.  Wt.  166  grrs. 
Obv.,  in  a  circle,  Abu-l-mujdhid 
("The  father  of  the  warrior") 
Sikandar  Shah  ibn-i-Ilyds  Shah 
sultan;  margin,  names  of  the 
Four  Companions  in  four  circles, 
between  these  A I  imamu-l- 
a' zamu-l-wdsiqu  bi  ta'tdu-r-rah- 
m"an  ;  cf.  P1."VIIT,  7,  Obv. 

Rev.,  Yamini  Khali  fatu 'Haft  na- 
stru  amiru-l-mominin  ghausu- 
l-isldm  wa-l-muslimtn  khallada 
mulfcahu,  "  The  right  hand  of 
the  Khalif  of  God,  the  helper  of 
the  Commander  of  the  faithful, 
the  succourer  of  Islam  and  the 
Muslims,  may  God  perpetuate 
the  kingdom  ";  margin,  in  seg- 
ments, Zuriba  hazihi-s-sikkatu- 
l-mubdrikatu  ft  baldati  Ftrozd- 
bdd,  "  Struck  this  blessed  coin 
In  the  town  of  Firozabad,"  fol- 
lowed by  date  783  in  Arabic 
words. 

2.  Bahmani :   'Alau-d-din  Ahmad  II. 

850  A.H.    AR.    Wt.  169'grs. 

Obv.,  As-sultdnu-l-haltm  ul  kartm 
ur  ra'ufi  'alai  'abdu'llak  al 
ghanlu-l-muhaimin,  "The  sul- 
tan, the  clement,  the  bountiful, 
the  kind  to  the  servants  of  God, 
the  rich,  the  confiding  one." 

Rev.,  in  a  square,  Abu-l-muzaffar 
'Aldu-d-dunyd  wa-d-dtn  Ahmad 
Shah  bin  Ahmad  Shah  al  wdltu- 
l-bahmani  ( "  The  guardian,  the 
Bahmani  "). 

3.  Malwa :   Ghiyas  Shah.    880  A.H. 

AV.   Wt.  170  grs. 

Obv.,  in  double  square,  the  outer 
one  dotted,  Al  wdsiqu  b'il  mulki 
al  multaji  abu-l-fath  ("The 
truster  in  the  kingdom,  and 
seeking  refuge  in  the  Father  of 
victory")  Ghiyas.  Shah.  A  star 
above. 

Rev.,  Bin  Mahmud  Shah  sultdnu-l- 
Khiljt  khallada  mulkahu  880. 

4.  Jaunpur :  Mahmud  Shah.     846  (?) 

A.H.    AV.    Wt.  175  grs. 
Obv.,  within    circle,  Ft  zamani-l- 
imami    na'ibi    amiru-l-mominln 
abu-l-fath    khuldat    khilafatuhu. 


Cf.  PI.  VIII.  11.  Margin,  as  on 
PI.  VIII,  5,  but  date  846  (?)  and 
mint  name  missing. 

Rev.,  in  tughra  characters,  As- 
sultan  saifu-d-dunyd  wa-d-din 
abu-l-mujdhid  Mahmud  bin  Ibra- 
him. 

5.  Id :    Husain    Shah.    864    AH.  JR. 

Wt.' 150  grs. 

Obv.,     in    circle,    Husain    Shah; 

margin,  bin  Mahmud  Shah  bin 

Ibrahim  Shah  sultdnt . 
Rev.,  Nd'ibiamiru-l-momintn  864. 

6.  Gujarat :    Mahmud  Shah  III  946. 

AH.    AV.    Wt.  185  grs. 

Obv.,  reading  upwards,  Nasiru-d- 
dunya  wa-d-dtn  abu-l-fath  al 
wdsiqu  bf llahi-i-manndn,  "The 
helper  of  the  world  and  the 
faith,  the  father  of  victory,  the 
truster  in  the  beneficent  God." 

Rev.,  in  double  square,  Mahmud 
Shah  bin  Latlf  Shah  sultan; 
margin,  946. 

7.  Id:  Mahmud  Shah  III.    AR.  Wt. 

112  grs. 

Obv.  and  Rev.,  legends  as  No.  6, 
but  no  date. 

8.  Ma'bar:  'Adil  Shah.    JE. 
Obv.,  As- suit  an  'Adi  I  Shah. 
Rev.,  As-sul£dnu-l-a'zam. 

9.  Kashmir:  Zainu-l-'abidin.  842A.H. 

AR.    Wt.  96  grs. 

Obv.,  As-sultdnu-l-a'zam  Zainu-l- 
'dbidtn  842" 

Rev.,  in  lozenge,  Zuriba  Kashmir; 
in  marginal  segments, ^Ft  shu- 
huri  sina  isnai  wa  arb'aina  wa 
samanami'dta,  "  In  the  months 
of  the  year  two  and  forty  and 
eight  hundred." 

10.  Bijapur:  'Adil  Shah.  Larin.    Wt. 
about  71  grs. 

Obv.,  'Adil  Shah,  followed  by  3 
strokes. 

Rev.,  blurred. 


PLATE  IX 


PLATE  X 


I 


KEY  TO  PLATE  X 


1.  Babur :  Labor.    936  AH.  AR.  Wt. 

69grs. 

Oby.,  in  circle,  the  Kalima  ;  mar- 
gin, in  segments,  portions  of 
Abdbakri-s-sadlq  ("  A,  the  faith- 
ful witness  " ) ,  '  Umru-l-fdruq 
("  '  U,  the  discriminator  between 
right  and  wrong"),  'Usman  abu 
Nurain  ("  'U,  the  father  of  two 
lights  " )  '  Allu-l-murtaza  ("  'A, 
the  pleasing  to  God  "). 

Rev.,  within  flattened  mihrabi 
area,  Zahlru-d-dln  Muhammad 
Bdbur  'bddshdh  ghdzl,  936  ;  above, 
As-sultdnu-l-a  'zanm-l-khdqdnu- 
mukarram,  "  The  most  great 
sultan,  the  illustrious  emperor"; 
below,  Khallada  allaha  ta  'did 
mulkahu  wa  saltanatuhu,  "May 
God  Most  High  "perpetuate  the 
kingdom  and  sovereignity  "  and, 
Zuriba  Ldhor  "  Struck  at  Lahor." 

2.  Humayun.    AV.    Wt.  16  grs. 
Obv.,  in  circle,  the  Kalima. 

Rev.,  Khallada  allaha  ta'dld  mulk- 
ahu  Muhammad  Huma- 
yun bddshdh  ghdzl. 

3.  Sher  Shah.    Agra.  948  A.H.  AR. 

Wt.  175  grs. 
Obv.,    in     square,    the     Kalima  : 

margins  as  on  No.  1. 
Rev.,  in  square,  Sker  Shah  sultdn 

khallada     alldhu    mulkahu    94S; 

below  in  Nagari,  SrlJSerSdhi  (an 

attempt  at  Sher  Shah's  name). 
Margins,    As-sultdnu-l- ddil   abu-l- 

muzaffar("  The  just  sultan,  the 

father  of  the  victorious")  Farl- 

du-d-dln  zuriba  Agrah. 

4.  Islam    Shah.    Qanauj.    95—.    M, 

Wt.  315  grs. 

Obv.,  Fl  'ahdi-l-amlru-l-hdmiu-d- 
dlni  wa-d-daydn  95— "  In  the 
time  of  the  prince,  the  defender 
of  the  faith  of  the  requiter." 
Double  bar,  with  knot  in  centre, 
bisects  the  legend. 

Rev.,  Abu-l-muzaffar  Islam  Shah 
bin  Sher  Shah  suUdn  zuriba 
Shergarh  'urf  Qanauj  khallada 
alldhu  mulkahu,  "_The  fajher  of 
the  victorious,  Islam  Shah,  son 
of  Sher  Shah,  sultan,  struck  (this 
coin)  at  Shergarh  alias  Qanauj ; 
may  God  perpetuate  the  king- 
dom." 


5.  Sikandar  Sur.  962.     AR.    Wt.  174 

grs. 

Rev.,  in  square,  Sultan  Sikandar 
Shah  Isma'll  Sur  962.  Margins 
illegible. 

6.  Akbar.  Agra.  981.  AV.  Wt.  167  grs. 
Obv.,  in  dotted   border,  the   Kali- 
ma.    Names  of  the    four   com- 
panions and  981. 

Rev..  Khallada  mulkahu  Jaldlu-d- 
din  Muhammad  Akbar  bddshdh 
ghdzl  zuriba  baldatl  Agrah 
( ' '  Struck  at  Agra  town  " ) . 

7.  Id :  Ahmadabad.    982.    AR.    \Vt 

175  grs. 

Rev.,  within  dotted  square  border, 
Jaldlu-d-din  Muhammad  Akbar 
bddshdh  ghdzl,  982;  margins, 
portions  of  As-sultdnu-l-a'zam 
khallada  alldhu  ta'dld  mulkahu 
wa  saltanalahu  zuriba  daru-s- 
saltanati  Ahmadabad  ("Struck 
at  "  the_  seat  of  sovereignty 
Ahmadabad"). 

8.  Id:  Agra.1  50  R.  AR.  Wt.  175  grs. 
Obv.,    in     octagonal    border,    on 

ornamental  ground,  Alldhu 
Akbar  jalla  jaldlahu,  "  God  is 
great,  eminent  is  his  glory." 
Rev.,  within  similar  border,  Zarb- 
i-Agtah  Amarddd  lid  hi  50, 
"Struck  at  Agra,  Amardad 
Ilahi  year  50." 

9.  Id:  Agra.  [50  R.]  AV.  Wt.  182  grs. 
Obv..  within  dotted  circle,  on  orna- 
mented ground,  a  duck  to  right. 

10.  Id:  Dehli.  43   R.  JE.    Wt.  about 

640  grs. 
Obv.,  Tankah-i-Akbar  Shdhl  zarb- 

i-Dehll,  Tankah  of  Akbar  Shah, 

struck  at  Dehli." 

Rev.,  Mdh  Dl   Ildhl  43,  "  In  the 
month  Di,  Ilahi  year  43." 

11.  Id:  Mintless.   43  R.    AR.    Wt.  87, 

grs.     Half  rupee. 
Obv.,  within  square  dotted  border, 

legend  as  on  No.  8. 
Rev.,  Shahrlwar  Ildhl  43. 

12.  Jahangir.  1014-1  R.  AR.  (A  "Khair 

qabul.") 
Obv.,  within_dotted  border  Jahdn- 

glr  bddshdh  ghdzl  1. 
Rev.,  Khair  qabul,    "May     these 
alms  be  accepted." 


1  With  the  introduction  of  the  Ilahi  coins,  Persian  gradually  supersedes 
Arabic  in  the  inscriptions. 


NORTHERN  MEDIAEVAL   COINAGES        55 

suggest  that  this  extreme  debasement  of  the  coinage 
may  at  least  be  due  as  much  to  a  conservative  dislike 
and  suspicion  of  innovation  as  to  a  lack  of  cunning  in 
the  engravers.  Many  parallels  could  be  cited,  the 
classical  example  being  the  Attic  tetradrachm,  the 
archaic  style  of  which  continued  unchanged  at  Athens 
even  during  the  brilliant  age  of  Pheidias. 

The  one  break  in  this  monotonous  Kashmiri  series 
occurs  in  the  reign  of  the  tyrant  Harsha-deva  (1089-1111) , 
who  struck  both  gold  and  silver  in  imitation  of  the 
ornate  gold  of  Kongudesa  (PI.  VII,  5)  in  Southern  India, 
with  an  elephant's  head  on  the  obverse.  The  same 
king  also  issued  a  gold  coin  with  a  Horseman  obverse 
and  the  usual  seated  goddess  on  the  reverse  (PI. VI,  14). 

The  sparseness  and  inferiority  of  the  coinage  during 
the  period  under  discussion  in  this  chapter  must  be 
attributed  chiefly  to  the  general  insecurity,  caused  by 
the  continual  quarrels  between  the  numerous  petty 
states.  This  state  of  unrest,  together  with  the  previous 
impoverishment  of  the  country  at  the  hands  of  the 
Huns,  doubtless  accounts  for  the  small  output  of  gold. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  mercantile  contracts  in 
India  have  always  been  carried  on  largely  by  notes  of 
hand  (hundls),  and  in  times  of  disturbance  these  could 
be  conveyed  more  safely  from  city  to  city  than  coined 
money. 

The  scarcity  of  silver  was  due  to  other  causes.  At 
this  period  the  world  supply  of  this  metal  seems  to 
have  been  drawn  chiefly  from  Central  Asia.  The  rise 
of  the  Arab  power  and  the  consequent  disturbances  in 
Central  Asia  interrupted  trade  between  India  and  the 
west  by  land  and  sea,  and  must  have  curtailed,  if  they 
did  not  cut  off  completely,  the  import  of  silver  from 
abroad.  So  we  find  the  Rajput  states  reduced  to  em- 
ploying an  alloy,  billon,  which  was  almost  certainly  used 
by  them  as  a  substitute  for  the  more  precious  metal. 

It  is  a  most  illuminating  fact  that  gold,  formerly 
exported  from  India,  disappears  from  the  coinage  oi 
Europe  at  about  this  very  period,  while  silver  is 
reduced  to  the  meagre  Carolingian  penny  standard. 


Fig.  6.    Kanarese  Script  :  Mayili  kasu  ippatu,  "  A  token  of 
20  cash." 


VI 
THE  COINAGE  OF   SOUTHERN  INDIA 

THE  difficulties  of  the  historian  in  tracing  the  fortunes 
of  the  numerous  clans  and  dynasties  which  contended 
for  sovereignty  in  the  south  from  the  third  to  the  four- 
teenth century  have  been  enumerated  by  Vincent  Smith 
in  his  Oxford  History  of  India.  Even  fewer  guide-posts 
mark  the  path  of  the  numismatist.  Legends  on  South 
Indian  coins  are  rare,  and,  when  they  occur  are  short, 
giving  simply  the  ruler's  name  or  title  :  dates  are  rarer 
still.  As  in  the  early  coinage  of  the  Greeks,  the  heraldic 
symbol  or  cognizance  serves  as  the  stamp  of  authority  ; 
the  fish,  for  example,  is  so  used  by  the  rulers  of  the 
Pandya  dynasty.  But  in  India  we  receive  little  help 
from  contemporary  records ;  and  the  habit,  which  con- 
querors indulged,  of  incorporating  on  their  issues  the 
cognizance  of  vanquished  peoples,  and  the  extensive 
imitation  of  popular  and  well-established  types,  worse 
confounds  the  confusion.  In  assigning  coins  to  dynasties 
reliance  has  often  to  be  placed  upon  the  evidence  of 
find-spots,  a  dubious  method  at  all  times,  but  least 
unsatisfactory  for  copper,  which  seldom  circulates  freely 
beyond  the  country  of  its  origin.  Again,  the  isolation 
of  the  southern  peninsula  is  as  marked  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  coinage  as  in  political  history.  With  the 
sole  exception  of  the  elephant  pagodas  of  the  Gajapati 
dynasty,  imitated  by  Harsha-deva  of  Kashmir,  there 
is  no  certain  point  of  contact  between  the  south  and 
the  north  after  the  third  century  A.D,  Finally,  the 


THE   COINAGE   OF   SOUTHERN  INDIA      57 

currency  of  the  south  has  not  received  that  attention 
from  scholars  which  has  been  bestowed  upon  the  more 
attractive  money  of  the  north.  A  careful  systematic 
study,  in  conjunction  with  the  historical  material  now 
available,  would  doubtless  throw  considerable  light 
upon  it  and  its  strikers. 

Certain  marked  characteristics  belong  to  the  coinage 
of  the  south,  which,  in  spite  of  foreign  irruptions  and 
their  consequent  innovations,  have  persisted  until  recent 
times.  Gold  and  copper  were  the  metals  used  almost 
exclusively  ;  of  the  former  there  were  two  denomi- 
nations, the  hun,  varaha  or  pagoda^  (50  to  60  grains) 
and  the  fanam  (five  to  six  grains),  based  respectively 
on  the  weights  of  two  seeds,  the  kalanju  or  molucca 
bean  (Ccesalpina  bonduc)  and  the  manjadi  (Adenathera 
pavonina) .  Copper  coins  were  called  k&su,  of  which 
the  English  corruption  is  "  cash,"  while  the  rare  silver 
coins  appear  to  have  followed  the  gold  standard.  The 
Travancore  silver  chakram  was  equal  in  weight  to  the 
fanam.  The  gold  coin  had  an  independent  development 
in  the  south,  the  various  stages  of  which  can  be  marked. 
The  earliest  specimens — the  age  of  these  is  doubtful — 
are  spherules  of  plain  gold  with  a  minute  punch-mark 
on  one  side  (PI.  VII,  1);  these  developed  into  the  cup- 
shaped  "  padma-tankas,"  stamped  with  punches,  first  on 
one  side  only,  later  on  both  obverse  and  reverse. 
Finally  came  die-struck  pieces,  of  which  the  small  thick 
Vijayanagar  pagodas  are  the  typical  southern  form. 
Another  characteristic  is  the  preference  for  tiny  coins  : 
this  is  particularly  evident  from  about  the  sixteenth 
century,  when  copper  coins  tend  to  decrease  in  size,  and 

1  Hun  is  a  Hindustani  corruption  of  honnu,  Kanarese  for  "  a 
half  pagoda  "  ;  Varaha  is  probably  derived  from  the  boar 
(varaha)  cognizance  on  Eastern  Chalukya  coins  ;  the  origin  of 
Pagoda,  as  introduced  by  the  Portugese  and  applied  to  this  coin,  is 
obscure,  cf.  Yule  and  Burnell,  Hobson-Jobson  under  "  Pagoda." 
The  considerable  variation  in  the  weight  of  the  pagodas  issued  by 
different  dynasties  may  be  due  simply  to  different  local  standards; 
but  if  the  Chalukyas  were,  as  is  supposed,  of  Gurjara  origin,  the 
heavier  weights  of  their  coins  may  reflect  the  influence  of  the 
"  dramma." 


58  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

the  fanam  acquired  a  wide  popularity ;  the  silver 
tdrSs  of  Kalikat  (Calicut),  which  weigh  only  one  or 
two  grains,  must  be  the  smallest  known  currency.1 
A  great  variety  of  devices  and  symbols,  usually  Hindu 
gods  and  emblems,  also  characterizes  the  copper  cur- 
rency, especially  after  the  fifteenth  century,  and  this 
feature  adds  considerably  to  the  difficulty  of  correct 
attribution. 

The  dynasties  of  the  south  may  be  divided  into  two 
territorial  groups — (1)  the  kingdoms  of  the  Deccan — all 
the  country  between  the  river  Narbada  on  the  north 
and  the  Krishna  and  Tungabhadra  on  the  south — and 
the  Mysore  country  ;  Telugu  was  the  language  of  the 
former,  Kanarese  of  the  latter.  (2)  The  remainder  of 
the  peninsula,  where  Tamil  and  its  cognate  dialects 
were  spoken,  the  country  of  the  Pandyas,  Cheras, 
Cholas,  Pallavas  and  their  successors. 

During  the  first  two  centuries  of  the  Christian  era, 
and  even  after  the  disappearance  of  the  silver  punch- 
marked  coins,  perhaps  about  A.D.  200,  the  currency  of 
the  south  consisted  chiefly  of  imported  Roman  gold2 
along  with  the  spherules  already  mentioned.  A  certain 
quantity  of  Roman  silver  must  also  have  been  in 
circulation,  while  the  small  copper  pieces  bearing  Roman 
devices  and  legends — one  of  them  seems  to  give  the 
name  of  the  Emperor  Theodosius  (A.D.  393) — were 
probably  local  productions. 

Conjecture  has  assigned  the  earliest  coins  connected 
with  a  local  dynasty  to  the  Kurumbas,  a  pastoral  tribe 
inhabiting  the  present  Arcot  district.  One  type  of  these 
copper  pieces  with  a  two-masted  ship  on  the  obverse 
is  evidently  derived  from  the  similar  Andhra  issues 
struck  for  the  Coromandel  coast,  and  so  may  belong  to 
the  third  century  A.D. 

1  The  silver  kemitetartemoria  of  Athens  weighed  1*4  grs.  each. 

2  In  1850  a  large  number  of  Roman  aurei,  amounting,  it  is 
said,  to  five  coolie  loads,  were  unearthed  near  Kannanur  :  most 
emperors  between  Augustus,  29  B  C.,  and  Antoninus  Pius,  A.D. 
161,  were  represented.    Cf .  "  Remarks  on  Some  Lately  Discovered 
Roman  Coins,"  J.A.S.B.,  1851,  p.  371. 


THE   COINAGE  OF   SOUTHERN  INDIA     59 

I.   COINAGE   OF  THE   DECCAN   AND   MYSORE 

The  first  great  dynasty  to  dominate  Southern  India 
was  that  of  the  Chalukyas  (a  foreign  tribe  probably  of 
Huna-Gurjara  origin),  founded  by  Pulakesin  I  in  the 
middle  of  the  sixth  century, whose  capital  was  at  Badami 
in  the  Bijapur  district.  His  grandson,  Pulakesin  II 
(A.D.  608-642),  became  paramount  in  the  Deccan,  but 
the  kingdom  was  overthrown  by  the  Rashtrakutas 
in  753.  In  973,  however,  a  Chalukya  prince,  Tailapa, 
retrieved  the  fortunes  of  his  family  and  founded  the 
Western  Chalukya  kingdom  with  its  capital  at  Kalyani, 
and  this  lasted  till  1190,  after  which  the  Chalukyas  of 
the  west,  overthrown  by  the  Hoysalas,  became  petty 
chiefs.  Meanwhile,  in  the  middle  of  the  seventh  century 
another  dynasty,  known  as  the  Eastern  Chalukyas,  had 
been  established  by  Vishnuvardhana,  brother  of  the 
great  Pulakesin  II,  in  Kalinga  with  its  capital  at  Vehgi, 
which  lasted  till  the  eleventh  century,  when  it  was 
overthrown  by  the  Cholas. 

The  earliest  coin  assignable  to  a  Chalukya  prince  is 
abase  silver  piece  of  Vishnuvardhana  (615-633),  with 
a  lion  device  and  the  king's  title  in  Telugu,  Vishama- 
siddhi,  "Successful  in  scaling  the  inaccessible  places," 
on  the  obverse,  and  a  trident  flanked  by  two  lamps  on  the 
reverse.  Certain  pagodas,  fanams  and  copper  coins, 
perhaps  of  an  earlier  date,  from  the  appearance  on 
them  of  the  boar,  the  cognizance  of  the  Chalukyas, 
have  been  conjectured  to  belong  to  that  dynasty.  To 
the  Eastern  Chalukya  princes,  Saktivarman  (1000-1012) 
and  Rajaraja  (1012-1062),  belong  large  flat  gold 
pieces,  also  depicting  the  boar  symbol,  but  with  blank 
reverses  (PI.  VII,  4). 

The  curious  cup-shaped  "  padma-tankas "  (lotus 
tankas)  were  possibly  first  struck  by  the  Kadambas 
(PI.  VII,  2),  inhabiting  Mysore  and  Kanara.  Similar 
coins,  but  with  a  lion  or  a  temple  in  place  of  the  lotus 
and  legends  in  old  Kanarese,  were  struck  by  the 
Western  Chalukya  kings,  Jayasimha,  Jagadekamalla  and 
Trailokyamalla,  of  the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries. 
In  1913,  16,586  of  these  cup-shaped  coins  were  unearthed 


60  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

at  Kodur  in  the  Nellore  district,  and  this  find  shows  that 
the  type  was  subsequently  adopted  by  the  Telugu- 
Chola  chiefs  of  the  Nellore  district  in  the  thirteenth 
century. 

The  Hoysala  chiefs,  who  rose  to  paramount  power 
under  Ballala  II  on  the  ruins  of  the  Western  Chalukya 
kingdom,  had  for  their  cognizance  a  maned  lion.  Some 
heavy  gold  coins  with  old  Kanarese  legends,  which  bear 
that  emblem,  have,  therefore,  with  probability  been 
assigned  to  them.  On  one  of  these  appears  the  interest- 
ing inscription,  Sri  Talakada  gonda,  "  He  who  took  the 
glorious  Talka^,"  the  capital  of  the  old  Kongu-Chera 
kingdom. 

There  are  numerous  South  Indian  coins  belonging 
to  the  twelfth  century  which  afford  no  certain  clue  to 
their  strikers.  Among  these  the  following  have  been 
tentatively  assigned  to  petty  dynasties  who  succeeded 
to  the  territories  of  the  Chalukyas  :  to  the  Kakatiya  or 
Ganapati  dynasty  of  Warangal  (1110-1323),  pagodas, 
fanams  and  copper  coins  with  a  couchant  bull  on  the 
obverse  and  incomplete  Nagari  legends  on  the 
reverse ;  to  Somesvara,  one  of  the  Kalachuri  chiefs 
of  Kalyana  (1162-1175),  pagodas  and  fanams  with 
the  king's  titles  in  old  Kanarese  on  the  reverse, 
and  on  the  obverse  a  figure  advancing  to  the  right ; 
to  the  Yadavas  of  Devagiri  (1187-1311),  a  pagoda 
and  a  silver  coin,  bearing  a  kneeling  figure  of  Garuda 
on  the  obverse. 

There  remain  to  be  noticed  the  coins  of  three 
dynasties.  The  original  home  of  the  Gajapatis, 
"Elephant-Lords,"  was  Kongudesa — Western  Mysore 
with  the  modern  districts  of  Coimbatore  and  Salem. 
About  the  ninth  century  these  Chera  kings  fled  before 
the  invading  Cholas  to  Orissa,  and  there  were  coined  the 
famous  "Elephant  pagodas"  (PL  VII,  5)  and  fanams, 
which  Harsha-deva  of  Kashmir  ( A.D.  1089)  copied.  The 
scroll  device  on  the  reverse  also  appears  on  some  of  the 
anonymous  boar  pagodas  attributed  to  the  Chalukyas. 
To  Anantavarman  Chotfaganga,  a  member  of  that  branch 
of  the  Ganga  dynasty  of  Mysore  who  settled  in  Kalinga 


THE   COINAGE   OF   SOUTHERN   INDIA      61 

(Orissa),  and  ruled  there  from  the  sixth  to  the  eleventh 
century,  are  assigned  fanams  with  a  recumbent  bull, 
conch  and  crescent  on  the  obverse,  and  Telugu  regnal 
dates  on  the  reverse.  The  gold  coins  of  two  of  the  later 
Kadamba  chiefs  of  Goa,  Vishnu  Chittadeva  (circ.  1147) 
and  Jayakesin  III  (circ.  1187),  are  also  known;  these 
bear  the  special  Kadamba  symbol,  the  lion  passant  on 
the  obverse,  and  a  Nagari  legend  on  the  reverse.  One 
interesting  inscription  of  the  latter  runs  as  follows : 
"  The  brave  Jayakesideva,  the  destroyer  of  the  Malavas 
who  obtained  boons  from  the  holy  Saptakotisa  (i.e. 
Siva)." 

II.   THE  COINAGE   OF    TAMIL  STATES 

The  Tamil  states  of  the  far  south  first  became 
wealthy  owing  to  their  foreign  sea-borne  trade.  Tradi- 
tion has  defined  with  some  exactness  the  territories 
held  by  the  three  principal  races  in  ancient  times ; 
the  Pandyas  inhabited  the  modern  Madura  and  Tinne- 
velly  districts,  the  Cholas  the  Coromandel  Coast 
(Cholamandalam),  and  the  Chera  or  Kerala  country 
comprised  the  district  of  Malabar  together  with  the 
states  of  Cochin  and  Travancore.  Although  their 
frontiers  varied  considerably  at  different  periods, 
this  distribution  is  sufficiently  accurate  for  a  study  of 
their  coin  types. 

Nevertheless  history  affords  but  few  glimpses 
in  early  times  of  these  peoples :  the  Pallavas,  as 
is  evident  from  inscriptions,  a  native  pastoral  tribe 
akin  to  the  Kurumbas,  were  the  first  dominant  power 
in  the  extreme  south.  At  first  Buddhists,  but  later 
converted  to  Brahmanical  Hinduism,  during  the  sixth, 
seventh  and  eighth  centuries  they  extended  their  terri- 
tories from  their  capital,  Kanchi,  the  modern  Conjee- 
veram,  until  these  included  even  Ceylon ;  but  they 
suffered  considerably  from  wars  with  the  Chalukyas, 
and  were  overwhelmed  in  the  ninth  century  by  the 
Cholas  and  Pandyas.  It  was  under  the  patronage  of  the 
Pallavas  that  South  Indian  architecture  and  sculpture 
began  in  the  sixth  century.  The  earlier  Pallava  coins,  a 


62  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

legacy  from  the  Andhras,  are  indistinguishable  from 
those  of  the  Kurumbas ;  later  pagodas  and  fanams 
bear  the  Pallava  emblem,  the  maned  lion,  either  on 
obverse  or  reverse  (PI.  VII,  8),1  but  the  legends 
remain  undeciphered. 

The  Pandyas  had  a  chequered  career  :  at  first  inde- 
pendent, then  subject  to  the  Pallavas,  they  emerge  in 
the  ninth  century  to  fall  once  more  during  the  eleventh 
and  twelfth  centuries  under  the  domination  of  the 
Cholas.  In  the  thirteenth  century  they  were  the  lead- 
ing Tamil  state,  but  gradually  sank  into  local  chieftains. 
The  earliest  Pan<Jya  coins  retain  the  ancient  square 
form,  but  are  die-struck,  with  an  elephant  on  the 
obverse  and  a  blank  reverse ;  later  coins  have  a 
peculiar  angular  device  on  the  reverse  ;  others  of 
a  still  later  period  display  a  diversity  of  emblems, 
such  as  wheels,  scrolls  and  crosses.  The  Pandya 
coins,  assigned  to  a  period  from  the  seventh  to  the 
tenth  century,  are  gold  and  copper,  and  all  bear  the 
fish  emblem  adopted  by  the  later  chiefs  (PI.  VII,  3): 
the  innovation  is  supposed  to  mark  a  change  in  religion 
from  Buddhism  to  Brahmanism.  The  fish  appears 
sometimes  singly,  sometimes  in  pairs,  and  sometimes, 
especially  on  the  later  copper  coins,  in  conjunction  with 
other  symbols,  particularly  the  Chola  standing  figure 
and  the  Chalukyan  boar.  The  inscriptions  on  these, 
such  as  Son&du  konddn^  "He  who  conquered  the  Chola 
country,"  and  Ellan-talaiy-anan,"  He  who  is  chief  of  the 
world,"  are  in  Tamil,  but  the  intermingling  of  the 
symbols,  evident  marks  of  conquest,  makes  any  certain 
attribution  difficult. 

Madura,  the  later  capital  of  the  Pandyas,  was  captured 
by  'Alau-d-dm  in  1311,  and  an  independent  Muham- 
madan  dynasty  ruled  there  from  1334  to  1377,  after  which 
it  was  added  to  the  Vijayanagar  kingdom. 

The  Cholas  were  supreme  in  Southern  India  from 
the  accession  of  Rajaraja  the  Great  in  985  down  to  1035, 
during  which  period  they  extended  their  conquests  to 
the  Deccan  and  subdued  Ceylon.  After  some  years 

1  This  attribution  is  somewhat  doubtful, 


THE   COINAGE   OF   SOUTHERN   INDIA     63 

of  eclipse  they  rose  again  under  Rajendra  Kulottunga  I 
(ace.  1074),  who  was  related  to  the  Eastern  Chalukyas 
of  Vengi.  The  Chola  power  declined  in  the  thirteenth 
century.  The  earlier  coins  of  the  dynasty,  before  985, 
are  gold  and  silver  pieces,  portraying  a  tiger  seated 
under  a  canopy  along  with  the  Pandya  fish  (PI.  VII,  6); 
the  names  inscribed  on  them  have  not  been  satisfac- 
torily explained.  The  later  class  of  Chola  coins,  all 
copper,  have  a  standing  figure  on  the  obverse  and  a 
seated  figure  on  the  reverse,  with  the  name  Raja  Raja 
in  Nagari.  This  type  spread  with  the  Chola  power, 
and  was  slavishly  copied  by  the  kings  of  Ceylon  (1153- 
1296;  cf.  PI.  VII,  7),  and  its  influence  is  also  notice- 
able on  the  earlier  issues  of  the  Nayaka  princes  of  Madura 
and  Tinnevelly. 

Only  one  coin  has  been  attributed  to  a  Chera  dynasty. 
A  silver  piece  in  the  British  Museum,  with  Nagari 
legends  on  both  sides  (PL  VII,  9),  belongs  to  the  Kerala 
country,  the  extreme  southern  portion  of  the  western 
coast,  and  has  been  assigned  to  the  eleventh  or  twelfth 
century. 

III.   COINAGE  OF  THE  EMPIRE  OF  VIJAYANAGAR 
AND   LATER   DYNASTIES 

The  great  mediaeval  kingdom  of  Vijayanagar  was 
founded  in  1336  by  five  brothers  as  a  bulwark  against 
Muhammadan  conquest,  and  continued  to  flourish  under 
three  successive  dynasties  until  the  battle  of  Talikota, 
1565  ;  the  members  of  a  fourth  dynasty  ruled  as  minor 
chiefs  at  Chandragiri  until  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century. 

The  small,  dumpy  pagodas  of  Vijayanagar,  with  their 
half  and  quarter  divisions,  set  a  fashion  which  has  lasted 
to  the  present  age.  Coins,  gold  or  copper,  of  more 
than  twelve  rulers  are  known  :  on  these  appear  a  number 
of  devices,  the  commonest  being  the  bull,  the  elephant, 
various  Hindu  deities,  and  the  fabulous  "  gandabherunda, " 
a  double  eagle  holding  an  elephant  in  each  beak  and 
claw.  A  pagoda  on  which  a  god  and  goddess  appear 
sitting  side  by  side  (PL  VII,  12)  was  struck  both  by 

5 


64  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Harihara  I  (ace.  1336)  and  Devaraya.1  The  great 
Krishnaraya,  during  whose  reign  (1509-1529)  the  Empire 
was  at  its  height,  was  evidently  a  devotee  of  Vishnu. 
He  struck  the  popular  "  Durgi  pagoda,"2  on  which  that 
god  is  portrayed  holding  the  discus  and  conch  (PI.  VII, 
11).  Other  coins  of  the  dynasty  which  acquired  fame 
were  the  "  Gandikata  pagoda"  of  Ramaraya  (d.  1565), 
which  had  a  figure  of  Vishnu  standing  under  a  canopy  on 
the  obverse;  and  the"  Venkatapati  pagoda,"  struck  by 
one  of  the  rajas,  named  Venkata,  of  the  fourth  dynasty. 
On  the  obverse  of  this  coin  Vishnu  is  standing  under  an 
arch,  and  on  the  reverse  is  the  Nagari  legend,  Sri 
Venkatetvaraya  namak," Adoration  to  the  blessed  Venka- 
tesvara," Venkatesvara  being  the  deity  of  Venkatadri, 
a  sacred  hill  near  Chandragiri.  The  so-called  "three 
swami  pagoda,"  introduced  by  Tirumalaraya  (circ. 
1570),  displays  three  figures,  the  central  one  standing, 
the  other  two  seated.  These  are  said  to  be  either 
Lakshmana  with  Rama  and  Sita,  or  Venkatesvara  with 
his  two  wives.  The  legends  on  Vijayanagar  coins  are 
either  in  Kanarese  or  Nagari ;  the  latter  is  most 
commonly  used,  by  the  later  kings  exclusively. 

During  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  the 
Nayaka  princes  of  Tanjore,  Madura  and  Tinnevelly  and 
the  Setupatis  of  Ramnatf,  originally  in  subjection  to 
Vijayanagar,  gradually  assumed  independence.  The 
earlier  coinage  of  the  Madura  Nayakas  bears  the  names 
of  the  chiefs  on  the  reverse  in  Tamil,  but  their  later 
coins  were  struck  in  the  name  of  Venkata,  the  ' '  pageant 
sovereign  of  Vijayanagar.  Somewhat  later,  probably, 
begin  series  of  copper  coins  both  of  Madura  and  Tinne- 
velly, with  the  Telugu  legend  Sri  Vlra  on  the  reverse 
and  a  multitude  of  varying  devices  on  the  obverse  ; 
these  include  the  gods  Hanuman  and  Ganesh,  human 

}•  The  attributes  of  the  two  seated  figures  are  sometimes  those 
of  Siva,  sometimes  those  of  Vishnu  ;  there  is  some  difficulty  in 
distinguishing  between  the  coins  of  Devaraya  I  (1406-1410)  and 
Devaraya  II  (1421-1445). 

*  Durgi  =  belonging  to  durga,  a  hill  fort.    The  coins  are  said 
to  have  been  struck  at  Chitaldrug. 


KEY  TO  PLATE  XI 


1.  Jah5ngTr.    Lahor.  1016-3   R.    AR. 

Wt.  209  grs. 
Obv.,  within  square  border  of  dots, 

on     ornamented     ground,    the 

Kalima ;     below,    Zarb-i-Ldhor 

1016. 

Rev.,  Nuru-d-din  Muhammad 
Jahangir  bddshah  ghazi  sana  3. 

2.  Id:  Agra.     1028-14  R.     AV.     Wt. 

168  grs. 

Obv.,  ram  skipping  to  left,  sur- 
mounted by  sun  ;  below,  Sana 
14  /«/»;."  The  14th  year  from  the 
accession." 

Rev.,  Ydft  dar  Agrah  ru-i-zar 
zlwar  1 1  Az  Jahangir  Shdh-i-Shdh 
Akbar,  "The  face  of_  gold  re- 
ceived ornament  at  Agra  from 
Jahangir  Shah,  Shah  Akbar 
[s.  Son],"  and  Sana  1028. 

3.  Id:  Ajmer.    1023-9  R.     AV.     Wt. 

168  grs. 

Obv.,  Jahangir  nimbate  seated 
cross-legged  on  throne,  head  to 
left,  goblet  in  right  hand. 
Around.iQa^a  bar  sikka-i-zar  kard 
taswir  \\  Shabih-i-hazrat-i-Shdh 
-i-Jahdngir,  "  Destiny  on  coin  of 
gold  has  drawn  the  portrait  of 
His  Majesty  Shah  Jahangir." 

Rev.,  sun  in  square  compartment 
in  centre ;  to  left,  Zarb-i-Ajmer 
1023;  to  right,  Ya  mu'Jnu,*"O  thou 
fixed  one,"  and  Sana  9  ;  above 
and  below,  Haruf-i- Jahangir  u 
Alldhu  Akbar  \  I  Zi  ruz-i-azal  dar 
'adadshud  bardbar,  "The  letters 
of  Jahangir  and  'Allahu  Akbar'3 
are  equal  in  value  from  the 
beginning  of  time." 

4.  Id :  Agra.  1019-5  R.  AR.  Wt.  220  grs. 
Obv.,  within     multifoil    area    on 

flowered  ground,  Dar jisfanddr- 
muz  in  sikka-rd  dar  Agrah  zad 
bar  zar,  "Inlsfandarmuz  placed 
this  stamp  at  Agra  on  money," 
with  date  5. 

Rev.,  contained  as  cfov.,Shahanshdh- 
i-zatndn  Shdh  Jahangir  ibn-i- 
Shdh  Akbar,_  "  The  emperor  of 
the  age,  Shah  Jahangir,  son  of 
Akbar  Shah  ";  with  date  1019. 

5.  Id -.with  Nur  Jahan.    Surat.    1036. 

AV.    Wt.  166  grs. 

Obv.,  Zi  hukm-i-Shdh  Jahangir 
ydft  sad  zlwar. 

Rev.,  Ba  ndm-i-Nur  Jahdn  Bdd- 
shah Begam  zar, 

"By  order  of  Shah  Jahangir,  gained 
a  hundred  beauties  gold,  through 
the  name  of  Nur  Jahan  Badshah 


Begam";   on  obv.,  Zarb-i-Surat; 
rev.,  1036. 

6.  Id:jnthe  name  Salim.   Ahmada- 

bad.    2R.    AR.    Wt.  176 'grs. 

Obv.,  Mdliku-l-mulk  sikka  zad  bar 
zar. 

Rev.,  Shdh  SuUdn  Salim  Shdh 
Akbar,  "  The  Lord  of  the  realm 
placed  (his)  stamp  on  money, 
Shah  Sultan  Salim  Akbar  Shah 
['S  Son]";  on  Obv.,  Zarb-i- 
Ahmaddbdd',  Rev.,  Farwardin 
sana  2. 

7.  Shah  Jahan  I.    AhmadSbad    1038- 

2  R.  AR.  Wt.  168  grs. 

Obv.,  the  Kalima  in  3  lines; 
below,  Zarb-i-Ahmaddbdd  sana 
Zlldki  mdh  Khurddd,  "  Struck  at 
Ahmadabad  in  the  month  Khurd- 
dad  of  the  Ilahi  year  2." 

Rev.,  Sdhib-i-Qirdn  sant  Shihdbu- 
d-din  Shdh  Jahan  Iddshdh  ghdzi 
sana  1038. 

8.  Id :     Shahjahanabad.   1069.     AV. 

Nisar.    Wt.  43  grs. 

Obv.,  Nisdr-i-Sdhib-i-qirdn    sdnt. 

Rev.,  Zarb-i-ddru-l-khildfat  Shdh- 
jahdndbdd  1069.  '^isSr  of  the 
'  second  lord  of  the  conjunction,' 
struck  at  the  capital,  Shah- 
jahanabad,  1069." 

9.  Aurangzeb  :  Tatta.  1072-5  R.  AV. 

Wt.  170  grs. 

Obv.,  Sikka  zad  dar  jahdn  chit  mihr 
-i-munir  I!  Shdh  Aurangzeb 
'Alamgir,  1072,  "Struck  money 
through  the  world  like  the 
shining  sun,  Shah  Aurangzeb 
"Alamgir." 

Rev.,  Zarb-i-Tatta_  sana  5  jultis-i- 
tnaitnanat-i-mdniis,  "  Struck  at 
Tatta  in  the  5th  year  of  the 
accession  associated  with  pros- 
perity." 

10.  Shah    Shuja' :  Akbarnagar.   1068- 

ahd.    AR.    Wt.  177  grs. 

Obv.,  in  square,  the  Kalima  and 
1068 ;  in  margins,  names  of  Four 
Companions  with  epithets. 

Rev.,  in  square,  Muhammad  Shdh 
Shujd*  bddshah  ghdzi  ;  right 
margin,  Sdhib-i-qirdn  sdnt  ; 
lower  margin,  Akbar  [nagar]. 

11.  Aurangzeb  :    Katak.     29    R.   AR. 

Wt.  about  44  grs. 
Obv.,  in  dotted  square  border,  on 

ornamental      ground,     Dirham 

shar'i. 
Rev.,  Zarb-i-Katak  29. 


i  With  a  reference  to  Khwaja  Mu'inu-d-din  Chishti,  buried  at  Ajmer,  A.D. 
1236. 

»  By  the  abjad  system  of  reckoning,  the  letters  of  Jahangir  and  Allahu 
Akbar  both  make  up  288. 

Note.  In  the  Plate  the  reverses  and  obverses  of  Nos.  4,  6,  8  and  10  have 
been,  by  a  mistake,  transposed. 


PLATE  XI 


PLATE  XII 


fiife^l^Ea 


KEY  TO  PLATE  XII 


1.  Shah  'Alam    II.   Shahjahanabad, 

1219-47  R.    AV.    Wt.  166  grs. 

Obv.  and  Rev.,  surrounded  with 
circular  border  of  roses,  sham- 
rocks and  thistles. 

Obv.,  Sikka-i-Sdhib-i-Qirdnl  zad  zi 
td'ldu-llah  '\\  ' Hdml-i-d I n-i-Mu- 
hatntnad  Shah  'Alam  bddshah, 
"Struck  coin  like  the  '  lord  of  the 
conjunction,'  by  the  help  of  God, 
Defender  of  the  Faith,  Muham- 
mad Shah 'Alam,  the  king."  Date 
1219 ;  mint  marks,  umbrella  and 
cinquefoil. 

Rev.,  as.  PI  XT,  No.  9.  but  date  47; 
and  mint,  Shahjahanabad. 

2.  Ahmad   Shah    Durrani.     Shahja- 

hanabad, 1170-11  R.  AR.  Rupee. 

Obv.,  Hukm  shud  az  qadir-i-blchun 
ba  Ahmad  bddshah  II  Sikka  zan  bar 
stm  u  zar  az  auj-i-mdhi  Id-da  mdh, 
"There  came  an  order  from  the 
potent  Incomparable  One  to 
Ahmad  the  king:  to  strike 
coin  on  gold  and  silver  from  the 
zenith  of  Pisces  to  the  Moon. 
Date,  1170," 

Rev.,  as  on  No.  1,  but  date  11. 

3.  Awadh:  Wajid'Ali  Shah.  1264-2  R. 

AV.   Muhar. 

Obv.,  arms  of  Awadh ;  around, 
Zarb-i-mulk-i- Awadh  baitu-s-sal- 
tanat  Lakhnau  sana  2  juliis-i- 
maimanat-i-mdnus,  "  Struck  in 
the  country  of  Awadh,  at  the  seat 
of  sovereignty,  Lakhnau,"  etc. 

Rev.,  Sikka  zad  bar  stm  u  zar 
az  fazl-i-td'ldn-l!ah,  \  \  Zill-i-haQQ 
Wdjid  'All  SuUdn-i-:'dlam  bdd- 
shah. "  Struck  coin  in  silver  and 
gold  through  the  grace  of  the 
divine  help,  the  shade  of  God, 
Wajid  'AH,  sultan  of  the  world, 
the  king."  Date,  2. 

4.  Haidarabad.   Sikandar  Jah,  in  the 

'  name  of  the  Mughal  Akbar  II. 
AR.  Rupee. 

Obv.,  Sikka-i-tnubdrak-i-bddshdh 
ghdzl  Muhammd  Akbar  Shdh, 
1237,"  Blessed  coin  of  the  king," 
etc. ;  with  initial  letter  "  sin  "  of 
Sikandar. 

Rev.,  as  on  No.  1,  but  year  16,  and 
mint,  Farkhanda  bunydd  Haida- 
rabad, "Haidarabad,  of  fortunate 
foundation." 

5.  Mysore.      Tipu.       Seringapatam. 

M.    20  cash. 
Obv.,  elephant  with  lowered  trunk 

to  right. 
Rev.,  Zarb-i-Pattan. 


10. 


.  Nepal.  Prithvi  Narayana.  AR. 
Wt.  84  grs. 

Obv  .,  within  circle  a  square  ; 
above  sun  „  and  moon;  below 
date,  1691  (Saka=A.D.  1769);  at 
sides  ornaments.  In  square, 
small  circle  containing  trident 
in  centre  ;  around,  in  Nagari,  Srt 
£rl  Prithvi  Narayana  Sdhadeia. 

Rev.,  within  central  circle,  Sri  Sri 
Bhavdnl  ;  marginal  legend, 
each  character  in  an  ornament, 
Sri  Sri  Gorakhandtha. 

Indore.  Jaswant  Rao.  AR. 
Rupee. 

Obv.,  in  Sanskrit,  Sri  Indrapras- 
thasthito  raja  chakravartl  bhu- 
mandale,  \\  Tatprasddat  kritd 
mudrd  lokesmin  rai  virdjite. 

Rev.,  Lakshmlkdntapaddmbhcja- 
bhramara-rdjitachetasah,  \  I  Yes  a. 
wantasya  vikhydtd  mudraisha 
Prithivltale,  "  By  permission  of 
the  king  of  Indraprastha  (Dehli), 
the  emperor  of  the  world,  this 
coin  has  been  struck  by  the 
renowned  Yaswant,  whose  heart 
is  as  the  black  bee  on  the  lotus- 
foot  of  Lakshmikant,  to  circulate 
through  the  earth.  £aka  1728" 
(-A.D.  1806). 

Assam  :  Gaurinatha  SJmha.  AR. 
Wt.  88-4  grs. 

Obv.,  within  dotted  border  in 
Bengali  script,  Sri  Sri  Gaurl- 
natha  Simha  nrtpasya,"(Coin)  of 
the  king.sVi  Gaurinatha  Simha." 

Rev  ,  Sri  £rl  Hara-Gaurlpada- 
parasya,  "  Devoted  to  the  feet  of 
Kara  and  Gauri." 

East  India  Company.  Murshida- 
bad.  In  the  name  of  Shah 
'Alam  II.  AR.  Rupee  (machine 
struck). 

Obv.,  legend  as  No.  1,  no  date. 

Rev.,  as  No.  1,  but  mint,  Murshida- 
bad,  and  Company's  mark 
cinquefoil. 

Sikh.  Amritsar  S.  1837.  AR. 
Rupee. 

Obv.,  corrupt  Persian  couplet  (?) 
Sar  tegh_-i-Ndnak  .  .  .  az  fazl-i 
falh-i-Gobind  Singh  Sahd  (?) 
Shdhdn  sahib  sikka  zad  bar  stm  u 
zar(?).' 

Rev.,  Zarb-i-Srl  Ambratsar  julus- 
i-takht  dkdl  sambat  1835, 
"  Struck  at  Amritsar,  the  acces- 
sion to  the  eternal  throne,  in 
the  Sambat  year,  1835." 


Note-In  the  Plate  the  obverse  and  reverse  of  No.  7  have  been  transposed. 


THE   COINAGE   OF   SOUTHERN   INDIA     65 

figures,  the  elephant,  bull,  lion,  a  star,  the  sun  and 
moon,  etc.  A  similar  copper  series,  with  double  or 
single  crossed  lines  on  the  reverse,  are  found  in  large 
quantities  in  Mysore.  Yet  another  series  with  the 
same  reverse,  also  found  in  Mysore,  bears  on  the 
obverse  the  Kanarese  numerals  from  1  to  31. 

With  the  extinction  of  the  Vijayanagar  kingdom  the 
number  of  petty  states  minting  their  own  money  rapidly 
increased.  For  example,  the  ' '  Durgi  pagoda ' '  continued 
to  be  struck  by  the  Nayakas  of  Chitaldrug  from  1689  to 
1779  ;  the  god  and  goddess  type  was  continued  by  the 
Nayakas  of  Ikkeri  (1559-1640),  and  later  on  at  Bednur 
(1640-1763).  On  the  conquest  of  the  latter  city  in  1763 
by  Haidar  'AH,  the  type  was  for  a  short  time  struck  by 
him  with  addition  of  the  initial  letter  of  his  name  "  he  " 
on  the  reverse ;  but  this  initial  soon  became  the  obverse 
and  the  year  and  date  in  Persian  occupied  the  reverse. 
So  also  the  East  India  Company  issued,  from  Madras, 
pagodas  of  the  ''three  swami "  type,  and  both  British 
and  Dutch  Companies  struck  "  Venkatapati  pagodas," 
but  with  a  granulated  reverse.  These  latter  Company 
coins  acquired  the  name  "Porto  Novo  pagodas,"  from 
one  of  their  places  of  issue.  The  famous  "Star 
pagoda"  was  of  this  type,  with  the  addition  of  a  star 
on  the  reverse.  Likewise  the  Nizams  of  Haidarabad 
and  the  Nawabs  of  the  Karnatic  struck  pagodas  of 
various  types,  those  of  the  Nawab  §afdar  'AH  are  of 
the  "Porto  Novo"  type  with  an  '  'Ain "  on  the 
granulated  reverse. 

At  Balapur,  Qolar  (Kolar),  Guti  and  Ooscotta  were 
struck  fanams,  and  at  Imtiyazgarh  pagodas,  with  Persian 
inscriptions  in  the  name  of  the  Mughal  Emperor, 
Muhammad  Shah,  and  a  small  copper  coinage  in  the 
name  of  'Alamgir  II  was  in  general  circulation  in  parts  of 
the  peninsula ;  small  silver  coins  of  a  similar  type  are 
also  known.  An  exceedingly  interesting  fanam,  as  well 
as  some  copper  pieces,  bear  the  Nagari  legend,  Sri  Raja, 
Siva  on  the  obverse,  and  Chhatrapati,  "Lord  of  the 
umbrella,"  on  the  reverse,  and  have  with  great  proba- 
bility been  assigned  to  the  great  Mara^ha  chief,  Sivaji, 


66  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

The  coinage  of  the  old  Kerala  country,  the  Malabar 
coast,  was,  in  1657,  the  Portugese  Viaggio  di  Vincenzo 
Maria  informs  us,  in  the  hands  of  the  rulers  of  four 
states,  Kannanur,  Kalikat,  Cochin  and  Travancore.  It 
is  distinguished  from  that  of  the  rest  of  the  peninsula 
by  its  large  employment  of  silver,  the  most  remarkable 
among  these  silver  coins  being  the  tares,  said  to 
have  been  struck  in  Kalikat,  which  have  a  tankha  shell 
on  the  obverse  and  a  deity  on  the  reverse,  and  weigh 
only  from  one  to  two  grains  each.  The  same  device, 
a  sankha  shell,  appears  on  the  silver  puttans  of  Cochin, 
struck  both  by  the  Dutch  and  the  native  rulers, 
and  also  on  the  old  and  modern  silver  vellis  of 
Travancore.  Various  gold  fanams  were  current  in 
Travancore  before  the  nineteenth  century,  the  oldest, 
known  as  the  rast,  also  has  a  Sankha  on  the  obverse, 
and  is  closely  allied  to  the  "Vira  raya  "  fanams  of 
Kalikat.  During  the  eighteenth  century  the  copper 
coinage  of  Travancore  was  known  as  the  "Anantan 
kasu  ";  on  the  obverse  was  a  five-headed  cobra,  and  on 
the  reverse  the  value  of  the  coin,  one,  two,  four  or 
eight  "  cash  "  written  in  Tamil.  In  the  years  1764  and 
1774  the  Moplah  chief  of  Kannanur,  'AH  Raja,  struck 
double  silver  and  gold  fanams  with  Persian  inscriptions, 
recording  his  name  and  the  date  (PL  VII,  13).  The 
Muhammadan  coinage  of  Mysore  is  reserved  for  a  later 
chapter. 


Fig.  7.    The  Kalima  in  ornate  Arabic  script  on  early  tankah  of 
Altamsh. 


VII 

THE   MUHAMMAD  AN  DYNASTIES 
OF  DEHLI 

IN  earlier  chapters  we  have  seen  how  the  Greek,  the 
Saka,  the  Pahlava  and  the  Kushana  invader  each  in 
his  turn  modified  the  contemporary  coinage  of  Northern 
India  ;  the  conquests  of  Muhammad  Ghori  wrought  a 
revolution.  The  earlier  Muhammadan  rulers,  it  is  true, 
conceded  so  much  to  local  sentiment  as  to  reproduce  for  a 
time  the  Bull  and  Horseman  issues  of  the  Rajput  states, 
and  even  to  inscribe  their  names  and  titles  thereon  in 
the  Nagari  script,  but  there  was  no  real  or  lasting 
compromise  ;  the  coinage  was  too  closely  bound  up  with 
the  history  and  traditions  of  their  religion  Their 
issues  in  India  are  the  lineal  descendants  of  those  of 
earlier  Muhammadan  dynasties  in  Central  Asia  and 
elsewhere.  The  engraving  of  images  was  forbidden  by 
the  Faith ;  and  accordingly,  with  some  notable  excep- 
tions, pictorial  devices  cease  to  appear  on  Indian  coins. 
Both  obverse  and  reverse  are  henceforth  entirely 
devoted  to  the  inscription,  setting  forth  the  king's  name 
and  titles  as  well  as  the  date,  in  the  Hijri  era,1  and  place 
of  striking  or  mint,  now  making  their  first  appearance 
on  Indian  money.  The  inscribing  of  the  sovereign's 
name  on  the  coinage  was  invested  with  special  im- 
portance in  the  eyes  of  the  Muslim  world,  for  this 

1  The  first  year  of  the  Hijri  era  begins  on  Friday,  July  15th- 
16th,  A.D.  622. 


68  THE   COINS   OP   INDIA 

privilege,  with  the  reading  of  his  name  in  the  khutba,  or 
public  prayer,  were  actions  implying  the  definite  assump- 
tion of  regal  power.  Another  new  feature  was  the 
inclusion  in  the  inscription  of  religious  formulae,  that 
most  commonly  used  being  the  Kalima  or  profession  of 
faith.  '''There  is  no  god  but  Al  ah,  and  Muhammad  is  the 
prophet  of  Allah.''  This  practice,  followed  by  many 
subsequent  Muhammadan  rulers  in  India,  owed  its 
origin  to  the  crusading  zeal  of  the  early  Khalifs  of 
Syria  in  the  eighth  century. 

The  fabric  of  the  coinage  thus  underwent  a  complete 
transformation  ;  not  all  at  once,  but  gradually,  as  new 
districts  were  subjected  to  Muhammadan  conquerors, 
money  of  the  new  type  spread  over  the  whole  peninsula 
except  the  extreme  south.  Yet  owing,  no  doubt,  to  its 
sectarian  association,  it  was  not,  until  the  great  Mughal 
currency  had  attained  a  position  of  predominating 
importance,  voluntarily  imitated  by  independent  com- 
munities. 

The  Muhammadans  were  also  destined  to  set  up  a 
new  standard  of  weight,  but  before  this  was  accomplished 
nearly  five  centuries  were  to  elapse.  The  period  under 
discussion  in  this  chapter  is  chiefly  interesting  for  the 
reappearance  of  silver  in  the  currency,  due  to  the  re- 
opening of  commercial  relations  with  Central  Asia,  and 
for  the  successive  attempts  made  by  various  sovereigns 
to  restore  order  out  of  the  chaos  into  which  the  coinage 
had  fallen  during  the  preceding  centuries.  The  gold 
and  silver  currency  was  rectified  by  Altamsh  and  his 
successors  with  little  difficulty  ;  but  the  employment  of 
billon  for  their  smaller  money  was  fatal;  for  the  mixture 
of  silver  and  copper  in  varying  proportions,1  so  liable 
to  abuse,  proved  in  the  end  unworkable  as  a  circulating 
medium ;  and  not  until  Sher  Shah  substituted  pure 
copper  for  billon,  and  adjusted  this  to  his  new  standard 

1  The  variation  is  due  to  the  fact  that  silver  and  copper  only 
form  a  homogeneous  alloy  when  mixed  in  the  ratio  of  71*89  of  the 
former  to  28*11  of  the  latter.  This  fact  was  certainly  unknown 
at  this  period.  Cf.  J.A.S.B.,  N.S.,  XXXV,  p.  22,  "The  Currency 
of  the  Pathan  Sultans,"  by  H.R.Nevill. 


MUHAMMADAN   DYNASTIES   OF    DEHLl    69 

silver  coin,  the  rupee,  was  the  currency  established  on 
a  firm  basis. 

The  earliest  Muhammadan  kingdom  in  India  was 
set  up  by  clmadu-d-dm  ibn  Qasim,  in  Sind,  in  A.D.  712, 
but  as  it  exerted  little  influence  on  its  neighbours,  the 
insignificant  coins  issued  by  its  later  governors  need  not 
detain  us.  The  gates  of  the  North-West  were  first 
opened  to  Muslim  invaders  by  the  expeditions  of  the 
great  Sultan  Mahmud  of  Ghazm  between  the  years  A.D. 
1001  and  1026.  'in  1021  the  Panjab  was  annexed  as  a 
province  of  his  dominions,  and  after  1051  Lahor  became 
the  capital  of  the  later  princes  of  his  line,  driven  out  of 
Ghazni  by  the  chieftains  of  Ghor.  Here  they  struck 
small  billon  coins  with  an  Arabic  legend  in  the  Cufic1 
script  on  the  reverse,  retaining  the  Rajput  bull  on  the 
obverse.  Mahmud  himself  struck  a  remarkable  silver 
tankah2  at  Lahor,  called  on  the  coin  Mahmudpur,  with  a 
reverse  inscription  in  Arabic,  and  his  name  and  a  trans- 
lation of  the  Kalima  in  Sanskrit  on  the  obverse. 

The  last  of  these  Ghaznavid  princes  of  Lahor, 
Khusru  Malik,  was  deposed  in  1187  by  Muhammad  bin 
Sam  of  Ghor  (Mu'izzu-d-din  of  the  coins),  who,  after  the 
final  defeat  of  Prithviraj  of  Ajmer  and  his  Hindu  allies 
at  the  second  battle  of  Thanesar  or  Tarain,  in  1192, 
founded  the  first  Muhammadan  dynasty  of  Hindustan, 
which  nevertheless  actually  starts  with  his  successor, 
Qutbu-d-dm  Aibak,  the  first  Sultan  to  fix  his  capital  at 
Dehli.  In  dealing  with  the  coins  of  the  five  successive 
dynasties  who  ruled  in  Dehli  from  1206  to  1526,  it  will 
be  convenient  to  recognize  three  periods:  (1)  from  the 
accession  of  Qutbu-d-dm  Aibak  in  1206  to  the  death  of 
Qhiyasu-d-dm  Tughlaq  in  1324,  (2)  the  reign  of 
Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq  1324-1351,  (3)  from  the  acces- 
sion of  Firoz  Shah  III,  1351,  to  the  death  of  Ibrahim 
Lodi,  1526- 

1  Cufic  is  the  earliest  rectilineal  form  of  Arabic  script. 

*  Tankah  is  an  Indian  name  applied  to  coins  of  various 
weights  and  metals  at  different  periods.  For  example,  to  the 
large  silver  and  gold  pieces  of  Nasir-d-dm  Mahmud,  and  later  to 
a  special  copper  issue  of  the  Mughal  Akbar. 


70  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

I.  COINS  OF  THE  EARLY   SULTANS,  A.D.  1206-1324 
(A.H.  602-725) 

The  gold  coins  which  Muhammad  bin  Sam  struck  in 
imitation  of  the  issues  of  the  Hindu  kings  of  Kanauj 
with  the  goddess  Lakshmi  on  the  obverse,  are,  except 
for  the  earliest  gold  issue  of  Haidar  'AH  of  Mysore, 
without  a  parallel  in  Muhammadan  history.  He 
apparently  struck  no  silver  for  his  Indian  dominions  ; 
in  fact,  two  centuries  of  invasion  had  so  impoverished 
the  country  that  for  forty  years  the  currency  consisted 
almost  entirely  of  copper  and  billon:  hardly  any  gold 
appears  to  have  been  struck,  and  silver  coins  of  the 
earlier  Sultans  are  scarce.  The  third  Sultan,  Altamsh1 
(1211-1236),  however,  issued  several  types  of  the  silver 
tankah  (PI.  VIII,  2),  the  earliest  of  which  has  a  portrait 
of  the  king  on  horseback  on  the  obverse.  The  latest 
type  bears  witness  to  the  diploma  of  investiture  he  had 
received  in  1228  from  the  Khalif  of  Baghdad,  Al- 
Mustansir.  The  inscriptions  run  as  follows :  on  the 
obverse,  "  In  the  reign  of  the  I  mum  Al-Mustansir,  the 
commander  of  tfie  faithful"  and  on  the  reverse,  "The 
mighty  Sultan  Shamsu-d-dunya  wa-d-dln,  the  father  of 
the  victorious,  Sultan  Altamsh."  Both  legends  are 
enclosed  in  circles,  leaving  circular  margins  in  which 
are  inscribed  the  name  of  the  mint  and  the  date 
in  Arabic.  This  type  was  followed,  sometimes  with 
slight  variations,  by  seven  succeeding  Sultans,  and 
although  the  Khalif  actually  died  in  1242,  the  words, "in 
the  reign  of"  were  not  dropped  until  the  time  of 
Ghiyasu-d-dm  Balban  (1266-1286).  Gold,  though 
minted  by  'Alau-d-dm  Mas'ud,  Nasiru-d-dm  Mahmud, 
Balban  and  Jalalu-d-din  Khilji,  was  not  common  until 
'Alau-d-dm  Muhammad  (1296-1316)  had  enriched  his 
treasury  by  conquests  in  Southern  India.  These  gold 
coins  (PI.  VIII,  5)  are  replicas  of  the  silver  in  weight 
and  design.  Divisional  pieces  of  the  silver  tankah  are 
extremely  rare.  'Alau-d-dm,  whose  silver  issues  are 

1  The  correct    form   of    the    Sultan's  name    is    Iltutmish ; 
Altamsh  is  a  popular  corruption. 


MUHAMMADAN  DYNASTIES   OF   DEHLl     71 

very  plentiful,  changed  the  design  by  dropping  the 
name  of  the  Khalif  from  the  obverse  and  substituting 
the  self-laudatory  titles/'  The  second  Alexander •,  the  right 
hand  of  the  Khalif  ate"  \  at  the  same  time  he  confined 
the  marginal  inscription  to  the  obverse.  His  successor, 
Qutbu-d-din  Mubarak,  whose  issues  are  in  some  respects 
the  finest  of  the  whole  series,  employed  the  old  Indian 
square  shape1  for  some  of  his  gold,  silver  and  billon. 
On  his  coins  appear  the  even  more  arrogant  titles,"  The 
supreme  head  of  Islam,  the  Khalif  of  the  Lord  of  heaven 
and  earth."  Ghiyasu-d-dm  Tughlaq  was  the  first  Indian 
sovereign  to  use  the  title  Ghazi,  "  Champion  of  the 
faith." 

Among  the  greatest  rarities  of  this  period  are  the 
silver  tankahs  of  two  rois  faineants,  Shamsu-d-din 
Kaiyumars,  the  infant  son  of  Mu'izzu-d-din  Kaiqubad 
(1287-1290),  and  Shihabu-d-din  'Umar,  brother  of 
Qutbu-d-din  Mubarak,  who  each  occupied  the  throne 
only  a  few  months. 

Most  of  the  coins  struck  in  billon  by  these  early 
Sultans,  including  Muhammad  of  Ghor.  are  practically 
uniform  in  size  and  weight  (about  56  grains),  the 
difference  in  value  depending  upon  the  proportions  in 
which  the  two  metals  were  mixed  in  them.  This 
question  has  not  yet  been  fully  investigated,  but  it  is 
probable  that  different  denominations  were  marked  by 
different  types.2  The  drawback  to  such  a  coinage  lay, 
as  already  noted,  in  the  impossibility  of  obtaining  uni- 
formity in  coins  of  the  same  denomination,  and  in  the 
consequent  liability  to  abuse.  Numerous  varieties  were 
struck.  The  Indian  type  known  as  the  Dehllwala,  with 
the  humped  bull  and  the  sovereign's  name  in  Nagarl 
on  the  reverse,  and  the  Dehli  Chauhan  type  of  horse- 
man on  the  obverse,  lasted  till  the  reign  of  'Alau-d-din 
Mas'ud  (1241-1246);  on  some  coins  of  this  class 
Altamsh's  name  is  associated  with  that  of  Chahada-deva 

1  Two  gold  coins  of  'Alau-d-dm  Muhammad  are  the  earliest 
known  Muhammadan  coins  of  this  shape.  Cf .  Num.  Chron.,  1921, 
p.  345. 

«  J.A.S.B.,  N.S.,  XXXV,  p.  25. 


72  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

of  Narwar.  Another  type,  with  the  Horseman  obverse 
and  the  Sultan's  name  and  titles  in  Arabic  on  the 
reverse  (PI.  VII,  3),  survived  till  Nasiru-d-dinMahmud's 
reign,1  when  it  was  replaced  by  coins  with  a  similar 
reverse,  but,  on  the  obverse,  the  king's  name  in  Arabic 
appears  in  a  circle  surrounded  by  his  titles  in  Nagari 
(PI.  VIII,  4).  On  the  commonest  type  of  the  later 
Sultans  Arabic  legends  are  in  parallel  lines  on  both 
obverse  and  reverse.  The  billon  coins  of  'Alau-d- 
dm  Muhammad  are  the  first  to  bear  dates.  Qutbu-d-din 
Mubarak  employs  a  number  of  special  types,  including 
those  square  in  shape  (PI.  VIII,  6).  Billon  coins, 
mostly  of  the  Bull  and  Horseman  type,  were  also  struck 
by  a  number  of  foreigners  who  invaded  Western  India 
during  the  thirteenth  century.  The  most  important  of 
these  was  the  fugitive  king  of  Khwarizm  Jalalu-d-dm 
Mang-barm. 

The  earliest  copper  of  this  period  is  small  and 
insignificant.  Some  coins,  as  well  as  a  few  billon 
pieces,  bear  the  inscription  W/,  which  may  mean 
simply  "legal,"  i.e.  currency  (PI.  VIII,  1).  Balban 
introduced  a  type  with  the  Sultan's  name  and  titles 
divided  between  obverse  and  reverse.  All  copper  is 
dateless. 

The  mint  names  inscribed  on  the  coins  of  these 
Sultans  sometimes  afford  valuable  historical  evidence 
of  the  extent  of  their  dominions  The  general  term, 
Biladu-l-hind,  "The  Cities  of  Hind,"  is  the  first  to 
appear,  on  the  silver  of  Altamsh.  Dehll  is  found  on  the 
same  king's  billon  and  copper.  Lakhnauti,  the  modern 
Gaur  in  Bengal,  also  occurs  for  the  first  time  during  this 
reign ;  Sultanpur,  a  town  on  the  Beas  in  the  Panjab,  on 
a  silver  tankah  of  Balban;  Daru-l-isldm,  "The  seat  of 
Islam"  (possibly  an  ecclesiastical  mint  in  old  Dehll); 
and  Qila  Deoglr  on  the  gold  and  silver  of  'Alau-d-dm 
Muhammad;  while  Qutbabad  is  probably  Qutbu-d-din 
Mubarak's  designation  for  Deoglr. 


1  A  single  specimen  is  known  of  the  reign  of  Balban. 


MUHAMMADAN  DYNASTIES   OF   DEHLl     73 

II.   THE  COINAGE  OF   MUHAMMAD   BIN    TUGHLAQ, 
A.D.  1325-1351  (A.H.  725-752) 

Fakhru-d-din  Juna,  on  his  coins  simply  Muhammad 
bin  Tughlaq,  son  and  murderer  of  Ghiyasu-d-din 
Tughlaq,  has  not  unjustly  been  called  by  Thomas  "The 
Prince  of  moneyers."  Not  only  do  his  coins  surpass 
those  of  his  predecessors  in  execution  and  especially  in 
calligraphy,1  but  his  large  output  of  gold,  the  number 
of  his  issues  of  all  denominations,  the  interest  of  the 
inscriptions,  reflecting  his  character  and  activities,  his 
experiments  with  the  coinage,  particularly  his  forced 
currency,  entitle  him  to  a  place  among  the  greatest 
moneyers  of  history.  For  his  earliest  gold  and  silver 
pieces  he  retained  the  old  172*8  grain  standard  of  his 
predecessors.  His  first  experiment  was  to  add  to 
these,  in  the  first  year  of  his  reign,  gold  dinars  of  201*6 
grains  (PI.  VIII,  7)  and  silver  'adlls  of  144  grains 
weight,  an  innovation  aimed  apparently  at  adjusting  the 
coinage  to  the  actual  commercial  value  of  the  two 
metals,  which  had  changed  with  the  influx  of  gold  into 
Northern  India  after  the  Sultan's  successful  campaigns 
in  the  Deccan.  But  the  experiment  evidently  did  not 
work ;  for  after  the  seventh  year  of  the  reign  these 
two  new  pieces  were  discontinued. 

Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq' s  gold  and  silver  issues,  like 
those  of  his  predecessors,  are  identical  in  type.  One  of 
the  earliest  and  most  curious  of  these  was  struck  both 
at  Dehli  and  Daulatabad  (Deogir),  his  southern  capital, 
in  memory  of  his  father.  It  bears  the  superscription  of 
Ghiyasu-d-dm  accompanied  by  the  additional  title, 
strange  considering  the  circumstances  of  his  death,  Al 
Shahid,  "The  Martyr."  His  staunch  orthodoxy  is 
reflected  on  nearly  all  his  coins,  not  only  in  the 
reappearance  of  the  Kalima,  but  in  the  assumption  by 

1  The  fine  calligraphy,  however,  caused  the  coin  to  be 
reduced  in  size  :  all  succeeding  Sultans  reproduced  these  small 
thick  gold  and  silver  pieces,  but  not  the  fine  script,  with  the 
unfortunate  result  that  the  mint  name  which  appears  in  the 
margin  is  frequently  missing. 


74  THE   COINS   OF  INDIA 

the  monarch  of  such  titles  as  ' '  The  warrior  in  the  cause 
of  God ' '  and  '  *  The  truster  in  the  support  of  tJie  Compas- 
sionate" while  the  names  of  the  four  orthodox  Khalifs, 
Abubakr,  'Umr,  'Ustnan  and  'AH  now  appear  for  the 
first  time  on  the  coinage  of  India.  The  early  gold  and 
silver,  of  which  about  half-a-dozen  different  types  exist, 
were  minted  at  Dehli,  Lakhnauti,  Satgaon,  Sultan- 
pur  (Warangal),  Daru-1-islam,  Tughlaqpur  (Tirhut), 
Daulatabad,  and  Mulk-i-Tilang.  In  A.H.  741  (1340) 
Muhammad  sent  an  emissary  to  the  Abbassid  Khalif  at 
Cairo  for  a  diploma  of  investiture,  and  in  the  meantime 
substituted  the  name  of  the  Khalif  Al  Mustakfi  Billah 
for  his  own  on  the  coinage ;  on  the  return  of  the 
emissary,  however,  it  was  discovered  that  that  Khalif 
had  actually  died  in  A.H.  740,  so  during  the  latter 
years  of  the  reign  the  name  of  his  successor,  Al  Hakim, 
appeared  in  its  place  (PI.  VIII,  8). 

At  least  twenty-five  varieties  of  Muhammad  bin 
Tughlaq's  billon  coinage  are  known.  From  inscrip- 
tions on  the  Forced  Currency,  which  included  tokens 
representing  these  billon  pieces,  we  learn  the  names  of 
their  various  denominations.  There  appear  to  have 
been  two  scales  of  division,  one  for  use  at  Dehli,  and 
the  other  for  Daulatabad  and  the  south.  In  the  former 
the  silver  tankah  was  divided  into  forty-eight,  and  in 
the  latter  into  fifty  jaitils.  At  Dehli  were  current  2-,  6-, 
8-,  12-  and  16-gfini  pieces,  equal  respectively  to  Ath, 
Jth,  Jth,  Jth  and  -Jrd  of  a  tankah.  At  Daulatabad  there 
were  halves  (25  ganl)  and  fifths  (10  gani) .  The 
assignation  of  their  respective  values  to  the  actual 
coins  is,  however,  still  a  matter  of  difficulty.1 

Billon  as  well  as  pure  copper  coins  of  the  later 
years  of  the  reign  bear  the  names  of  the  two  Khalifs. 
About  twelve  types2  of  copper  money  were  minted, 
most  of  them  small  and  without  special  interest. 
Between  the  years  A.H.  730-732  (1329-1332)  the 


1  I  am  indebted  to  Colonel  H.  R.  Nevill  and  Mr.  H.  N.  Wright 
for  this  information. 

*  Excluding  the  Forced  Currency  types. 


MUHAMMADAN   DYNASTIES   OF   DEHLl     75 

Sultan  attempted  to  substitute  brass  and  copper  tokens 
(PI.  VIII,  9)  for  the  silver  and  billon  coinage.  In  order 
to  secure  the  success  of  this  experiment,  he  caused 
such  appeals  as  the  following  to  be  inscribed  on  them : 
"  He  who  obeys  the  Sultan  obeys  the  Compassionate"  \  and 
it  is  significant  that  one  of  these  tokens  bears  an  inscrip- 
tion in  Nagari,  the  sole  example  of  the  use  of  this 
script  by  the  orthodox  Sultan.  These  coins  were  struck 
at  seven  different  mints,  including  Dhar  in  Malwa,  but 
the  scheme  was  doomed  because  of  the  ease  with  which 
forgeries  were  fabricated  ;  they  were  made  in  thousands  ; 
the  promulgation  of  the  edict  which  accompanied  the 
issue  "  turned  the  house  of  every  Hindu  into  a  mint," 
says  a  contemporary  historian.  The  Sultan  thereupon 
withdrew  the  issue,  and  redeemed  geniune  and  false 
alike  at  his  own  cost. 

III.  THE  COINAGE  OF  DEHLl,  FROM  1351  to  1526 
(A.H.  752-932) 

It  has  been  suggested  by  historians  that  the 
disastrous  consequences  of  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq's 
experiment  with  the  currency  were  in  part  responsible 
for  the  disintegration  of  his  wide  empire.  This  is 
improbable.  His  successor,  Firoz  Shah  Tughlaq, 
undoubtedly  inherited  a  full  treasury,  as  the  vast  con- 
structional works  he  undertook  during  the  thirty-seven 
peaceful  years  of  his  reign  prove.  But  he  was  no 
soldier  ;  and  the  governors  of  the  wealthy  Deccan 
province  probably  experienced  little  interference  from 
the  distant  Court  at  Dehli.  Daulatabad  was  an  almost 
impregnable  fort,  and,  doubtless,  well  stored  with 
munitions.  Consequently  truculent  Viceroys  had  the 
sinews  of  rebellion  ready  to  their  hand.  The  temptation 
was  too  great  to  be  resisted.  Other  governors  followed 
the  lead  given  in  the  Deccan ;  the  finest  provinces 
rapidly  fell  away  during  the  disturbed  rule  of  Firoz's 
successors  and  became  independent  kingdoms  ;  so  that 
in  a  few  years  the  dominions  of  the  Dehli  kings  were 
reduced  to  little  more  than  the  district  round  the  city, 


76  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Their  discomfiture  was  completed  when,  in  1398,  the 
plundering  hosts  of  Timur  swept  down  through 
Hindustan  and  occupied  the  capital.  Under  these 
conditions  the  coinage  naturally  degenerated. 

The  gold  of  Firoz  Shah  is  fairly  common,  and  six 
types  are  known.  Following  his  predecessor's  example, 
he  inscribed  the  name  of  the  Khalif  Abu-l-'abbas  and 
those  of  his  two  successors,  Abu-l-f ath  and  'Abdullah,  on 
the  obverse,  and  his  own  name  on  the  reverse, 
accompanied  by  such  titles  as  "The  right  hand  of  the 
commander  of  the  faithful"  (i.e.  the  Khalif)  and  "  The 
deputy  of  the  commander."  The  latter  appears  on  either 
the  copper  or  billon  coins  of  nearly  every  subsequent 
ruler  until  Bahlol  Lodi's  reign.  In  A.H.  760_  (1359) 
Firoz  associated  the  name  of  his  son,  Fath  JQian,  with 
his  own  on  the  coinage. 

Gold  coins  of  subsequent  kings  are  exceedingly  scarce 
(PI.  VIII,  11)  ;  the  shortage  of  silver  is  even  more 
apparent.  Only  three  silver  pieces  of  Firoz  have  ever 
come  to  light,  and  a  few  are  known  of  Muhammad  bin 
Firoz,  Mahmud  Shah,  Muhammad  bin  Farid,  Mubarak 
Shah  II,  and  'Alam  Shah.  In  the  reign  of  Muhammad 
bin  Firoz,  the  general  title,  "  The  Supreme  head  of  Islam, 
the  commander  of  the  faithful,"  was  substituted  for  the 
actual  name  of  the  Khalif  in  the  inscription.  Firoz 
Shah,  following  the  example  of  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq, 
issued  in  large  quantities  a  billon  coin  of  about  144 
grains  weight  (PL  VIII,  10).  This  was  continued  by 
his  successors,  but  the  proportion  of  silver  was 
apparently  gradually  reduced.  The  coinage  of  the  later 
rulers,  though  abounding  in  varieties,  is  almost  confined 
to  copper  and  billon  pieces  (PL  VIII,  12).  During  the 
whole  period,  with  but  two  exceptions,  one  mint  name 
appears,  Dehli,  accompanied  by  one  or  other  of  its 
honorific  titles,  Hazrat  or  Daru-l-Mulk. 

The  long  reign  of  Firoz  seems  to  have  established  his 
coinage  as  a  popular  medium  of  exchange  ;  and  this  pro- 
bably accounts  for  the  prolonged  series  of  his  posthumous 
billon  coins,  extending  over  a  period  of  forty  years. 
Some  of  these  and  of  the  posthumous  issues  of  his  son,* 


MUHAMMADAN   DYNASTIES   OF   DEHLl    77 

Muhammad,  and  of  his  grandson,  Mahmud,  were  struck 
by  Daulat  Khan  Lodi  and  Khigr  Khan,  two  sultans  'who 
refused  to  assume  the  insignia  of  royalty.  The  coinage 
of  the  Lodi  family,  Bahlol,  Sikandar  and  Ibrahim,  des- 
pite the  difference  in  standard,  bears  a  close  resemblance 
to  that  of  the  Sharqi  kings  of  Jaunpur.  The  first  and 
the  last  minted  copper  and  billon,  Sikandar  and  his  son, 
Mahmud,  a  pretender  (1529) ,  billon  only.  Bahlol  (1450- 
1489)  issued  a  large  billon  coin,  the  Bahloli,  of  about 
145  grains  (PL  VIII,  13),  and  also  a  copper  piece  of 
140  grains,  first  introduced  by  Firoz,  with  its  half  and 
quarter  divisions.  The  mint  name,  Dehli,  appears  on 
both  Bahlol's  and  Sikandar's  coins,  but  it  is  frequently 
missing  from  the  latter,  as  the  dies  were  made  larger 
than  the  coin  discs.  The  name  Shahr  Jaunpur,  "The 
City  Jaunpur,"  occurs  on  the  later  copper  of  Bahlol 
after  his  reduction  of  the  Sharqi  kingdom  in  1476.  On 
their  billon  coins  all  three  kings  adopt  the  formula, 
"Trusting  in  the  merciful  one"  but  on  his  larger 
copper  pieces  Bahlol  retained  the  old,  "  Deputy  of  the 
commander  of  the  faithful."  In  1526  Ibrahim  Lodi  was 
overthrown  and  killed  on  the  field  of  Panipat  by  the 
Mughal  Babur ;  and  once  again  the  fortunes  of  the 
Indian  coinage  changed  under  the  auspices  of  a  foreign 
dynasty. 


« 

Fig.  8.    Akbar's  Ilahi  formula.    Cf.  PI.  X,  8  (obverse). 

VIII 

THE  COINAGES  OF  THE    MUHAM- 
MADAN  STATES 

ALL  the  states  whose  coinages  form  the  subject  of 
this  chapter,  with  the  exception  of  Kashmir,  were  once 
provinces  subject  to  the  Dehli  Sultans,  and  owed  their 
independence  to  the  ambition  of  powerful  viceroys,  who 
took  advantage  at  various  times  of  the  weakened  control 
of  the  central  power.  The  earliest  issues  of  each  state 
were  more  or  less  close  imitations  of  the  Dehli  currency, 
but  local  conditions  soon  introduced  modifications  in 
standard  and  fabric,  and  in  the  course  of  a  century  each 
had  generally  acquired  a  well-defined  and  characteristic 
coinage  of  its  own.  Prosperity  was  usually  short-lived  ; 
the  inevitable  period  of  decay  set  in ;  and  the  coinage, 
confined  at  the  close  to  ill-struck  copper  pieces,  illus- 
trates history  in  striking  fashion.  Bengal,  however, 
was  able  to  maintain  its  silver  currency  to  the  last. 

I.   THE  COINAGE   OF  THE   GOVERNORS   AND 
SULTANS    OF    BENGAL 

Bengal  was  brought  into  subjection  to  the  Dehli 
kingdom  in  1202  (A.H.  599)  by  Bakhtiyar  KJiilji,  who 
became  the  first  governor  of  the  province.  Till  1338  it 
was  nominally  ruled  from  the  capital,  Lakhnauti,  by 
independent  governors ;  but  at  least  six  of  these  issued 
coins  in  their  own  names  ;  and  after  1310  there  was  a 
divided  governorship,  the  rulers  of  East  and  West  Bengal 


COINAGES   OP   MUHAMMADAN   STATES     79 

each  assuming  the  right  to  coin.  Independence  was 
gained  under  one  of  the  rulers  of  East  Bengal,  Fakhru-d-dm 
Mubarak  ;  and,  after  a  year  of  discord,  Shamsu-d-din  Ilyas 
Shah,  in  1339,  brought  the  whole  province  under  his  con- 
trol. From  1339-1358  Bengal  was  ruled  by  four  dynas- 
ties, the  house  of  Ilyas  Shah,  1339-1406  and  1442-1481, 
the  house  of  the  Hindu  raja,  Ganesh,  1406-1442,  the 
Habshi  kings,  1486-1490,  and  the  house  of  the  greatest 
of  Bengal  kings,  'Alau-d-dm  Husain  Shah,  1493-1538. 
Bengal  was  then  ruled  from  Dehli  by  Sher  Shah  and  his 
family  ;  then  independently  from  1552-1563  by  younger 
members  of  his  dynasty  ;  and  finally  by  three  sovereigns 
of  the  Afghan  Kararam  family  till  1576,  when  Bengal 
became  a  province  of  Akbar's  empire. 

Gold  coins  of  Bengal  are  very  scarce,  and  but  one 
billon  coin,  of  the  governor  Ghiyasu-d-dm  Bahadur 
(1310-1323)  has  been  found.  The  place  of  copper,  it  is 
supposed,  was  supplied  by  cowries.  Silver  coins  are 
known  of  twenty-nine  out  of  the  fifty-six  gover- 
nors and  sultans,  but  the  silver  is  inferior  in  purity  to 
the  Dehli  coins ;  and  that  of  the  Sultans  is  struck  to  a 
local  standard  of  166  grains  :  they  are  frequently  much 
disfigured  by  countermarks  and  chisel-cuts  made  by  the 
money-changers.  The  coins  of  the  governors  and 
Sultans  until  Shamsu-d-dm  Ilyas  Shah  show  Dehli  influ- 
ence in  fabric  and  inscription,  and  this  influence  reappears 
occasionally  later.  The  issues  of  the  earlier  governors 
bear  the  Kalima  on  the  obverse  ;  for  this  later  gover- 
nors substitute  the  name  of  the  last  Khalif  of  Baghdad, 
Al  Must'asim.  The  independent  kings  adopt  various 
titles  expressing  their  loyalty  to  the  head  of  Islam,  such 
as  "  The  right  hand  of  tJie  Klialif,  aider  of  the  commander 
of  the  faithful"  and  "  Succoiirer  of  Islam  and  the  Mus- 
lims" The  convert,  Jalalu-d-dm  Muhammad  (1414-1431), 
revived  the  use  of  the  Kalima,  which  is  continued  with 
two  exceptions  by  all  his  successors  till  'Alau-d-dm 
Husain  Shah's  reign.  The  most  usual  personal  titles 
are  " 'The  mighty  Sultan ,"  or  "The  strengtJiened  by  the 
support  of  the  Compassionate"  but  certain  rulers  adopt 
striking  formulae  of  their  own.  Shamsu-d-dm  Ilyas 

6 


80  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Shah,  following  'Alau-d-dm  Muhammad  of  Dehli, 
called  himself  *'  The  Second  Alexander"  and  Sikandar 
Shah  (1358-89)  was  evidently  imitating  Muhammad  bin 
Tughlaq  in  '  *  The  warrior  in  the  cause  of  the  Compassion- 
ate." One  of  the  most  curious  and  interesting  titles 
appears  on  a  coin  of  'Alau-d-dm  IJusain ;  it  runs  as  fol- 
lows :  "  The  Sultan,  conqueror  over  Kamru  and  Kamtah 
and  Jajnagar  and  Urlssah"  alluding  to  his  invasions  of 
Assam  and  Orissa. 

The  coinage  assumes  a  characteristic  local  type  first 
under  Sikandar  (PI.  IX,  1),  son  of  the  founder  of  the 
house  of  Ilyas,  and  henceforth  there  is  much  variety  of 
design,  the  Sultan's  name  and  titles  being  enclosed  in 
circles,  squares,  octagons,  sometimes  with  multifoil 
borders  or  scalloped  edges ;  margins  occur  more  usually 
on  the  reverse  only,  sometimes  on  both  sides,  in  which 
are  inscribed  the  mint  and  date  in  Arabic  words. 
Nasiru-d-dm  Mahmud  I  (1442-59),  abolished  the  mar- 
ginal inscription  ;  and  from  his  reign  the  mint  name  and 
date,  in  figures,  appear  at  the  bottom  of  the  reverse 
area.  For  some  of  his  coins  Jalalu-d-din  Muhammad 
used  Tughra  characters,  which,  owing  to  the  up-strokes 
being  elongated  to  the  upper  edge  of  the  coin,  give  the 
curious  appearance  of  a  row  of  organ-pipes.  It  must 
be  admitted  that  the  majority  of  Bengal  coins  are 
entirely  wanting  in  artistic  form,  the  depths  being 
reached  perhaps  in  some  of  the  issues  of  Ruknu-d-din 
Barbak  (1459-74);  the  calligraphy  is  of  the  poorest 
quality  ;  and  the  Bengali  die-cutters  frequently  reveal 
their  ignorance  of  Arabic.  The  fine  broad  coins  of  the 
two  Afghan  dynasties  display  an  immediate  improve- 
ment ;  they  are  identical  in  form  and  inscription  with 
the  Dehli  Suri  coinage,  and  are  struck  to  Sher  Shah's 
new  silver  standard.  A  special  feature  of  the  Bengal 
coinage  is  the  number  of  its  mints ;  twenty-one  names 
have  been  read  on  the  coins,  but  it  is  uncertain  whether 
some  of  these  are  not  temporary  names  for  better- 
known  towns.  The  most  important  mints  were 
Lakhnauti,  Firozabad,  Satgaon,  Fathabad,  Husainabad, 
Nasratabad  and  Tanda.  Also  certain  coins  are  inscribed 


COINAGES   OF   MUHAMMADAN   STATES    81 


as  struck  at  "The  Mint"  and  ''The  Treasury.  "_  The 
broad  silver  coins  of  the  little  state  of  Jayantapura, 
though  struck  two  centuries  after  the  independent 
coinage  of  Bengal  had  disappeared,  seem  to  be  a  late 
echo  of  the  popularity  it  achieved,  particularly  in  the 
neighbouring  hill  states. 

II.  COINAGE  OF  THE   SULTANS   OF  KASHMIR1 

Kashmir  was  conquered  about  the  year  1346  by  a 
Swat,  named  Shah  Mirza,  who,  assuming  the  title  of 
Shamsu-d-din,  founded  the  first  Muhammadan  dynasty. 
The  most  famous  of  succeeding  rulers  were  the 
iconoclast  Sikandar  (1393-1416)  and  the  tolerant  Zainu- 
l-'abidin  (1420-70).  From  1541  _to  1551  Kashmir  was 
ruled  by  a  Mughal  governor,  Mirza  Haidar,  nominally  in 
subjection  to  the  Emperor  Humayun.  In  1561  the 
Chak  dynasty  succeeded  and  ruled  till  1589,  when  Akbar 
annexed  Kashmir  to  the  empire.  Coins  are  known  of 
sixteen  sultans  ;  there  are  also  coins  in  the  local  style 
struck  in  the  names  of  the  Muhgals,  Akbar  and  Humayun 
and  of  Islam  Shah  Suri.  The  gold  of  these  Sultans  is 
extremely  scarce,  only  about  twelve  specimens  being 
known,  including  coins  of  Muhammad  Shah,  Ibrahim 
and  Yusuf.  They  are  all  of  one  type  :  on  the  obverse 
is  the  Kalima  enclosed  in  a  circle,  the  reverse  inscrip- 
tion giving  the  king's  name  and  titles  and  the  mint, 
Kashmir,  is  divided  into  two  parts  by  a  double  band 
running  across  the  face  of  the  coin.  Most  characteristic 
of  the  Kashmir  kingdom  are  the  square  silver  pieces 
(PL  IX,  9)  ;  size,  shape  and  design  suggest  that  the 
model  for  these  may  perhaps  be  found  in  the  recent 
billon  issues  of  Qutbu-d-dm  Mubarak  of  Dehli  (1316- 
20).  Following  conservative  Kashmir  traditions,  the 
design  once  fixed  remained  unchanged  till  the  downfall 
of  the  kingdom.  The  obverse  gives  the  ruler's  name 
accompanied  invariably  by  the  title,  "  The  most  mighty 

1  The  chronology  of  these  Sultans,  long  in  doubt,  has  now  been 
fixed.  Cf.  J.R.A.S.,  1918,  p.  451. 


82  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Sultan"  and  the  date  in  figures  ;  on  the  reverse  appears 
the  legend  "Struck  in  Kashmir"  in  a  square  border  set 
diagonally  to  the  sides  of  the  coin,  and  in  the  margins 
the  date  (usually  illegible)  in  Arabic  words.  Dates  on 
Kashmir  coins  are  frequently  unreliable,  they  seem  at 
times  to  have  become  conventional  along  with  the 
style. 

The  copper  coinage  follows  in  general  the  standard 
of  the  preceding  Hindu  kings  and  is  very  poorly 
executed.  In  the  commonest  type  the  obverse  inscrip- 
tion is  divided  by  a  bar  with  a  knot  in  the  middle. 
Zainu-l-'abidin  struck  several  kinds  of  copper  ;  a  large 
crude  square  type,  also  found  in  brass,  may  belong  to 
an  earlier  reign.  Of  Hasan  Shah  a  lead  coin  has  been 
recorded. 

III.  COINAGE  OF  THE  SULTANS   OF   MADURA 
OR   MA'BAR 

When  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq  formed  the  most 
southern  districts  of  his  kingdom  into  a  province,  which 
he  named  Ma'bar,  he  seems  to  have  struck  certain  types 
of  billon  and  copper  specially  for  circulation  there.  In 
1334 (A.H.  735)  the  governor,  Jalalu-d-din  Ahsan  Shah, 
proclaimed  his  independence,  and  he  and  his  eight 
successors  minted  coins  of  copper  and  billon1  in  their 
capital,  Madura,  until  they  were  subjugated  by  the  king 
of  Vijayanagar  in  1371  (A.H.  773).  The  last  coin  of 
'Alau-d-din  Sikandar  Shah  is,  however,  dated  A.H.  779. 
These  coins,  which  are  of  little  interest,  follow  two 
types  of  the  Dehli  coinage,  one  of  which  has  the 
sultan's  name  in  a  circle  with  the  date  in  Arabic  in  the 
surrounding  margin;  the  other  has  the  title,  "The  most 
mighty  Sultan"  on  the  reverse,  and  the  sultan's  name 
on  the  obverse  (PI.  IX,  8).  The  calligraphy  is  of  a 
southern  type  and  this  alone  distinguishes  these  coins 
from  Dehli  issues. 


1  Two  gold  coins  are  also  known  of  these  kings ;  one  is  in 
the  British  Museum. 


COINAGES   OF   MUHAMMADAN   STATES    83 

IV.  COINAGES  OF  THE   DECCAN 

The  Deccan  province,  after  a  series  of  revolts  ex- 
tending over  four  years,  became  finally  severed  from  the 
Dehli  kingdom  in  1347  (A.H.  748).  Certain  copper  coins 
in  the  Dehli  style,  bearing  this  date,  have  been  attributed 
to  Nasiru-d-din  Isma'il,  the  first  officer  to  assume  the 
state  of  royalty.  But  in  the  same  year  he  was 
superseded  by  Sultan  'Alau-d-dm  Hasan  Bahmani, 
founder  of  a  dynasty  which  ruled  till  1518,  when  its 
bloodstained  annals  as  an  independent  kingdom  closed, 
though  nominal  sovereigns  supported  the  pretensions  of 
royalty  until  1525.  The  earliest  known  coin  of  the 
dynasty  bears  the  date  A.H.  757.  The  kingdom  at  the 
height  of  its  power,  under  Muhammad  Shah  III  (1463- 
82),  extended  from  the  province  of  Berar  in  the  north  to 
the  confines  of  Mysore  in  the  south,  and  east  to  west 
from  sea  to  sea.  Until  the  time  of  'Alau-d-dm  Ahmad 
Shah  II  (1435-57)  the  capital  was  Kulbarga,  renamed 
by  the  founder  of  the  kingdom  Ahsanabad ;  Ahmad 
Shah  moved  the  seat  of  government  to  Bidar,  which 
henceforth,  under  the  name  Muhammadabad,  appears  on 
the  coinage  in  place  of  Ahsanabad.  No  other  mint 
names  have  been  found. 

The  gold  and  silver  coins  are  fine  broad  pieces 
modelled  on  the  tankahs  of  'Alau-d-dm  Muhammad  of 
Dehli.  In  the  earlier  reigns  there  is  some  variety  in 
arrangement  and  design :  the  legend  on  the  silver  of 
Ahmad  Shah  I  (1422-35),  for  example,  is  enclosed  in 
an  oval  border,  and  there  is  a  gold  piece  of  the  versatile 
bigot,  Firoz  Shah  (1399-1422),  corresponding  in  weight 
and  fabric  to  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq's  heavy  issue. 
But  by  the  reign  of  Ahmad  Shah  II  a  single  design  had 
been  adopted  for  both  metals  (PI.  IX,  2)  ;  on  the  obverse 
are  inscribed  various  titles  which  changed  with  each 
ruler;  on  the  reverse  appear  the  king's  name  and  further 
titles  within  a  square  area;  while  in  the  margins  are 
the  mint  name  and  date.  The  legend  on  the  gold  coins 
of  Mahmud  Shah  (1482-1518) ,  perhaps  the  commonest  of 
the  rare  Bahmani  gold  issues,  may  serve  as  an  example  : 
obverse,  "  Trusting  in  the  Merciful  oney  the  strong •,  the 


84  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

rich,  the  mighty  Sultan"',  reverse,  "The  father  of 
battles,  Mahmud  Shah,  the  guardian,  the  Bahmarii" 
Small  silver  pieces  were  struck  by  the  first  two  rulers, 
weighing  from  15  to  26  grains. 

The  earliest  copper  follows  closely  that  of  DehK, 
but  innovations  soon  made  their  appearance,  and  after 
the  reign  of  Ahmad  Shah  II  coins  are  found  varying 
from  225  to  27  grains  in  weight ;  the  copper  standard 
seems  to  have  been  continually  changed.  Some  of  the 
titles  appearing  on  the  silver  are  usually  to  be  found  on 
the  same  ruler's  copper,  but  many  varieties  in  type  are 
found,  especially  among  the  issues  of  Muhammad  I 
(1358-73)  and  the  later  kings  ;  of  Mahmud  Shah  seven 
varieties  are  known,  and  seven  are  also  known  of 
Kalimullah,  the  last  nominal  king,  struck  probably  by 
Amir  Band  of  Bidar. 

During  the  reign  of  Mahmud  Shah  the  great  kingdom 
of  the  Deccan  was  split  up  into  five  separate  sultanates. 
Copper  coins  of  at  least  three  of  the  Nizam  Shahs  of 
Ahmadnagar  (1490-1637)  are  known  :  they  appear  to 
have  had  mints  at  Ahmadnagar,  Daulatabad  and  Burhana- 
bad.  The  coinage  of  Gulkanda  is  confined  to  a  single 
copper  type,  struck  by  the  two  last  Qutb  Shahi  kings, 
'Abdullah  and  Abu-1-Hasan ;  the  reverse  bears  the 
pathetic  legend,  "  //  has  come  to  an  end  well  and  auspic- 
iously'' The  copper  coins  of  the  last  five  'Adil  Shahi 
rulers  of  Bijapur  are  rather  ornate,  but  usually  very 
ill- struck ;  small  gold  pieces  bearing  a  couplet  are 
known  of  Muhammad  (1627-56).  Most  interesting  of 
all  Bijapur  coins  are  the  curious  silver  Lawns,*  or 
fish-hook  money,  issued  by  'AH  II,  1656-72  (PI.  IX,  10), 
which  became  one  of  the  standard  currencies  among 
traders  in  the  Indian  Ocean  towards  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  coinage  of  the  sultans  of  the 
Maldive  Islands,  whereon  they  styled  themselves 
"  Sultans  of  land  and  sea,"  was  based  on  that  of  Bijapur 
and  survived  till  the  present  century. 

1  The  name  is  derived  from  the  port  Lar,  on  the  Persian  Gulf, 
where  this  coin  was  first  struck. 


COINAGES   OF   MUHAMMADAN   STATES     85 


V.  THE  COINAGE  OF  THE   KINGDOM   OF  JAUNPOR 

The  Eastern  (Sharqi)  kingdom  of  Jaunpur,  which 
also  included  the  modern  districts  of  Gorakhpur,  Tirhut 
and  Bihar,  owed  its  independence  to  the  power  and  influ- 
ence of  the  eunuch,  J£hwaja-i-Jahan,  who  was  appointed 
"  Lord  of  the  East,"  by  Mahmud  Shah  II  of  Dehli,  in 
1394.  The  coinage  does  not,  however,  begin  till  the 
reign  of  the  third  ruler  Ibrahim  (1400-40),  and  he  and 
his  three  successors  continued  to  mint  till  1476,  when 
Bahlol  Lodi  overthrew  l^usain  Shah  and  re-annexed 
the  province  to  Dehli.  The  bulk  of  the  Jaunpur  coin- 
age consists  of  billon  and  copper  pieces  modelled  on 
those  of  Dehli.  The  commonest  billon  type  has  on  the 
obverse  the  legend,  "  The  KJialif,  the  commander  of  the 
faithful^  may  his  klialifate  be  perpetuated ' ' ;  the  reverse 
gives  the  king's  name,  and  on  coins  of  the  last  three 
rulers  their  pedigree  as  well,  Mahmud  Shah  (1440-58) 
introduced  a  type  of  copper  with  his  name  in  a  circle  on 
the  obverse,  which  was  continued  by  his  successors 
(PI.  IX,  5).  Billon  coins  were  struck  in  the  name  of 
Husain  Shah  for  thirty  years  after  his  expulsion  from 
Jaunpur  in  1476  (A.H.  881)  ;  and  a  few  copper  coins 
of  about  the  same  period  bear  the  name  of  a  rebel, 
Barbak  Shah,  a  brother  of  Bahlol  Lodi.  The  silver 
coins  of  Ibrahim  and  Mahmud  are  extremely  scarce. 
Gold  was  struck  by  Ibrahim,  Mahmud  and  Husain. 
With  the  exception  of  one  coin  of  Ibrahim,  which 
follows  the  ordinary  Dehli  model,  all  three  rulers, 
evidently  influenced  by  their  neighbour,  Jalalu-d-din 
Muhammad  of  Bengal,  used  the  "  organ-pipe  "  arrange- 
ment of  tughra  characters  for  the  inscription  of  the 
reverse  (PI.  IX,  4).  The  obverse  inscription  employed 
by  Ibrahim  and  Mahmud,  "  In  tJie  time  of  the  supreme 
head  of  Islam,  the  deputy  of  the  commander  of  the  faithful, ' ' 
and  the  more  correct  form  used  by  Husain,  which  omits 
the  words  "the  deputy  of,"  again  show  Dehli  influence. 
Only  one  coin,  a  large  copper  piece  of  Mahmud  in  the 
British  Museum,  is  known  to  bear  the  mint  name 
Jaunpur. 


86  THE   COINS   OP   INDIA 

VI.   THE  COINAGE   OF   MALWA 

Malwa,  annexed  to  the  Dehli  kingdom  by  'Alau-d- 
din  in  1305,  became  an  independent  state  under  the 
governor,  Dilawar  Khan  Gljori,  in  1401.  His  son, 
Hoshang  Shah  (1405-32),  initiated  the  coinage.  The 
province,  after  incessant  wars  with  Gujarat,  attained  its 
widest  limits  under  the  usurping  minister,  Mahmud  I, 
Khilii  (1436-68).  But  after  a  civil  war,  in  1510,  a  steady 
decline  set  in,  and  in  1530  Bahadur  Shah  of  Gujarat 
captured  Mandu,  the  capital,  and  the  country  remained  a 
province  of  his  kingdom  for  four  years.  It  was  next 
captured  by  Humayun.  Then,  from  1536  to  1542,  it  was 
ruled  by  a  Gujarat!  governor,  Qadir  Shah.  Finally  it 
was  governed  by  Baz  Bahadur,  a  son  of  Sher  Shah's 
nominee,  Shuja*  Khan,  from  1554  to  1560,  when  it  was 
conquered  by  Akbar  and  made  a  Mughal  province. 

The  first  seven  Sultans  struck  coins  in  all  three 
metals.  Mahmud  I  introduced  billon,  and  this  was 
employed  also  by  his  three  successors.  The 
characteristic  feature  of  the  Malwa  coinage  is  the 
square  shape,  also  introduced  by  Mahmud  I  ;  he 
and  his  successor,  Ghiyag  Shah  (1469-1500),  struck 
both  square  and  round  coins,  but  from  the  reign  of 
Nasir  Shah  (1500-10)  the  square  form  is  used  exclu- 
sively. The  gold  pieces  of  the  first  two  kings  follow  the 
Dehli  style.  Mahmud,  however,  introduced  a  new  type 
for  the  reverse,  dividing  the  face  of  the  coin  into  two 
equal  parts  by  lengthening  the  tail  of  the  last  letter 
"ye"  in  his  name,  JChilji.  Ghiyas  Shah  used  a  similar 
band  on  both  faces  (PL  IX,  3),  and  this  is  a  mark  of 
almost  all  succeeding  coins  in  both  shapes. 

The  square  base  silver  pieces  of  Mahmud  II  (1510- 
30),  with  the  inscriptions  enclosed  in  circular  and 
octagonal  borders,  are  the  finest  coins  of  the  series. 
The  rebel,  Muhammad  II  (1515),  the  Gujarat  king, 
Bahadur,  the  governor,  Qadir  Shah,  and  Baz  Bahadur 
struck  copper  coins  only.  The  mint  name,  Shadiabad 
(Mandu),  "  City  of  Delight,"  is  inscribed  only  on  coins 
of  the  earlier  kings. 


COINAGES   OF   MUHAMMADAN   STATES    87 

With  the  reign  of  Ghiyas  Shah  a  series  of  ornaments 
begins  to  appear  on  the  coinage ;  the  purpose  of  these 
is  uncertain,  but  they  seem  to  be  connected  with  the 
dates  of  issue.  Like  the  Bahmams,  the  Malwa  sovereigns 
use  elaborate  honorific  titles  for  their  inscriptions. 
Perhaps  the  most  striking  is  one  of  Mahmud  I,  who 
calls  himself  "The  mighty  sovereign,  the  victorious,  the 
exalted  in  the  Faith  and  in  the  world,  the  second 
Alexander,  the  right  hand  of  the  Khalifate,  the  defender  of 
the  commander  of  the  faithful" 

The  tradition  of  the  square  shape  lingered  on  in 
Malwa  and  the  neighbourhood  long  after  the  extinction 
of  its  independence ;  curious  crude  little  pieces  were 
struck,  probably  for  a  century  at  least,  with  a  mixture  of 
Mughal,  Malwa  and  Gujarat!  inscriptions.  Square  copper 
Mughal  coins  were  struck  at  Ujjain  up  to  the  time  of 
Shah  Jahan  I,  and  Sangrama  Simha  of  Mewar  (1527- 
32)  also  modelled  his  copper  coinage  on  that  of  Malwa. 

VII.  THE  COINAGE  OF  GUJARAT 

Zafar  Khan,  viceroy  of  the  wealthy  province  of 
Gujarat,  threw  off  his  allegiance  to  Sultan  Mahmud  II  of 
Dehli  in  1403,  but  the  first  coins  known  are  those  of  his 
grandson,  Ahmad  I  (1411-43),  founder  of  the  great  city 
of  Ahmadabad  in  A.H.  813  and  of  Ahmadnagar  in  A.H. 
829.  The  dynasty  reached  the  culmination  of  its 
power  in  the  long  reign  of  Mahmud ^1  (1458-1511),  who 
instituted  two  new  mints  at  Mustafa'abad  in  Girnar,  and 
Muhammadabad  (Champanir).  He  was  succeeded  by 
eight  princes,  of  whom  Bahadur  Shah  (1526-36)  alone 
showed  any  ruling  ability.  The  province  was  added  to 
the  Mughal  Empire  in  1572,  but  the  deposed  king, 
MuzafEar  III,  regained  his  throne  for  five  months  eleven 
years  later,  and  actually  struck  silver  and  copper  of  the 
Mughal  Ahmadabad  type.  Coins  of  nine  of  the  fifteen 
kings  are  known. 

The  coinage,  chiefly  of  silver  and  copper,  at  its 
commencement  followed  the  Dehli  style,  but  soon 
developed  a  characteristic  fabric  of  its  own,  though  the 
late  Dehli  copper  type,  with  the  Sultan's  name  in 

7 


88  THE   COINS    OF    INDIA 

a  square  area,  never  entirely  lost  its  influence  in  Gujarat 
(PI.  IX,  6,  7).  The  standard  seems,  however,  always 
to  have  been  a  local  one,  based  on  the  weight  of 
the  Gujarat!  rati  of  1'85  grains.  Gold  pieces,  except 
those  of  Mahmud  III  (1553-61;  PI.  IX,  6),  are  rare. 
Mahmud  I  also  employed  billon,  and  his  coins  are  the 
finest  of  the  series.  His  silver  coins,  on  which  the 
legends  are  enclosed  in  hexagons,  scolloped  circles  and 
other  figures,  are  very  ornate.  The  inscriptions  are 
for  the  most  part  simple ;  on  the  obverse  appear 
various  titles  and  formulae,  on  the  reverse  the  king's 
name,  sometimes  accompanied  by  his  laqab  (kingly 
title).  The  earliest  Persian  couplet  to  appear  on  an 
Indian  coin  is  found  on  one  of  Mahmud  II,  dated 
A.H.  850.  It  runs  as  follows  : 

So  long  as  the  sphere  of  the  seat  of  the  mint,  the  orb  of 
the  sun  and  moon  remains, 

May  the  coin  of  Mahmud  Shah  the  Suit 'an ,  the  aid  of 
the  Faith,  remain. 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  the  Gujarat  series 
are  the  so-called  "  pedigree  coins,"  each  struck  probably 
for  some  special  occasion,  on  which  the  striker  traces  his 
descent  back  to  the  founder  of  the  dynasty.  Only  four 
silver  coins  of  this  class  have  been  recorded,  two  of 
Ahmad  I,  one  dated  A.H.  828  and  the  earliest  known 
Gujarat  coin,  one  of  Mahmud  I,  and  one  of  Bahadur  Shah. 

Although  the  majority  of  coins  were  probably  struck 
at  Ahmadabad,  the  name  actually  occurs  only  on  the 
copper  of  Muzaffar  III  of  the  years  A.H.  977  and  978 
Ahmadnagar,  accompanied  by  an  uncertain  epithet,  is 
inscribed  on  the  copper  of  Ahmad  I  from  A.H.  829 
onwards.  Shahr-i-azam  {"the  very  great  city") 
Mustafa  abad  appears  on  silver  and  copper,  and 
Shahr-i-mukarram  (the  illustrious  city)  Muhammad- 
abad  on  all  the  finest  silver  pieces  of  Mahmud  I. 

Muzaffar  III  granted  permission  to  the  Jam  of 
Navanagar  to  coin"  koris"  (i.e.  copper  pieces),  provided 
that  they  should  bear  the  king's  name.  Such  koris,  bear- 
ing debased  Gujarat  legends,  were  also  coined  for  several 
centuries  by  the  chiefs  of  Junagadh  and  Purbandar. 


Fig.  9.    Mint  marks  on  Muj^hal  coins. 

IX 
COINS  OF  THE  SORIS  AND  THE  MUGHALS 

AFTER  the  battle  of  Panipat,  in  1526,  Zahiru-d-dm 
Babur 's  rule  in  Hindustan,  until  his  death  in  1530,  was 
in  reality  nothing  more  than  a  military  occupation,  and 
Humayun's  position  during:  the  first  ten  years  of  his 
reign  was  even  more  unstable.  The  silver  sh&hrukhls, 
or  dirhams,  of  Babur  and  Humayun,  which  follow  in 
every  respect  the  Central  Asian  coinage  of  the  Timurid 
princes,  were  obviously  struck  only  as  occasion  warranted, 
chiefly  at  Agra,  Labor  (PI.  X,  1),  Dehli  and  Kabul.  The 
interesting  camp  mint  Urdu  first  appears  on  a  coin  of 
Babur,  an  eloquent  testimony  to  the  nature  of  his  sove- 
reignty. On  the  obverse  of  these  coins  is  the  Kalima, 
enclosed  in  areas  of  various  shapes  with  the  names  of  the 
four  orthodox  Khalifs  or  Companions  and  their  attributes1 
in  the  margins ;  on  the  reverse  the  king's  name,  also 
in  an  area,  in  the  margins  various  titles,  together  with 
the  mint  and  generally  the  date.  Humayun's  gold  are 
tiny  mintless  pieces,  also  of  Timurid  fabric  (PI.  X,  2); 
a  very  few  of  these  and  some  silver  dirhams  are  known 
of  Akbar's  first  three  years.  Babur  and  Humayun's 
copper  coins  are  anonymous,  and  were  minted  chiefly 
at  Agra,  Dehli,  Lahor  and  Jaunpur. 

1  For  inscription,  cf .  Key  to  Plate  X,  1. 

Note. — The  mint  marks  in  Fig.  9  occur  on  coins  of  the  follow- 
ing :  (1)  Humayun,  Agra,  etc.  (2)  Shah'Alamll,  Shahjahanabad . 
(3)  Aurangzeb,  Multan.  (4)  East  India  Company, copied  from 
Mughal  coins.  (5)  Nawabs  of  Awadh,  Muhammadabad-Banaras. 
(6)  The  Kitar— "dagger,"  Shah  'Alam  II,  Narwar,  etc.  (7) 
Aokus — "  Elephant-goad  " — Maratha  coins. 

a 


90  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

The  Afghan  Sher  Shah  Sun,  who  after  the  expulsion 
of  Humayun  in  1540  (A.H.  947),  controlled  the  destinies 
of  Hindustan  for  five  years,  was  a  ruler  of  great  construc- 
tive and  administrative  ability,  and  the  reform  of  the 
coinage,  though  completed  by  Akbar,  was  in  a  great 
measure  due  to  his  genius.  His  innovations  lay  chiefly 
in  two  directions  :  first,  the  introduction  of  a  new  standard 
of  178  grains  for  silver,  and  one  of  about  330  grains  for 
copper,  with  its  half,  quarter,  eighth  and  sixteenth  parts. 
These  two  new  coins  were  subsequently  known  as  the 
rupee  and  the  dam.  The  second  innovation  was  a  large 
increase  in  the  number  of  the  mints  :  at  least  twenty- 
three  mint  names  appear  on  the  Sun  coins.  The 
object  of  this  extension,  probably  suggested  to  Sher 
Shah  during  his  residence  in  Bihar  by  the  Bengal 
coinage,  was  no  doubt  to  provide  an  ocular  proof  of 
sovereignty  to  his  subjects  in  the  most  distant  provinces 
of  his  dominions ;  but  the  system  needed  a  firm  and 
resolute  hand  at  the  centre  of  government. 

Genuine  gold  coins  of  the  Suri  kings  are  exceedingly 
rare.  The  rupees  are  fine  broad  pieces  (PI.  X,  3);  the 
obverse  follows  the  style  of  Humayun's  silver ;  the 
reverse  bears  the  Sultan's  name  in  a  square  or  circular 
area,  along  with  the  date  and  the  legend,  "May  God 
perpetuate  his  kingdom"  and  below  the  area  the  Sultan's 
name  in  Hindi,  often  very  faulty.1  In  the  margin  are 
inscribed  the  special  titles  of  the  Sultan,  and  sometimes 
the  mint.  On  a  large  number  of  both  silver  and  copper 
coins  no  mint  name  occurs  ;  some  of  these  seem  to 
be  really  mintless,  the  dies  of  others  were  too  large  for 
the  coin  discs.  On  a  very  common  mintless  silver  type 
of  Islam  Shah  (1545-53)  an4  Muhammad  'Adil  Shah, 
the  Arabic  figures  477  occur  in  the  margin :  the  signi- 
ficance of  these  is  unknown.  A  few  silver  coins  of 
Sher  Shah  and  Islam  Shah  are  square  ;  half  rupees  are 
extremely  scarce  ;  a  one-sixteenth  piece  is  also  known. 

The  majority  of  copper  coins  bear  on  the  obverse 
the  inscription,  "  In  the  time  of  the  commander  of  the 

1  If  the  area  is  circular  the  Hindi  inscription  appears  in  the, 
margin, 


COINS   OF   SURlS   AND   MUGHALS         91 

faithful,  the  protector  of  the  religion  of  the  Requiter  ";  on 
the  reverse  appear  the  Sultan's  name  and  titles  and  the 
mint  (PI.  X,  4).  These  inscriptions  are  sometimes  con- 
tained within  square  areas. 

During  the  years  1552-56  two  nephews  and  a  cousin 
of  Sher  Shah,  Muhammad  'Adil,  Sikandar  and  Ibrahim, 
contested  the  throne  and  struck  both  copper  and  silver. 
Coins  of  the  two  last  are  very  rare  (PI.  X,  5). 

The  few  coins  of  Humayun's  short  second  reign  of 
six  months  which  have  survived  show  that  he  had 
adopted  both  the  new  silver  and  copper  standards  of 
the  Suns,  though  he  also  coined  dirhams.  With  Akbar's 
accession,  in  1556  ( A.H.  963) ,  begins  the  Mughal  coinage 
proper.  The  special  value  placed  by  Muhammadan 
sovereigns  on  the  privilege  of  coining  has  already  been 
noticed  ;  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq  used  his  money  as  a 
means  of  imposing  decrees  upon  his  subjects  ;  in  a  more 
refined  way  Akbar  used  the  coinage  to  propagate  his 
new  "Divine"  faith;  and  both  he  and  the  cultured 
Jahangir  detected  in  it  a  ready  medium  for  the  expres- 
sion of  their  artistic  tastes.  The  importance  attached 
to  the  currency  by  the  Mughal  emperors  is  further 
revealed  in  the  full_ accounts  given  by  Akbar's  minister, 
Abu-l-fa?;!,  in  the  Ain-i-Akbarl,  and  by  Jahangir  in  his 
memoirs,  the  Tuzuk-i-Jahangirl,  and  by  the  number  of 
references  to  the  subject  by  historians  throughout  the 
whole  period.  From  these  and  from  a  study  of  the  coins 
themselves  scholars  have  collected  a  mass  of  materials, 
from  whkh  it  is  now  possible  to  give  a  fairly  compre- 
hensive account  of  the  Mughal  coinage.  Abu-1-fazl  and 
Jahangir  mention  a  large  number  of  gold  and  silver 
coins,  varying  from  2,000  tolahs1  to  a  few  grains  in 
weight.  Gigantic  pieces  are  also  mentioned  by  Manucci, 
Hawkins  and  others  ;  and  Manucci  says  that  they  were 
not  current,  but  that  the  king  (Shah  Jahan)  "  gave  them 
as  presents  to  the  ladies."  They  were  also  at  times 
presented  to  ambassadors,  and  appear,  indeed,  to  have 
been  merely  used  as,  a  convenient  form  in  which  to  store 

1  The  tolah  in  Jahangir 's  time  weighed  probably  between  185 
and  187  grains, 


92  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

treasure.  Naturally  very  few  of  these  pieces  have 
survived,  but  a  silver  coin  of  Aurangzeb  is  reported  to 
be  in  Dresden,  which  weighs  five  and  a  half  English 
pounds,  and  there  is  a  cast  of  a  200-muhar  piece  of 
Shah  Jahan  in  the  British  Museum.  In  the  British 
Museum  also  are  two  five-muhar  pieces,  one  of 
Akbar  and  one  of  Jahangir,  both  struck  in  the  Agra 
mint.  A  few  double  rupee_s  of  later  emperors,  and  a 
ten-rupee  piece  of  Shah  'Alam  II  of  Surat  mint  are 
also  known.  The  standard  gold  coin  of  the  Mughals 
was  the  muhar,  of  about  170  to  175  grains,  the  equivalent 
of  nine  rupees  in  Abu-1-fazl's  time.  With  the  exception 
of  a  few  of  Akbar's  square  issues,  which  are  slightly 
heavier,  and  Jahangir's  experiment  during  his  first  five 
years,  when  it  was  raised  first  by  one-fifth  to  204  grains, 
and  then  by  one-fourth  to  212*5  grains,  the  muhar  main- 
tains a  wonderful  consistency  of  weight  and  purity  to  the 
end  of  the  dynasty.  Half  and  quarter  muhars  are  known 
of  several  emperors,  and  a  very  few  smaller  pieces. 

The  rupee,  adopted  from  Sher  Shah's  currency,  is 
the  most  famous  of  all  Mughal  coins.  The  name  occurs 
only  once,  on  a  rupee  of  Agra  minted  in  Akbar's  forty- 
seventh  year.1  This,  too,  maintained  its  standard  of 
weight,  178  grains,  practically  unimpaired,  although 
during  the  reigns  of  the  later  emperors  some  rupees 
minted  by  their  officers  are  deficient  in  purity.  The 
"  heavy  "  rupees  of  Jahangir's  early  years  exceed  the 
normal  weight,  like  the  muhars,  first  by  one-fifth  and 
then  by  one-fourth  ;  and  a  few  slightly  heavier  _than 
the  normal  standard  were  also  minted  by  Shah  'Alam 
Bahadur  and  Farrukhsiyar  in  Bihar  and  Bengal.  Halves, 
quarters,  eighths  and  sixteenths  were  also  struck.  In 
Surat  the  half  rupee  appears  to  have  been  in  special 
demand,  and  in  Akbar's  reign  the  half  rupee  was  also 
the  principal  coin  issuing  from  Kabul. 

In  addition  to  the  regular  gold  and  silver  currency, 
special  small  pieces  were  occasionally  struck  for 
largesse  ;  the  commonest  of  these  is  the  nisar,  struck 

1  Cf.  Lahore  Museum  Catalogue  (Mughal  Emperors),  PI. 
XXI,  iv, 


COINS   OF   SURlS   AND   MUGHALS         93 

in  silver  by  Jahangir,  Shah  Jahan,  Aurangzeb, 
Jahandar  and  Farrukhsiyar.  Gold  nisars  are  very  scarce 
(PI.  XI,  8).  Jahangir  also  issued  similar  pieces,  which 
he  called  Nur  afshdn,  "  Light  scattering,"  and  Khair 
qabnl,  "May  these  alms  be  accepted"  (PI.  X,  12).  In 
1679  Aurangzeb  reimposed  the  jizya,  or  poll-tax,  on 
infidels,  and,  in  order  to  facilitate  payment  in  the 
orthodox  manner,  struck  the  dirham  shar'i,  "  legal 
dirham,"  usually  square  in  shape,  in  a  number  of  mints 
(PI.  XI,  11).  Farrukhsiyar  again  issued  these  dirhams, 
when  he  re-instituted  the  poll-tax  in  the  sixth  year  of 
his  reign.  The  Mughal  copper  coinage  is  based  on  Sher 
Shah's  dam  of  320  to  330  grains,  which,  with  its  half, 
quarter  and  eighth,  continued  to  be  struck  until  the  fifth 
year  of  Aurangzeb,  1663  (A.H.  1073).  The  name  dam 
occurs  only  once  on  a  half  dam  of  Akbar  of  Srinagar 
mint.  The  usual  term  employed  is  Fulus,  "copper 
money,"  or  Sikkah  fulus,  "  stamped  copper  money." 
The  names  nisfl  (half  dam),  damra  (=  quarter  dam), 
damrl  (=  one  eighth  of  a  dam)  also  appear  on  Akbar's 
copper.  Jahangir  inscribes  the  wordrawam  on  some  of 
his  full  and  half  dams,  and  ra'lj  on  his  smaller  pieces, 
both  meaning  simply  "current." 

Between  the  forty-fifth  and  fiftieth  years  of  Akbar's 
reign  were  issued,  from  eight  mints,  the  full  tankah  of 
644  grains  weight,  with  its  half,  quarter,  eighth  and 
sixteenth  parts,  though  the  large  full  tankahs  are 
known  only  from  Agra,  Dehli  (PI.  X,  10),  Ahmadabad 
and  Bairat.  About  the  same  time  Akbar  introduced  the 
decimal  standard,  with  his  series  of  four,  two  and  one 
tankl  pieces,  struck  at  Ahmadabad,  Agra,  Kabul  and 
Lahor ;  ten  tankls  being  equal  to  one  full  tankah. 

After  the  fifth  year  of  Aurangzeb,  owing  to  a  rise  in 
the  price  of  copper,  the  weight  of  the  dam  or  fulus  was 
diminished  to  220  grains,  and  this  became  the  accepted 
standard  for  southern  mints.  A  few  coins  of  the  heavier 
w_eight  were  struck  subsequently  by  Aurangzeb,  Shah 
'Alam  Bahadur  and  Farrukhsiyar.  The  copper  coinage 
of  later  emperors  until  Shah  'Alam  II's  reign  is  not 
plentiful. 


94  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

The  early  gold  and  silver  coins  of  Akbar  bear  the 
same  inscriptions,  though  there  is  some  variation  in  their 
arrangement.  Following  Babur's  and  the  Suri  coinage, 
the  Kalima  and  Companions'  names  appear  on  the 
obverse,  and  on  the  reverse  at  the  beginning  of  the 
reign  the  following  inscription,  "  Jalalu-d-din  Muham- 
mad Akbar,  Emperor,  champion  of  the  Faith,  the  mighty 
Sultan,  the  illustrious  Emperor,  may  God  most  High 
perpetuate  the  kingdom  and  the  sovereignty."  Portions 
of  this  are  dropped  later  on  (PI.  X,  7).  Squares, 
circles,  lozenges  and  other  geometrical  figures  are 
employed  to  contain  the  more  important  parts  of 
the  legend,  and  the  mint  name  always,  and  the  date 
generally,  appear  on  the  reverse.  About  the  year 
A.H.  985  the  shape  of  the  coins  was  changed  from 
round  to  square,  but  the  same  inscriptions  were  retained. 

In  the  year  1579  (A.H.  987)  Akbar  promulgated 
his  Infallibility  Decree,  and  in  the  same  year  appear 
quarter  rupees  from  the  Fathpur,  Lahor,  and  Ahmada- 
bad  mints,  with  a  new  inscription,  Allahu  Akbar,  upon 
the  obverse.  From  the  thirty-second  year  an  expanded 
form  of  this,  Allahu  Akbar  jalla  jalala.hu,  "God  is 
great,  eminent  is  His  glory,"  appears  on  a  mintless 
series  of  square  silver  coins  (PI.  X,  11)  ;  and  from  the 
thirty-sixth  year  it  is  used  regularly  on  the  square 
issues  of  the  chief  mints  ;  later  on  there  is  a  reversion 
to  the  round  form.  These  Ilahi  coins  are  all  dated  in 
Akbar 's  new  regnal  era,1  and  also  bear  the  names  of 
the  Persian  solar  months.  The  custom  of  issuing  coins 
monthly  continues  with  a  few  breaks  in  Jahangir's 
reign  until  the  early  years  of  Shah  Jahan.  The  round 
Ilahi  coins,  especially  those  of  Agra,  Patna  and  Lahor, 
display  considerable  artistic  merit :  certain  issues  of 
Agra  of  the  fiftieth  year  (PI.  X,  8)  are  probably  the 
finest  of  the  whole  Mughal  series.  Among  the  many 
remarkable  coins  struck  by  Akbar  may  be  mentioned 
the  muhar,  shaped  _  like  a  double  Mihrab,  which 
appeared  from  the  Agra  mint  in  A.H.  981  (PI.  X,  6)  ; 

1  This  starts  from  28th  Rab'i  II,  A.H.  963,  the  first  year  of  his 
reign,  but  was  not  instituted  until  the  29th  year.  The  earliest 
known  coin  dated  in  this  era  is  of  the  year  31. 


COINS   OF   SORlS   AND   MUGHALS         95 

the  Ilahi  muhar  of  the  fiftieth  year,  from  the  same  mint, 
engraved  with  the  figure  of  a  duck  (PL  X,  9)  ;  the 
beautiful  "hawk"  muhar,  struck  at  Asirgarh  in 
commemoration  of  its  conquest  in  the  forty-fifth  year  ; 
and  the  mintless  half-muhar,  bearing  the  figures  of 
Sita  and  Rama.  Specimens  of  all  these  are  in  the 
British  Museum.  Akbar  also  initiated  the  practice  of 
inscribing  verse-couplets  on  the  coinage,  into  which  was 
worked  the  emperor's  name  or  the  mint,  or  both. 
These  were  used  by  him  for  only  three  mints,  but  with 
Jahangir  the  practice  became  general,  and  forty-seven 
different  couplets  of  his  reign  have  been  recorded  (cf. 
Key  to_Pl.  XI,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6). 

Jahangir's  gold  and  silver  coins  in  their  endless 
variety  are  the  most  ornate  of  all  Mughal  coins.  Start- 
ing with  a  Kalima  obverse,  and  his  name  and  titles  on 
the  reverse  (PI.  X,  1),  he  soon  adopted  a  couplet 
legend  ;  sometimes  the  couplet  is  peculiar  to  a  single 
mint,  sometimes  it  serves  a  group  of  mints.  During 
the  fifth  and  sixth  years  at  Agra  (PI.  XI,  4)  and  Labor 
the  couplets  were  for  a  short  time  changed  every 
month.  In  the  latter  year  followed  a  new  type,  with 
the  emperor's  name  on  the  obverse,  and  the  month, 
date  and  mint  name  on  the  reverse  ;  this  remains  till 
the  end  of  the  reign  on  the  coins  of  some  mints,  but  at 
Agra,  Lahor,  Qandahar  and  one  or  two  others  there  is 
a  return  to  the  couplet  inscription.  For  varying  periods 
between  the  years_  A.H.  1033  and  1037  the  name  of  the 
Empress  Nur  Jahan  is  associated  in  a  couplet  with  that 
of  Jahangir  on  the  issues  of  Agra,  Ahmadabad,  Akbar- 
nagar,  Ilahabad,  Patna,  Surat  (PI.  XI,  5)  and  Lahor. 

Jahangir  seemed  to  find  unceasing  zest  in  novelty  : 
from  the  sixth  to  the  thirteenth  year  of  his  reign  the 
rupees  of  Agra  were  minted  in  the  square  and  round 
shape  in  alternate  months.  In  the  thirteenth  year 
appeared  the  famous  Zodiac  coins,  on  which  pictorial 
representations  of  the  signs  of  the  zodiac  were 
substituted  for  the  names  of  the  months  on  the  reverse  ; 
this  type  was  retained  on  the  Agra  muhars  (PI.  XI,  2) 
till  the  seventeenth  year.  The  Zodiac  rupees  of 


96  THE   COINS  OF   INDIA 

Ahmadabad  lasted  only  for  five  months  during  the 
thirteenth  year,  while  single  gold  and  silver  coins  of 
this  type  are  known  of  Lahor,  Fathpur,  Ajmer,  Urdu 
and  Kashmir,  of  various  years  up  to  A.H.  1036.  The 
so-called  Bacchanalian  and  portrait  muhars  have  been 
recently  shown  to  be  insignia  presented  by  Jahangir  to 
his  courtiers.1  Some  of  these  are  mintless,  others  were 
struck  at  Ajmer.  On  the  obverse  of  the  latter  the 
emperor  appears  seated  cross-legged  with  a  wine-cup 
in  his  hand  (PI.  XI,  3).  The  most  remarkable  of  the 
former,  struck  in  the  first  year  of  the  reign,  bears  a 
full-faced  portrait  of  Akbar  on  the  obverse  along  with 
the  inscription  Allahu  Akbar,  while  a  representation  of 
the  sun  covers  the  whole  of  the  reverse.2 

The  beauty  and  rarity  of  the  couplet  rupees  of 
Ajmer,  Urdu  dar  rah-i-Dakan,  "The  camp  on  the 
road  to  the  Deccan  "  and  Mandu,  as  well  as  a  muhar 
from  the  last  mint,  all  struck  between  the  ninth  and 
eleventh  years,  entitle  then  to  special  mention. 

Few  of  Shah  Jahan's  coins  (A.H.  1037-1068)  are  of 
any  artistic  merit.  The  earliest  form  of  his  gold  and 
silver  has  the  Kalima  and  mint  name  on  the  obverse, 
and  the  emperor's  name  and  titles  on  the  reverse  (PI. 
XI,  7).  From  the  second  to  the  fifth  year  solar 
months3  were  inscribed.  From  the  fifth  year  to  the  end 
of  the  reign,  except  at  the  Tatta  mint,  where  the 
earlier  style  was  retained,  Shah  Jahan  employed  a 
type,  endless  in  its  varieties,  in  which  squares,  circles, 
lozenges  form  borders  enclosing  the  Kalima  on  the 
obverse  and  the  king's  name  on  the  reverse,  while  the 
names  of  the  companions  and  their  epithets  are  restored 
and  appear  in  the  obverse  margins.  The  square 
border  form  of  this  type  was  also  employed  by  Aurang- 
zeb's  rivals,  Murad  Bakhsh  and  Shah  Shuja'  (PI.  XI, 
10);  and  Aurangzeb  uses  square  areas  to  contain  the 

1  By  S.  H.  Hodivala,  Historical  Studies  in  Mughal  Numisma- 
tics, Memoir  No.  II,  Numismatic  Society  of  India,  Calcutta,  1923. 

8  In  the  possession  of  Mr.  H.  Nelson  Wright,  I.C.S. 

3  Jahangir  used  a  solar  era  of  Jiis  own,  starting  from  the  date 
of  his  accession.  The  years  on  Shah  Jahan's  coins  are  lunar.  Cf. 
Hodivala,  loc-cit. 


COINS   OF   SURlS   AND   MUGHALS         97 

inscriptions  on  his  earlier  rupees  of  Akbarabad  (Agra) 
and  Junagarh,  and  for  a  few  coins  of  three  other  mints. 

The  coins  of  Aurangzeb  (A.H.  1068-1119)  and  his 
successors  are,  with  a  very  few  exceptions,  monotonous 
in  the  extreme.  On  the  obverse  there  is  either  a  coup- 
let containing  the  king's  name,  or  this  inscription : 
"  The  blessed  coin  of  .  .  .  ,"  followed  by  the  name  of  the 
particular  king.  On  the  reverse  appears,  with  very 
occasional  variations,  the  following:  "Struck  at  (the 
mint  name),  in  the  year  (the  regnal  year)  of  the  accession 
associated  with  prosperity ."  The  Hijri  date  is  placed  on 
the  obverse  (PI.  XI,  9).  Pretentious  personal  titles 
are  of  infrequent  occurrence  on  Mughal  coins.  Neverthe- 
less the  pretenders,  Murad  Bakhsh  and  Shah  Shuja', 
style  themselves  "  The  Second  Alexander."  Shah 
Jahan  I,  in  imitation  of  his  ancestor  Timur,  who  adopted 
the  title  "  Lord  of  tJie  fortunate  conjunction  "  (i.e.  of  the 
planets),  called  himself  "  The  Second  Lord  of  the  fortu- 
nate conjunction"  (Sahib -i-qir an  sam),  and  eight  later 
emperors  followed  his  example.  Jahangir  used  his 
princely  name,  Salim,  on  his  earliest  coins  from  the 
Ahmadabad  mint  (PL  XI,  6)  and  on  a  half  rupee  of 
Kabul.  On  a  unique  rupee  of  Lahor  of  Shah  Jahan  I's 
first  year  occurs  the  name  Khurram,  while  Shah  'Alam 
Bahadur  placed  his  pre-regnal  name,  Mu'azzam,  on  coins 
of  his  first  year  of  Tatta  and  Murshidabad. 

Coins  of  special  interest  and  rarity  are  those  struck 
by  pretenders,  particularly  the  rupees  of  Dawar 
Bakhsh  of  Lahor,  A.H.  1037;  the  coins  of  Shah  Shuja', 
1068,  of  Bidar  Bakht,  1202-1203 ;  and  the  rupee  of 
Jahangirnagar,  struck  by  'Azimu-sh-shan  in  1124. 
Commemorative  coins  of  the  later  emperors  are  ex- 
ceedingly scarce,  but  the  entry_of  Lord  Lake  into  Dehli, 
in  1803,  was  marked  on  Shah  'Alam  II's  gold  and  silver 
coinage  of  the  forty-seventh  year  by  enclosing  the 
obverse  and  reverse  inscriptions  within  a  wreath  of 
roses,  shamrocks  and  thistles  (PL  XII,  1). 

The  fabric  of  the  copper  coins  is,  in  general,  rude. 
With  the  exception  of  the  tankah  and  tankl  issues, 
Akbar's  copper  is  anonymous  ;  his  Ilahi  copper,  like 


98  THE   COINS   OP   INDIA 

the  silver  and  gold,  was  dated  in  the  new  era  and  issued 
monthly.  Some  of  Jahangir'sraw#?zzj,  especially  those 
from  the  Ajmer  mint,  have  pretensions  to  artistic  merit. 
His  copper  issues,  and  those  of  succeeding  kings,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  of  Aurangzeb's,  have  the  king's 
name  and  Hijri  date  on  the  obverse,  and  the  mint  and 
regnal  year  on  the  reverse. 

The  Hijri  era  was  used  by  all  emperors  and  usually 
the  regnal  year  is  inscribed  as  well.  For  his  later  coins, 
as  has  been  seen,  Akbar  employed  his  own  Divine  era, 
Jahangir  and  Shah  Jahan  I  each  used  similar  eras,  but 
as  they  place  the  Hijri  year  along  with  the  solar  months 
on  the  coins  the  calculation  of  the  dates  is  somewhat 
confusing. 

From  the  time  of  Humayun  onwards  there  appear 
on  the  coinage  certain  marks,  sometimes  called  mint- 
marks,  but  perhaps  more  properly  designated  ornaments 
(Fig.  9).  The  purpose  of  these  on  the  earlier  issues  is 
uncertain,  later  on  they  sometimes  marked  a  change  of 
mint-masters ;  others  appear  to  have  been  really 
distinctive  mint  marks,  such  as  that  which  appears  on 
Shah  'Alam  II's  Shahjahanabad  coins  (Fig.  9,  2). 

Perhaps  the  most  distinctive  feature  of  the  Mughal 
coinage  is  the  diversity  of  mints.  Akbar's  known  mints 
number  seventy-six.  Copper  was  struck  in  fifty-nine  of 
these,  the  largest  number  recorded  for  any  emperor, 
while  silver  is  known  from  thirty-nine.  Aurangzeb's 
conquests  in  the  Deccan  raised  the  silver  mints  to 
seventy,  whereas  copper  mints  sank  to  twenty-four. 
For  the  remaining  emperors  mints  for  silver  average 
about  fifty  until  Shah  'Alam  II's  time,  when  they  rose  to 
eighty  ;  most  of  these,  however,  were  not  under  the 
imperial  control.  The  puppet  emperors,  Akbar  II  and 
Bahadur  Shah,  were  permitted  by  the  East  India 
Company  to  strike  coins  only  in  their  prison  capital, 
Shahjahanabad  (Dehli).  Altogether  over  two  hundred 
mints  are  known,  but  the  greater  number  of  these  were 
worked  only  occasionally ;  Agra,  Dehli,  Lahor  and 
Ahmadabad  alone  struck  coin  continuously  throughout  the 
Mughal  period.  To  these  may  be  added  Surat,  Ilahabad, 
Jahangirnagar  and  Akbarnagar  from  Jahangir's  reign, 


COINS   OF   SURlS   AND   MUGHALS         99 

Multan  from  the  reign  of  Shah  Jahan  I,  and  Itawah 
and  Bareli  from  the  time  of  Aurangzeb.  The  practice 
of  giving  mint  towns  honorific  titles,  in  vogue 
with  the  early  Mnhammadan  Sultans,  was  continued  by 
the  Mughals.  Thus  Dehli  became,  on  being  selected 
as  the  capital  of  the  empire  by  Shah  Jahan  I,  in  A.H. 
1048,  SJiahjahanabad.  In  the  second  year  of  the  same 
reign  Agra  became  Akbarabad.  Epithets  were  also 
frequently  attached  to  mint  names.  Dtlru-l-khilafat, 
"  Seat  of  the  Khalifate,"  *>.  "  Chief  City,"  is  applied  to 
twelve  mints  besides  Agra.  Daru-s-saltanat  is  the 
usual  epithet  of  Lahor.  After  A.H.  1100  Aurangzeb 
changed  the  name  of  Aurangabad  to  IChujista  Bunyad, 
"The  fortunate  foundation,"  the  only  example  of  a 
Mughal  mint  called  solely  by  an  honorific  epithet. 

The  great  system  of  coinage  illustrated  by  the 
Mughals,  operating  over  such  wide  territories,  needed, 
as  has  been  already  remarked,  a  master  hand  to  control 
it.  With  the  dissensions  which  set  in  between  rival 
claimants  to  the  empire  on  the  death  of  Aurangzeb,  the 
controlling  power  was  weakened.  The  diminished 
resources  of  his  treasury  compelled  the  emperor, 
Farrukhsiyar  (1713-19),  to  adopt  the  fatal  policy  of 
farming  out  the  mints.  This  gave  the  coup  de.  grace  to 
the  system,  and  henceforward,  as  will  be  related  in  the 
next  chapter,  we  find  independent,  and  semi-independent 
chiefs  and  states  striking  coins  of  their  own,  but  always 
with  the  nominal  consent  of  the  Dehli  emperor, 
and  almost  invariably  in  his  name.  Not  until  the 
nineteenth  century  was  the  Mughal  style  and  super- 
scription generally  discarded. 

Such  was  the  coinage  of  the  "Great  Mogul."  Con- 
sidering it  as  the  output  of  a  single  dynasty,  which  main- 
tained the  high  standard  and  purity  of  its  gold  and 
silver  for  three  hundred  years,  considering  also  its 
variety,  the  number  of  its  mints,  the  artistic  merit  of 
some  of  its  series,  the  influence  it  exerted  on  contem- 
porary and  subsequent  coinages,  and  the  importance  of 
its  standard  coin — the  rupee — in  the  commerce  of  to-day, 
the  Mughal  currency  surely  deserves  to  rank  as  one  of 
the  great  coinages  of  the  world. 


Fig.  10.    Gurmukht  Script  on  Sikh  Coins,  Akal  Sahal  : 
Guru  Nanakji. 


CONTEMPORARIES  AND  SUCCESSORS 
OF   THE   MUGHALS 

THE  neighbours  of  the  Mug^als  were  not  slow  to 
recognise  the  excellence  of  their  coinage.  Even  the 
$afavi  monarchs  of  Persia  adopted  certain  features. 
The  East  Himalayan  kingdom  of  Assam,  hitherto 
content  to  use  the  money  of  Bengal,  and  the  adjacent 
state  of  Nepal,  which  had  been  without  a  coinage  of  its 
own  for  centuries,  within  fifty  years  of  Akbar's 
accession  had  both  adopted  the  rupee  standard. 

I.   THE    COINAGE   OF   ASSAM 

Assam,  the  ancient  Kamarupa,  had  been  invaded  in 
A.D.  1228  by  the  Ahoms,  a  Shan  tribe  from  Burma,  and 
finally  subdued  by  them  in  1540.  By  the  year  1695 
the  royal  family  had  definitely  submitted  to  the  influ- 
ence of  Hinduism.  Previously  to  that  date,  expression 
of  devotion  to  the  tribal  gods  Lengdun,  Tara  and 
Phatuceng  appears  on  the  coins  ;  but  the  reverse 
legend  of  a  coin  of  the  Saka  year  1618  (A.D.  1696), 
struck  by  Rudra  Sirhha  (1696-1714),  runs  as  follows,  in 
the  highly  poetical  Sanskrit  so  characteristic  of  later 
coin  inscriptions  :  "  A  bee  on  the  nectar  of  the  feet  of  Hara 
and  Gauri." 

The  earliest  known  coins  are  those  of  Suklenmung 
(1539-52),  but  these  and  the  money  of  his  five 
successors  were  struck  for  ceremonial  occasions,  pro- 
bably only  at  the  coronation,  and  a  yearly  coinage  was 
first  introduced  by  Rudra  Sirhha.  The  strange  octa- 


SUCCESSORS   OF   THE   MUGHALS       101 

gonal  shape  of  the  coins  is  said  to  owe  its  origin  to  a 
statement  in  the  Yogini  Tantra,  which  describes  the 
Ahom  country  as  octagonal.  Some  of  the  smaller  coins 
are,  however,  round,  and  Siva  Simha,  for  a  coin  of  S. 
1651,  on  which  he  associates  the  name  of  his  queen, 
Pramathesvari,  and  Rajesvara  Simha  (1751-69),  for  two 
of  his  issues,  adopted  the  square  Mughal  form  and  style 
with  legends  in  Persian.  The  inscription  on  Siva 
Simha' s  coin  is  as  follows  :  obverse,  Shah  Sheo  Singh 
struck  coin  like  tJie  sun  by  order  of  the  Queen  Pramathesvari 
Shah;  reverse,  In  the  year  15  of  the  fortunate  reign  at 
Gargaon  1651  (=  A.D.  1729).  For  this  the  Nur  Jahan 
issues  of  Jahangir  were  obviously  the  model.  With 
the  exception  of  a  coin  of  Suklenmung,  all  gold  and 
silver  was  struck  to  a  standard  of  176  grains,  and  half, 
quarter,  eighth,  and  even  smaller  fractional  pieces  were 
minted.  Several  of  the  earlier  Rajas  employed  the 
Ahom  language  and  script  for  their  legends.  Sanskrit 
written  in  the  Bengali  script  was  first  used  by  Surya 
Narayana  (1611-49).  Pramatta  Simha  (1744-51)  and 
Rajesvara  Simha  employ  both,  but  after  the  coronation 
ceremony  of  the  latter  Sanskrit  alone  was  used.  The 
legends,  in  either  script,  are  always  enclosed  within 
dotted  borders  (PI.  XII,  8).  These  thick  rather  solid- 
looking  coins,  though  attractive  on  account  of  their  un- 
usual shape,  are  entirely  without  artistic  merit;  they 
ceased  to  be  minted  with  the  cession  of  Assam  to  the 
British  in  1826.  The  broad  round  silver  pieces  of  the 
Rajas  of  Jaintia  (Jayantapura)  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, and  the  coins  of  the  hill  state  of  Tipperah,  bear 
legends  similar  in  style  to  the  Assamese  Sanskrit  coins, 
and,  like  them,  are  dated  in  the  Saka  era.  The  dates  on 
the  Ahom  coins  of  Assam  are  reckoned  according  to 
the  Jovian  cycle  of  sixty  years. 

II.   THE  COINAGE   OF   NEPAL 

The  considerable  Mughal  influence  exhibited  in  the 
modern  coinage  of  the  Malla  kings  of  Nepal,  which 
starts  in  the  early  years  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
finds  expression  in  the  native  legend  which  affirms  that 


102  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Raja  Mahendra  Malla  of  Kathman^u  obtained  permission 
to  strike  coins  from  the  Dehli  court.  Although  none 
of  his  money  has  come  to  light,  the  story  gains  some 
support  from  the  weight  of  the  early  Nepalese  coins, 
which  are  all  half-rupees,  and  from  a  curious  piece  of 
Pratapa  Malla  of  Kathmantfu  (1639-89),  which  imitates 
Jahangir's  coinage,  even  adopting  fragments  of  the 
Persian  inscription. 

Nepal,  at  the  period  when  the  coinage  begins,  was 
divided  into  three  principalities  —  Bhatgaon,  Patan  and 
Kathmandu—  and  probably  the  earliest  coins  are  those  of 
Lakshmi  Narasimha,ruler  of  the  last  province  (1595-1639), 
although  the  earliest  date,  Nepali  Samvat1  751  (=  A.D. 
1631)  appears  on  one  struck  by  Siddhi  Narasimha  of 
Patan.  The  usual  design  on  the  coins,  perhaps  suggest- 
ed by  some  of  Akbar's  and  Jahangir's  issues,  consists  of 
elaborate  geometrically  ornamented  borders  surround- 
ing a  central  square  or  circle,  with  the  legends  in  Nagari 
fitted  into  the  spaces  left  in  the  design.  On  the  obverse 
appear  the  king's  name,  titles  and  date,  and  on  the 
reverse  various  symbols,  accompanied  sometimes  by  a 
further  title  or  a  religious  formula.  The  Gurkhas,  who 
conquered  the  country  in  1768,  continued  the  style  of  their 
predecessors  (PI.  XII,  6),  but  occasionally  struck  full  as 
well  as  the  ordinary  half-rupees.  Girvan  Yuddha 
Vikrama  (1799-1816)  and  Surendra  Vikrama  (1847-81) 
also  struck  gold  similar  in  design  to  the  silver  coins, 
and  the  latter  introduced  a  copper  currency. 

The  silver  tang-ka  (tankah)  of  Tibet  was  directly 
imitated  from  the  coinage  of  Jagajjaya  Malla  of  Kath- 
u  (1702-32). 


HI.    SUCCESSORS  TO  THE  MUGHALS 

The  confusion  into  which  the  coinage  of  India  fell 
on  the  break  up  of  the  Mughal  power,  when  indepen- 
dent mints  sprang  up  in  every  part  of  their  wide 
dominions,  may  be  gathered  from  the  calculation  made 

1  This  Nepali  or  Newar  era  was  introduced  by  Raia 
A.D,  879, 


SUCCESSORS   OF   THE   MUGHALS        103 

in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century,  that  there 
were  no  less  than  994  different  gold  and  silver  coins, 
old  and  new,  passing  as  current  in  the  country.  The 
complexity  of  the  subject  is  further  accentuated  by  the 
impossibility  of  distinguishing  at  present  the  earlier 
coins  of  independent  mints  from  the  imperial  issues. 
Later  on,  the  gradual  debasement,  caused  by  the  addition 
of  special  local  marks  and  the  evolution  of  distinc- 
tive types  in  certain  states,  makes  classification  easier. 
Few  of  these  coinages  have  hitherto  been  treated 
comprehensively,  and  all  that  can  be  attempted  here  is 
a  bare  outline,  according  more  detailed  treatment  only 
to  the  more  considerable  moneying  states. 

The  papers  of  the  East  India  Company,  fortunately, 
have  preserved  for  us  a  record  of  events  typical  of 
what  was  taking  place  in  many  parts  of  India. 
They  show  that,  besides  coining  the  South  Indian 
pagodas,  already  noticed,  and  copper  and  silver  coins 
in  European  style,  the  English  factories  were  early 
engaged  in  reproducing  the  rupees  of  the  Mughal 
emperors.  The  first  which  can  be  fixed  with  any 
certainty  are  those  from  the  mint  of  Bombay,  or 
Mumbai,  as  it  appears  on  the  coins,  opened  in  the 
reign  of  Farrukhsiyar  (1713-19);  and  in  1742  the 
emperor,  Muhammad  Shah,  granted  the  Company  a 
sanad  permitting  them  to  coin  Arkat  rupees.  Gradually 
the  Company  assumed  control  of  all  mints  within 
its  increasing  territories.  In  1765,  for  example,  after 
the  battle  of  Buxar  it  took  over  the  Bengal  mints.  Uni- 
formity of  standard  was  maintained,  first  by  engrav- 
ing special  marks  on  the  coins  (Fig.  9,  4),  and  then  by 
fixing  the  regnal  year.1  Thus  the  gold  and  silver  coins 
of  the  Banaras  mint  of  the  Hijri  years  1190  to  1229  all 
bear  the  same  regnal  date  17. 2  So  also  the  year  19 

1  This  was  to  stop  peculation  on  the  part  of  money-changers, 
bankers  and  even  revenue  collectors,  who  made  a  rebate  on  all 
rupees  not  of  the  current  year. 

3  On  the  Banaras  coins  the  actual  regnal  date,  i.e.  of  Shah 
'Alam  II,  is  added  beneath  the  conventional  date  17  ;  this  was  not 
adopted  for  other  mjpts, 


104  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

was  fixed  for  the  Murshidabad  mint,  the  year  45  for 
Farrukhabad.  These  coins,  still  inscribed  with  the 
Mughal  emperor's  name,  became  more  and  more  Euro- 
pean in  style  (PI.  XII,  9),  those  of  Farrukhabad  being 
even  struck  with  a  milled  edge,  until  finally  superseded 
by  the  British  Imperial  currency  of  1835. 

A  similar  evolution,  but  in  the  direction  of  deteriora- 
tion, can  be  traced  in  the  issues  of  the  Marathas,  Rajputs, 
and  other  powers.  The  Marathas  seized  the  important 
mint  of  Ahmadabad  in  1752 ;  and  the  coins  struck  there 
in  the  Mughal  style  (until  it  was  closed  by  the  British 
in  1835)  all  bear  as  a  characteristic  mark  the  "  Ankus," 
or  elephant-goad.  The  Peshwa  also  had  a  mint  at 
Puna ;  and  numerous  private  mints  in  Maharasthra, 
some  striking  pagodas  and  fanams  as  well  as  rupees, 
were  worked  with  or  without  his  permission.  Other 
Maratha  mints  were  those  of  the  Bhonsla  Rajas  at 
Katak  in  Orissa  and  at  Nagpur  ;  rupees  of  the  latter 
bear  the  mint-name  Surat.  So  also  the  Gaikwar  had 
a  mint  at  Baroda,  Scindia  at  Ujjain  and  later  on  at  Gwa- 
liar,  Holkar  at  Indor.  Jaswant  Rao  Holkar  issued,  in 
1806,  a  notable  rupee  with  Sanskrit  legends  on  both 
obverse  and  reverse  (PI.  XII,  7). 

Numerous  Rajput  states  copied  the  imperial  coinage 
in  their  local  mints,  Jaipur  (opened  about  1742), 
Bikaner,  Jodhpur,  and  many  others;  but  in  the  nine- 
teenth century  the  names  of  the  ruling  chiefs  were 
substituted  for  that  of  the  titular  emperor.  Silver  and 
gold  were  struck  in  the  emperor's  name  by  the  Nizam s 
of  Haidarabad,  who  were  content  to  distinguish  their 
several  issues  by  the  addition  of  their  initials 
(PI.  XII,  4)  until  1857,  after  which  the  full  name  of  the 
Nizam  took  the  place  of  the  emperor's.  The  Rohillas 
during  the  period  of  their  ascendancy  had  a  group  of 
mints  in  Rohilkhand,  the  chief  of  which  were  Najibabad, 
Muradabad,  Bareli  and  Saharanpur.  The  copper  coin- 
age of  these  independent  states  is  excessively  crude,  and 
the  practice  of  striking  to  local  standards,  which  began 
under  the  later  Mughals,  now  became  general.  The 
copper  mints  were  probably  entirely  in  private  hands. 


SUCCESSORS   OF   THE   MU&HALS        105 

Here  it  will  be  convenient  to  deal  with  a  coinage, 
which,  though  partially  of  Mughal  lineage  in  other  res- 
pects, stands  by  itself.  The  reign  of  Tipu  Sultan  of 
Mysore,  though  lasting  only  sixteen  years  (1782-99),  was 
productive  of  one  of  the  most  remarkable  individual 
coinages  in  the  history  of  India,  comparable  in  many 
ways  to  that  of  Muhammad  bin  Tughlaq.  His  father, 
Haidar  'AH,  as  we  have  already  seen  (Chap.  VI),  struck 
pagodas  and  fanams.  Tipu  continued  to  strike  both 
these,  retaining  the  initial  "  he  "  of  Haidar 's  name,  but 
adding  a  mint  name  on  the  obverse  or  reverse 
(PI.  VI,  10).  In  addition,  he  coined  muhars  and  half 
muhars,  in  silver  the  double  and  full  rupee,  with  its  half, 
quarter,  eighth,  sixteenth  and  thirty-second  parts,  and 
in  copper  pieces  of  40,  20, 1  10,  5  and  2\  cash.  The  40- 
cash  piece  weighed  340  grains.  To  each  of  these  coins, 
following  perhaps  the  example  of  Jahangir,  he  gave  a 
special  name.  The  pagoda,  equal  to  the  quarter  of  a 
muhar,  he  called,  for  instance,  Faruql ;  the  double  rupee, 
ffaidarl ;  the  rupee,  Ahmadl ;  the  20-cash  piece,  Zohra  ; 
and  so  on.  The  Persian  inscriptions  on  gold  and  silver 
are  religious  in  character,  that  on  the  rupee  runs  as 
follows:  obverse,  The  religion  of  Ahmad  (i.e.  Isldm)  is 
illumined  in  the  world  by  the  victory  of  Haidar,  struck  at 
Nagar,  the  cyclic  year  Dalv,  the  Hijrl  year  1200  ;  reverse, 
He  is  the  Sultan,  the  unique,  the  just;  the  third  of  Bah&rl, 
the  year  Dalv,  the  regnal  year  4-.  For  his  copper  coins 
Tipu  adopted  the  elephant  device  of  the  Wodeyar  kings 
of  Mysore  (1578-1733),  and  the  animal  appears  in  various 
attitudes  on  the  obverse,  sometimes  to  right,  sometimes 
to  left,  with  trunk  raised,  and  with  trunk  lowered.  On 
the  40-cash  pieces  he  carries  a  flag.  The  reverse  gives 
the  mint  and,  later  in  the  reign,  the  distinctive  name  of 
the  coin  also  (PI.  XII,  5). 

At  least  thirteen  mints  were  working  under  Tipu, 
the  most  important  being  Pattan  (Seringapatam), 
Nagar  (Bednur),  and  Bangalur  ;  for  some  mints  merely 

1  The  20-cash  piece  had  been  struck  by  Haidar  'AH  in  the 
last  two  years  of  his  reign,  A.H.  1195-96.  Cf.  J.  R.  Henderson, 
Th€  Coins  of  Haidar  ' All  and  Tlpti  Sultan,  Madras,  1921,  p.  5. 

9 


106  THE    COINS    OF    INDIA 

honorific  titles  appear,  thus  Nazarbar,  "scattering 
favour,"  for  Mysore. 

The  most  remarkable  and  perplexing  of  Tipu's 
innovations  was  his  method  of  dating  the  coins.  For 
this  purpose  he  used  the  Jovian  cycle  of  sixty  years, 
according  to  the  Telugu  reckoning,  inventing  special 
names  for  each  of  the  sixteen  years  of  his  reign,  in 
accordance  with  their  correspondence  with  that  cycle, 
and  composing  the  names  at  different  periods  from  the 
letters  supplied  by  the  two  systems  of  numeration 
known  as  abjad  and  abtas.  For  the  first  four  years  of 
his  reign,  when  he  employed  the  abjad  system,  he  also 
dated  his  coins  in  the  Hijri  era ;  in  the  fifth  year  he  in- 
vented a  new  era,  the  Mauludi,  reckoned  from  the  date 
of  Muhammad's  birth  in  A.D.  571;  dates  in  this  era 
appear  written  from  right  to  left.  The  execution  of 
most  of  Tipu's  coins  is  exceptionally  good. 

Krishna  Raja  Udayar  (1799-1868),  the  restored 
Raja  of  Mysore,  for  a  time  continued  the  elephant 
copper  pieces  of  Tipu,  but  later  changed  the 
device  for  a  lion.  Kanarese  inscriptions  (Fig.  6)  were, 
however,  at  once  substituted  for  Persian. 

We  must  now  turn  to  Hindustan  proper.  Both 
Nadir  Shah,  in  1739,  and  Ahmad  Shah  Durrani  (1748- 
67)  and  his  successors  struck  rupees  and  muhars  to 
the  Mughal  standard  for  the  districts  they  temporarily 
occupied.  Nadir's  issues  are  Persian  in  fabric,  but  the 
Durrani  coins,  struck  at  Shahjahanabad  (PI.  XII,  2), 
Farrukhabad,  Lahor,  Multan,  Kabul,  and  several  other 
mints,  are  largely  Mughal  in  style.  On  the  whole,  the 
issues  of  these  princes,  especially  those  of  Qandahar 
and  Peshawar  and  the  rare  pieces  of  the  pretenders, 
Sulaiman  and  Humayun,  reach  a  much  higher  artistic 
level  than  the  contemporary  Mughal  coins. 

One  of  the  most  important  results  of  Ahmad  Shah's 
repeated  invasions  of  the  Panjab  was  the  formation  of  the 
Sikh  League,  known  as  the  Khalsa.  After  the  seventh 
invasion,  in  1764,  the  League  assumed  the  right  of  coinage ; 
and  from  that  date  till  1777,  with  a  gap  of  two  years, 
1766-67,  for  Ahmad  Shah's  last  invasion,  "  Gobindshahi " 


SUCCESSORS   OF  THE   MUGHALS        107 

rupees  were  struck  at  Labor,  so  called  from  the  name 
of  the  Guru  Gobind  being  included  in  the  Persian  couplet, 
which  formed  the  inscription.  Amritsar,  Ambratsar  on 
the  coins,  became  a  mint  in  1777.  Its  earliest  rupees, 
known  as  "  Nanakshahl, "  bore  a  different  couplet  (PI. 
XII,  10).  A  few  coins  were  also  struck  at  Anandgarh. 
All  Sikh  coins  are  dated  in  the  Samvat  era.1  The  coins 
of  Ranjit  Singh  (1799-1839)  are  of  two  distinct  kinds, 
those  with  Persian  (often  very  faulty)  and  those  with 
Gurmukhi2  inscriptions.  Rupees  of  the  Persian  couplet 
type  appear  regularly  from  the  mints  of  Lahor  and 
Amritsar  throughout  his  reign,  from  Multan  after 
1818,  from  Kashmir  after  1819 ;  and  a  few  rupees 
are  known  from  Peshawar,  Jhang  and  Pind  Dadan 
Khan.  The  king's  name  was  never  inscribed  on  the 
coinage;  but  the  characteristic  Sikh  "leaf"  mark 
makes  its  appearance  upon  his  earliest  rupee,  dated 
S.  1857  (=A.D.  1800).  During  the  Samvat  years 
1861-63,  first  a  peacock's  tail  and  then  a  thumb- 
mirror  appears  on  the  Amritsar  rupees ;  these  are 
said  to  bear  reference  to  Rarijit's  favourite  dancing- 
girl,  Mora.  A  curious  rupee  of  Lahor  of  S.  1885 
displays  the  figures  of  Guru  Nanak  and  his  Muham- 
madan  follower,  Mardana.  Ranjit  Singh  also  coined 
muhars  similar  in  style  to  the  rupees. 

About  the  year  S.  1885,  apparently,  the  Gurmukhi 
coins  were  introduced.  A  few  gold  and  silver  coins  are 
known,  but  most  are  copper,  some  weighing  as  much 
as  600  grains.  The  inscriptions  are  generally  religious 
in  character ;  the  commonest  is  Akal  Sahai,  Guru 
Nanakji,  "  O,  Eternal  one  help  us!  Guru  Nanakji!  "3 
The  reverse  gives  the  date  and  mint,  generally 
Ambratsar.  The  script  is  usually  very  crude,  and  the 
"  leaf  "  mark  is  almost  invariably  present.  Some  coins, 
like  those  of  Kashmir,  have  bilingual  legends  in  Persian 

1  The  Samvat,  which  corresponds  with  the  Vikrama  era, 
begins  in  58  B.C. 

a  Gurmukhi  is  a  Panjab  provincial  form  of  the  Nagarl  script 
(cf.Fig.10). 

1  The  two  parts  of  this  legend  are  quite  separate  in  sense. 


108  THE   COINS  OF   INDIA 

and  Gurmukhi.  Rupees  of  the  Persian  couplet  type 
continued  to  be  struck  after  Ranjit's  death,  in  S.  1896, 
till  S.  1905  (=  A.D.  1848).  The  chiefs  of  the  Sikh 
states,  Patiala,  Jhind,  Nabha  and  Kaital,  and  the  Dogra 
Rajas  of  Kashmir,  after  A.D.  1846,  also  coined  rupees 
of  this  type.  On  some  of  these  last  was  inscribed,  on 
account  of  its  supposed  talismanic  power,  the  Christian 
monogram  I.H.S. 

In  conclusion,  we  must  consider  the  coins  of 
the  Nawab-wazirs  and  kings  of  Oudh  or  Awadh.  The 
existence  of  this  province  as  a  separate  principality 
began  in  1720,  when  the  wazir,  S'adat  EJhan,  was  created 
Subahdar.  From  1754  to  1775  the  Mughal  mint  of 
Muhammadabad-Banaras  was  under  the  control  of  the 
third  Nawab-wazir  Shuja'u-d-daula.  From  1784  till 
1818  succeeding  nawabs  continued  to  mint  in  Lakhnau 
(Lucknow)  the  famous  "Machhlidar  "  rupees,  so  called 
from  the  fish  (Fig.  9,  5),  the  royal  badge  of  Awadh, 
appearing  on  the  reverse.  All  of  these  bear  the  regnal 
date  26,  and  continue  the  mint  name  Banaras.  Other 
mints  worked  by  the  nawabs  from  time  to  time  were 
Bareli,  after  1784,  Ilahabad,  1776-1780,  and  Asafnagar. 

In  1818  Lord  Hastings  persuaded  Ghaziu-d-din 
Haidar  to  assume  the  title  of  king,  and  from  that  time 
the  regal  series  of  coins  begins.  The  royal  arms  of 
Awadh,  in  various  forms,  appear  on  the  obverse  of  gold, 
silver  and  copper  of  Ghaziu-d-din  and  his  four  succes- 
sors, until  the  forced  abdication  of  the  last  king,  Wajid 
'AH  Shah,  in  1856.  On  the  reverse,  the  inscription, 
following  the  Mughal  example,  takes  the  form  of 
a  couplet ;  and  silver  and  gold  are  struck  to  the 
Mughal  standard  (PI.  XII,  3).  Fractional  pieces  of  the 
rupee  and  muhar  were  struck  in  all  reigns.  Though 
better  executed  and  finer  in  metal  than  those  of  most 
other  successors  of  the  Mughals,  these  coins  display  a 
certain  monotony,  all  denominations  in  the  three  metals 
following  the  prescribed  pattern  for  the  reign.  Certain 
modifications  in  the  inscription,  however,  take  place 
from  time  to  time.  The  coins  of  Wajid  'All  Shah's 
seventh  and  eighth  years,  of  which  five  denominations 


SUCCESSORS   OF   THE   MUGHALS        109 

in  each  metal  are  known,  are  probably  the  finest  of  the 
series. 

Two  large  silver  medals  are  associated  with  the 
Awadh  dynasty,  the  first  commemorating:  Shuja'u-d- 
daula's  victory  over  the  Rohillas  at  Miran  Katra,  in  1774, 
the  second  struck  by  GJiaziu-d-din  IJaidar,  in  honour  of 
his  coronation  on  1st  Muharram  A.H.  1235.  On  the 
obverse  of  the  latter  is  an  ornate  and  very  realistic 
portrait  of  the  king,  and  on  the  reverse  the  arms  of 
Awadh.  Certain  "  Machhlidar "  rupees  and  muhars, 
bearing  the  date  A.H.  1229,  on  which  the  mint  name 
$ubah  Awadh  occurs,  are  believed  to  have  been  minted 
by  the  Lucknow  mutineers.  It  is  not  unfitting  that  this 
short  history  of  Indian  coins  should  close  with  a  des- 
cription of  the  money  of  the  Awadh  kings;  for  this  latest 
scion  of  the  great  Mughal  currency  not  only  received  its 
sanction  from  an  English  Governor-General,  but  mani- 
fested, in  the  adoption  of  armorial  bearings  of  a  Western 
type  for  its  obverse,  the  beginning  of  that  European 
influence,  which,  later  on  in  the  nineteenth  century, 
was  to  revolutionise  the  coin  types  of  the  few  Indian 
states,  Haidarabad,  Travancore,  Gwaliar,  Alwar, 
Baroda,  etc.,  which  retained  the  right  of  minting  after 
the  introduction  of  the  British  Imperial  currency. 


SELECT  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

GENERAL 

J.  PRINSEP  :  Essays  in  Indian  Aniquities,  Ed.  E.  THOMAS, 
London,  1858  ;  E.  J.  RAPSON  :  Indian  Coins  (Grundriss  der  Indo- 
Arischen  Philologie  und  Alter  turns  kunde) ,  Strassburg,  1897  ; 
C.  J.  RODGERS  :  Coin  Collecting  in  Northern  India,  Allahabad, 
1894  ;  V.  A.  SMITH  :  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  in  the  Indian 
Museum,  Calcutta,  Vol.  I,  Oxford,  1906  (for  Chaps.  I— VI  and  X) ; 
E.  THOMAS:  "  Ancient  Indian  Weights  "(=  International  Numis- 
mata  Orientalia,  I,  Part  i),  1865. 

SPECIAL 

CHAP.  I.— A.  CUNNINGHAM  :  Coins  of  Ancient  India,  1891  ; 
E.  J.  RAPSON  :  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  of  the  Andhra  Dynasty,  the 
Western  Ksatrapas,  etc.,  in  the  British  Museum,  London,  1908  ; 
W.  THEOBALD  :  "Notes  on  Some  of  the  Symbols  found  on  the 
Punch-marked  Coins  of  Hindustan,"/. A. SB.,  1890,  p.  181  ;  E.  H. 
WALSH  :  "  An  Examination  of  a  Find  of  Punch-marked  Coins  in 
Patna  City,"  Journal  of  the  Bihar  and  Orissa  Research  Society, 
1919,  p.  16,  p.  463. 

CHAPS.  II-III.— A.  CUNNINGHAM:  "Coins  of  Alexander's 
Successors  in  the  East,"  1873  (=  Num.  Chron.,  1868-1873)  ;  id.  : 
"  Coins  of  the  Indo-Scythians,"  1892  (—  Num.  Chron.,  1888-1892); 
P.  GARDNER  :  Catalogue  of  Indian  Coins  in  the  British  Museum  : 
Greek  and  Scythic  Kings  of  Bactria  and  India,  London, 
1886  ;  E.  J.  RAPSON  :  Cambridge  History  of  India,  Vol.  I,  Chaps. 
XXII,  XXIII  ;  R.  B.  WHITKHEAD  :  Catalogue  of  Coins  in  the 
Panjdb  Museum,  Lahore,  Vol.  I,  Oxford,  1914. 

CHAP.  IV.— J.  ALLAN  :  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  of  the  Gupta 
Dynasties  in  the  British  Museum,  London,  1914. 

CHAP.  V.— R.  BURN:  "Some  Coins  of  the  Maukharis  and 
of  the  Thanesar  Line,"  J.R.A.S.,  1906,  p.  843  ;  A.  CUNNINGHAM: 
"  Coins  of  the  Later  Indo-Scythians,"  1894  (=  Num.  Chron.,  1893- 
1894)  ;  id.:  "  Coins  of  Mediaeval  India,"  1894  ;  C.  J.  RODGERS  : 
"Coins  of  the  Maharajahs  of  Kashmir,"  J.A.S.B.,  1897,  p.  277  ; 
id.:  "  Coins  of  the  Maharajahs  of  Kangra,"  J.A.S.B.,  1880,  p.  10. 

CHAP.  VI.— G.  BIDIE:  "The  Pagoda  or  Varaha  Coins  of 
Southern  India,"  J.A.S.B.,  1883,  p.  33  ;  W.  ELLIOT  :  "  Coins  of 
Southern  India,"  1886  (=  International  Numismata  Orientalia 


SELECT    BIBLIOGRAPHY  111 

III,  Part  2) ;  E.  HULTZCH  :  "  The  Coins  of  the  Kings  of  Vijaya- 
nagar,"  /.A.,  1891,  p.  301;  id.:  "  South  Indian  Copper  Coins,  "LA.t 
1892,  p.  321  ;  id.:  "  Miscellaneous  South  Indian  Coins,"  LA.,  1896, 
p.  317  ;  R.  P.  JACKSON  :  "  The  Dominions,  Emblems  and  Coins 
of  the  South  Indian  Dynasties,"  1913  (—  British  Numismatic 
Journal,  1913);  E.  LOVENTHAL  :  The  Coins  of  Tinnevelly, 
Madras,  1888;  T.  W.  RHYS-DAVIDS:  "Ancient  Coins  and 
Measures  of  Ceylon,"  1877 (=  International  Numismatia  Orien- 
talia,  I,  Part  6);  R.  H.  C.  TUFNELL  :  Hints  to  Coin  Collectors 
in  Southern  India,  Madras,  1889. 

CHAP.  VII.— S.  LANE  POOLE  :  Catalogtie  of  Coins  in  the 
British  Museum,  Sultans  of  Dehli,  London,  1884  ;  E.  THOMAS  : 
Chronicles  of  the  Pathan  Kings  of  Dehli,  London,  1871  ;  C.  J. 
RODGERS  :  "  Coins  Supplementary  to  Thomas,  Chronicles  of  the 
Pathan  Kings,"  Nos.  I— VI.,  J.A.S.B.,  1880-1896  ;  H.  N.  WRIGHT  : 
Catalogue  of  the  Coins  in  the  Indian  Museum,  Calcutta,  Vol.  II, 
Oxford,  1907  ;  id.:  "  Addenda  to  the  Series  of  Coins  of  the  Pathan 
Sultans  of  Dehli,"  J.R.A.S.,  p.  481,  p.  769. 

CHAP.  VIII.— S.  LANE  POOLE  :  Catalogue  of  Coins  of  the 
Muhammiidan  States  of  India  in  the  British  Museum,  London, 
1885  ;  H.  N.  WRIGHT  :  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  in  the  Indian 
Museum,  Calcutta,  Vol.  II,  Oxford,  1907.  Bengal.— E.  THOMAS  : 
"The  Initial  Coinage  of  Bengal,"  J.A.  S.£.,  1867,  p.  1,  1873,  p. 
343  ;  A.F.  R.  HOERNLE  :  "  A  New  Find  of  Muhammadan  Coins  of 
Bengal"  (2 papers),  J.A.S.B.,  1881,  p.  53, 1883,  p.  211.  Kashmir.— 
C.  J.  RODGERS  :  "The  Square  Coins  of  the  Muhammadan  Kings 
of  Kashmir,"  J.A.S.B.,  1885,  p.  92.  Bahmanis.— O.  CODRINGTON  : 
"Coins  of  the  Bahmani  Dynasty,"  Num.  Chron.,  1898,  p.  259; 
J.  GIBBS:  "Gold  and  Silver  Coins  of  the  Bahmani  Dynasty," 
Num.  Chron.,  1881.  Gujarat.— G.  P.  TAYLOR  :  "  Coins  of  the 
Gujarat  Saltanat,"  J.B.B.R.A.S.,  1904,  p.  _278.  Malwa.— L. 
WHITE  KING:  "History  and  Coinage  of  Malwa,"  Num.  Chron., 
1903,  p.  356, 1904,  p.  62.  Ma'bar.— E.  HULTZCH  :  "  Coinage  of  the 
Sultans  of  Madura,"  J.R.A.S.,  1909,  p.  667. 

CHAP.  IX.— C.  J.  BROWN  :  Catalogue  of  the  Mughal  Coins  in 
the  Provincial  Museum,  Lucknow,  2  Vols.,  Oxford,  1920  ;  S.  LANE 
POOLE  :  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  of  the  Moghul  Emperors  in  the 
British  Museum,  London,  1892;  R.  B.  WHITEHEAD  :  Catalogue 
of  the  Coins  of  the  Mughal  Emperors  in  the  Panjdb  Museum, 
Lahore,  Oxford,  1914;  id.:  "The  Mint  Towns  of  the  Mughal 
Emperors  of  India,"  J.A.S.B.,  1912,  p.  425;  H.  N.  WRIGHT: 
Catalogue  of  the  Coins  in  the  Indian  Museum,  Calcutta,  Vol.  Ill, 
Oxford,  1908.  [Also  a  large  number  of  articles  scattered  through 
the  J.R.A.S.,LA.,J.A.S.B.,  especially  the  Numismatic  Supple- 
ments to  the  last,  starting  from  1904.] 

CHAP.  X.— J.  ALLAN:  "The  Coinage  of  Assam,"  Num. 
Chron.,  1909,  p.  300;  C.  J.  BROWN:  "The  Coins  of  the  Kings  of 
Awadh,"  Num.  Supp.,  XVIII,  J.A.S.B.,  1912  ;  M.  LONGWORTH 


112  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

DAMES:  "Coins  of  the  DurranTs,"  Num.  Chron.,  Vol.  VIII,  3rd 
series,  p.  325  ;  C.  J.  RODGERS  :  "On  the  Coins  of  the  Sikhs," 
J.A.S.B.,  1881,  p.  71.  East  India  Company.— E.  THURSTON  : 
"  History  of  the  East  India  Company  Coinage,"  J.A.S.&.,  1893, 
p.  52  ;  id.  :  History  of  the  Coinage  of  the  Territories  of  the  E.LC. 
in  the  Indian  Peninsula  and  Catalogue  of  the  Coins  in  the  Madras 
Museum,  Madras,  1890.  Marathas.— A.  MASTER  :  "  The  Post- 
Mughal  Coins  of  Ahmadabad,  Num.  Supp.,  XXll,J.A.S.B.,  1914; 
M.  G.  RANADE  :  "Currencies  and  Mints  Under  Mahratta  Rule, 
J.£.£.tf.A.S.,1902,  p.  191  ;  G.  P.  TAYLOR  :  "  On  the  Baroda  Coins 
of  the  Last  Six  Gaikwars,"  Num.  Supp.,  XVIII,  J.A.S.B.,  1912. 
Rajputana. — A.  F.  R.  HOERNLE  :  "  Notes  on  Coins  of  Native 
States,  J.A.S.B.,  1897,  p  261  ;  W.  W.  WEBB  :  The  Currencies  of 
the  Hindu  States  of  Rajputana,  London,  1893.  Tipu  Sultan.— 
R.  P.JACKSON  :  "  Coin  Collecting  in  Mysore,"  British  Numismatic 
Journal,  1909;  G.  P.  TAYLOR:  "The  Coins  of  Tipu  Sultan" 
{Occasional  Memoirs  of  the  Numismatic  Society  of  India) ,  1914. 

CHAP.  VII-X.— W.  H.  VALENTINE:    The  Copper  Coins  of 
India,  I,  II,  London,  1914. 


PRINCIPAL  COLLECTIONS  OF   INDIAN 
COINS 

India.— Indian  Museum,  Calcutta  (all  classes) ;  Dehli  Museum 
of  Archasology  (Sultans  of  Dehli,  Mughals) ;  Pan  jab  Museum, 
Lahore  (Indo-Greeks,  S~akas,  Pahlavas,  Sultans  of  Dehll,  Mughals. 
Sikhs);  Provincial  Museum,  Lucknow  (Ancient  Indian,  Guptas, 
Sultans  of  Dehll,  Mughals,  Awadh) ;  Government  Central  Museum, 
Madras  (South  Indian,  Ceylon,  Mysore,  East  India  Company, 
Mughals,  Sultans  of  Dehll,  Indo-Portuguese) ;  Prince  of  Wales' 
Museum,  Bombay  (Gujarat,  Mughals,  Marathas);  Provincial 
Museum,  Shillong  (Sultans  of  Bengal,  Assam,  Koch,  Jaintia) ; 
Central  Museum,  Nagpur  (Sultans  of  Dehli,  Mughals,  Marathas, 
Bahmanis)  ;  Dacca  Museum  (Sultans  of  Bengal);  Patna 
Museum  (Punch-marked  series,  Mughals,  Sultans  of  JDehli, 
Bengal  Sultans);  Peshawar  Museum  (Indo-Greeks,  Sakas, 
Pahlavas,  Mughals,  Durranls),  Macmahon  Museum,  Quetta 
(Durranis,  Mughals,  Barakzais). 

London.— British  Museum  (all  classes). 

Continent. — Bibliotheque  Nationale,  Paris  ;  Kaiser  Friedrich 
Museum,  Berlin. 

America. — American  Numismatic  Society's  Collection,  New 
York, 


INDEX 


ABDAGASES,  29 
^*     'Abdullah,  (1)  of  Cairo, 
76  ;  (2)  of  Gulkanda,  84 
Abu-1-fazl,  91,  92 
Abu-1-Hasan  of  Gulkanda,  84 
'Adil  Shahi  kings,  84 
<Adl,  72 
'Adli,  73 
Agathokleia,  27 
Agathokles,  20,  24,  26 
Agra  (Akbarabad),  89,  93ff 
Ahichhatra,  20 
Ahmadabad,  87,  88,  93,  94,  95, 

96,  97,  98 

Ahmadnagar,  84,  87,  88 
Ahmad  Shah  I   (1)   Bahmani, 

83  ;  (2)  of  Gujarat,  87,88 
Ahmad  Shah  Durrani,  106 
Ahom  language,  101 
Ahoms,  100,  101 
Ahsanabad  (Kulbarga),  83 
Aimer,  53,  96,  98 
Akbar,  81,  86,  89ff,  100,  102 
Akbar  II,  98 
Akbarnagar,  95,  98 
'Alamgir  II,  65 
'Alam  Shah  of  Dehll,  76 
'Alau-d-din   Ahmad   II  (Bah- 
mani), 83,  84 
'Alau-d-dm    Hasan    Bahmani, 

83 
'Alau-d-din    Husain    Shah    of 

Bengal,  79,  80 
1  Alau-d-dm  Mas'ud,  70,  71 
'Alau-d-din    Muhammad,    62, 

70,  72,  83 
'Alau-d-din  Sikandar  Shah  of 

Ma'bar,  82 
Alexander,  23 
'AH  II  of  Bijapur,  84 


'AH  Raja,  66 

Altamsh,  70 

Amir  Band  of  Bidajr,  84 

Amritapala  of  Budayun,  53 

Am  ri  tsar,  107 

Anandgarh,  107 

Anantavarman  Chodaganga,  60 

Andhras,  21,  58,  62  ' 

Ans~uvarman,  38 

Antialkidas,  24,  27 

Antimachos,  24 

Apollodotos,  24,  26,  27,  29,  31 

Apollophanes,  27 

Arabic,  69,  70,  72,  80,  82 

Arachosia,  24 

Arcot  (Arkat),  58,  103 

Ardokhsho,  36,  41 

Ariana,  24 

Arsakes,  23 

Asafnagar,  108 

Asalla-deva  of  Narwar,  54 

Aslrgarh,  95 

ASoka,  17,  19 

Asparvarma,  24,  29 

Assam,  80,  100,  101 

ASvamedha,  41,  42,  44 

Athro,  36 

Augustus ,17,  34,  58n 

Aurangabad,  99 

Aurangzeb,  92ff 

Aureus,  34,  58n 

Awadh  (Oudh),  108,  109 

Ayodhya,  19,  20,  43 

Azes  I,  24,  28,  29  ;  II,  29 

Azilises,  28 

'Azimu-sh-shan,  97 

DABUR.77 

**     Bacchanalian  Muhars,  96 

Bactria,  23ff 


114 


THE    COINS   OF   INDIA 


BadamI,  59 

Baghdad,  khalifs  of,  70,  79 

Bahadur  Shah,  (1)  of  Gujarat, 

86,87,  88  ;  (2)  Mughal,  98 
Bahawalpur,  16,  37 
Bahmanl  dynasty,  83ff,  87 
Bahloll.n 

Bahlol  Lodi,  76,  77,  85 
Bairat,  93 

Bakhtiyar,  Khilji,  78 
Balapur,  65 
Ballala  II,  60 

Banaras  (Benares),  103n,  108 
Bangalur,  105 
BarbakShah,85 
Barell,  99,  104,  108 
Baroda,  104,  109 
Barter,  13 
Baz  Bahadur,  86 
Bedar  Bakht,  97 
Bednur,  65 

Bengal,  48,  52,  78ff,  92,  100, 103 
Bengali  script,  101 
Berar,  83 
Bhatgaon,  102 
Bhoja-deva  of  Kanauj,  52 
Bhonsla  rajas,  104 
Bihar,  49,  85,  90,  92 
Bijapur,  84 
Blkaner,  104 
Billon,  21n,  55,  68,  71 
Bombay,  103 
Brahml,  19n 

British  Museum,  82n,  85,  95 
Buddha,  36,  38,  39 
Budhagupta,  47 
Bull  and  Horseman   type,  50, 

53,  72 

Bundelkhand,  53 
Burhanabad,  84 
Burma,  100 
Buxar,  battle  of,  103 

pASH,  105 

^     Cast  coins,  18 

Central  Asia,  55,  67 

Ceylon   61f 

Chahada-deva  of  Narwar,  71 

Chak  dynasty,  81 


Chakram,  57 
Chalukyas,  57n,  59ff 
Chandel  dynasty,  53 
Chandragiri,  63,  64 
Chandragupta,  I,  41  ;    II,   43f, 
51 ;  III,  45  ;  Maurya,  17,  45n 
Chashtana,  31 

Chera  (Kerala) ,  58,  60,  61,  63,  65 
Chitaldrug,  65 
Cholas,  58ff 
Cochin,  61,  66 
Coimbatore,  15,  60 
Cowrie,  13 
Cufic  Script,  69 

HAHALA,  52 

Y     Dam,  90,93 

Damra,  93 

Damrl ,  93 

Daric,  13 

Daru-1-islam,  73,  74 

Daulat  Khan  Lodi,  77 

Dawar  Bakhsh,  97 

Deccan,  58773,  83,  98 

Dehli,  53,  69ff,  78,  79,  82,  83,  85, 

86,  89,  93,  97,  98,  99,  102 
Dehllwala,  71 
Demetrios,  23,  28 
Denarius,  17,  34 
Deoglr  (Daulatabad),  72,  73, 

74,  75,  84 
Devaraya,  64 
Dhar,  74 
Didda,  54 

Dilawar  Khan  Ghorl,  86 
Dinar,  73 
Dinar  a,  35,  45 
Diodotos  of  Bactria,  16,  23 
DirhamShar'1,33 
Divine  Era,  98 

Dogra  rajas  of  Kashmir,  108 
Dramma,  52 
Drangiana,  24 

CAST  INDIA  COMPANY, 
^    65,  103 

Eran,  20 

Eukratides,  23,  24,  30 
Euthydemos,  23,  24 


INDEX 


115 


FAKHRU-D-DlN  MUBARAK, 
79" 

Fanam,  57,  104,  105 
Farrukhabad,  104,  106 
Farrukhsiyar,  92,  93,  99,  103 
Fathabad,  80 
Fath  Khan,  76 
Fathpur,  94,  96 
FIro'zabad,  80 
Flroz  Shah,  (1)  of  Dehll,  69, 

75ff  ;  (2)  Bahmani,  83 
Forced  Currency,  74 


PADHIYAPAISA.52 

^     Gaikwar,  104 

Gajapati  dynasty,  56,  60 

Ganapati-deva,  54 

Ganapati  dynasty,  60 

Gandhara,  19,  24,  38,  53 

Ganesh,  64  ;  Hindu  raja,  79 

Gangeya-deva,  52 

Garuda,  42,  47,48,  60 

Gauda,  48 

Ghototkacha,  41 

Ghaziu-d-din  Haidar,  108 

Ghiyas  Shah  of  Malwa,  86,  87 

Ghiyasu-d-dm,  (1)  Bahadur  of 
Bengal,  79  ;  (2)  Balban,  70, 
72  ;  (3)  Tughlaq,  69,  71 

Gigantic  coins,  91,  92 

Gilds,  15,  16,  19 

GIrvan  Yuddha  Vikrama,  102 

Goa,  61 

Gondopharnes,  24,  29,  32 

Gorakhpur,  85^ 

Gotamlputra,  Sri  Yajna,  31 

Gujarat,  52,  86ff 

Gulkanda,  84 

Gunanka,  38 

Gupta  dynasty,  31,  37,  40ff 

Gurmukhi,  107n,  108 

Guti,  65 

Gwaliar,  104,  109 

LJ  ABSHI  DYNASTY,  79 
n      Haidarabad,  65,  109 
Haidar  'All,  65,  70,  105n 
Hanuman,  53,  64 


Harihara  I,  64 

Harsha-deva  of  Kashmir,  55, 

56,60 

Harshavardhana,  48,  49 
Hasan  Shah  of  Kashmir,  82 
Heliokles,  24,  30 
Helios,  36 

Herakles,  26,  28,  36 
Hermaios,  24,  27,  34 
Hijrl  era,  67,  98,  106 
Hippostratos,  24,  29 
Honorific  titles,  99 
Hoshang  Shah, 86 
Hoysalas,  60 
Humayun,  (1)  Mughal,  81,  86, 

89,  90  ;  (2)  Durrani,  106 
Hun,  57 
Hundi,  15,  55 
Huns,  22,31,  44,  48ff,  55 
Husainabad,  80 
Husain  Shah  of  Jaunpur,  85 
Huvishka,  33,  36,  38 
Hyrcordes,  30 

I BRAHIM  LODl,  69,  77 
1     Ibrahim  Shah,  (1)  of  Jaun- 
pur, 85  ;  (2)  of  Kashmir,  81 
Ibrahim  Suri,  91 
Ikkeri,  65 
Ilahabad    (Allahabad),   95,  98, 

108 

Ilahi  coins,  94,  97 
Ilyas  Shah,  79 
Indo-Greeks,  22ff 
Indor,  104 
Iganavarman,  49 
Islam  Shah  Suri,  81,  90 
Itawah,  98 

TAGADEKAMALLA,  59 
J  Jagajjaya  Malla,  102 
Jahandar,  93 

Jahangir,  91ff,  101,  102,  105 
Jahangirnagar,  97,  98 
Jaintia,  rajas  of,  101 
Jaipur,  104 
Jaitil,  74 

Jalalu-d-dln,  (1)  Ahsan  Shah  of 
Ma'bar,  82;    (2)' Khiljl,   70; 


116 


THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 


(3)  Mang-barnl  of  Khwarlzm. 
72  ;  (4)  Muhammad  of  Ben- 
gal, 79,  80,  85 

Jagwant  Rao  Holkar,  104 

Jaunpur,  77,  85,  89 

JayakeSin  III,  61 

Jayasimha,  59 

Jayavarma  of  Mahoba,  53 

Jhang,  107 

Jhind,  108 

Jishnugupta,  38 

Jivadaman,  31 

Jodhpur,  104 

Jovian  Cycle,  101,  106 

Junagadh, 88,  97 

l^ABUL,  24,  35n,  37,  89,  92,  93, 

•*    97,  106 

Kadambas,  59,  61 

Kadaphes,  34 

Kaital,  108 

Kalachuris,  52, 53  ;  of  Kalyana, 

60 

Kalanju  seed,  57 
Kalikat  (Calicut),  58,  66 
Kalima,  68,  73,  79,  81,  89,  94ff 
Kallmullah,  84 
Kalinga  (Orissa),  60 
Kalliope,  27 
Kalyam,  59 
Kamara,  53 

Kamarupa  (Assam),  100 
Kanara,  59 

Kanarese,  58,  60,  64,  106 
Kanauj,  49,  52,  53,  70 
Kanchi  (Conjeeveram),  61 
Kandahar   (Qandahar),  24,  95, 

106 

Kangra,  53 
Kanishka,  33,  35ff 
Kannanur,  66 
Kapisl,  26 

Kararani  dynasty,  79 
Karnatic,  nawabs  of,  65 
Karttikeya,  44,  47 
Kashmir,  16,  22,  50,  51,  54,  56, 

78,  81,  82,  96,  107,  108 
Katak,  104 
Kathiawar,  47 


Kathmandu1,  102 

KauSambhl,  19,  20 

Khalifs,  four  orthodox,  74,  89 

Kharoshthi,  19n,  46n 

Khingila',  54 

ghizr_Khan,  77 

Khotan,  46n 

Khotanese,  36 

IChusru  Parviz,  51 

Khwaja-i-Jahan,  85 

Kidara,  37,  54 

Kodur,  60 

Kongu-Chera  kingdom,  60 

KongudeSa,  55,  60 

Korts,  88 

Krishnaraja,  (1)  Udayar,  106  ; 

'(2) 'of  Valabhi,  49 
Krishnaraya,  64 
Kujula  Kadphises,  27,  32,  33ff 
Kumaradevi,  41 
Kumar agupta  I,  44,  48  ;  II,  45 
Kunindas,  32 
Kurumbas,  58,  61,  62 
Kushana,  23,  27,  33ff,  41,  42,  45, 

46,  51,  67 

f  AHOR,  69,  89,  93ff,  106,  107 
»-    Lakshmana,  64 
Lakshml,  37,  41,  42,  43,  44,  45, 
52,70 

Lakshmi  Narasimha,  102 
Lakhnau  (Lucknow),  108,  109 
Lakhnauti  (Gaur),  72,  74,  78, 

80 

Ldrtns,  84n 
Lichchavi,  41 
Lucknow  Museum,  43 

MA'BAR,  82 
Madras,  65 

Madura,  61ff,  82 

Mahakogala,  53 

Maharasthra,  104 

Mahendra  Malla,  102 

Mahmud  of  Ghazni,  69 

Mahmud  Shah,  "(1)  BahmanI, 
83,84;  (2)  I,  of  Dehli,  76,  77  ; 
(3)  II,  of  Dehli,  87  ;  (4)  I,  of 
Gujarat,  87,  88  ;  (5)  II,  of  Gu- 


INDEX 


117 


jarat,  88  ;  (6)  III,  of  Gujarat, 
88  ;  (7)  of  Jaunpur,  85  ;  (8) 
I,  of  Malwa,  86,  87;  (9)  II,  of 
Malwa,  86 

Mahoba,  53 

Maitraka,  49 

Malabar,  61 

Maldive  Islands,  84 

Malla  dynasty,  101 

Malwa,  16,  20,  21,  47,  51,  75, 
86f 

Mananka,  38 

Mandu,  86,  96 

Manjadi  seed,  57 

Marathas,  104 

Mathura,  19,20,  30 

Maues,  24,  28 

Maukharis,  31,  49,  51 

Mauludi  era,  106 

Maurya  Empire,  17,  18 

Medals,  silver,  109 

Menander,  24,  27 

Miaos,  30 

Mihiragula,  49,  51,  54 

Mints,  80,  98,  99 

Mirza  Haidar,  81 

Mubarak  Shah  II,  76 

Mughal,  16,  89ff,  lOlff,  109 

Muhammad, (1)  'Adil  Shah,  90, 
91 ;  (2)  bin  Farid,  76  ;  (3) 
binFlroz,  76;  (4)binTugklaq, 
69,  73ff,  80,  82,  91,  105;  (5) 
Ghorl,  53,_67_,  69,  70,  71 

Muhammadabad,(l)  (Banaras), 
108;  (2)  (Bidar),  83  ;  (3) 
(Champanlr),  87 

Muhammad  Shah,  (1)  I  Bah- 
m'ani,  84  ;  (2)  III  Bahmam, 
83  ;  (3)  of  Bijapur,  84  ;  (4) 
of  Kashmir,  81  ;  (5)  II  of 
Malwa,  86;  (6)  Mughal,  65, 
103 

Muhar,  92,  94,  105,  107 

Mulk-i-Tilang,  74 

Multan,  98,  106,  107 

Muradabad,  104 

Murad  Bakhsh,  96 

Murshidabld,  97,  104 

Musjafa'abad,  87,  88 


Muzaffar  III  of  Gujarat,  87,  88 
Mysore,  58,  59,  65,  66,  83,  105, 
106 

MABHA,  108 

Nadir  Shah,  106 
Naga  dynasty,  (1)  of  Narwar, 

49  ;   (2)  of  Kashmir,  54 
Nagar  (Bednur),  105 
Nagari,  31n,  51,  52,  53,  60,  61, 

63,  64,  65,  67,  71,  72,  75,  107n 
Nagpur,  104 
Nahapana,  21,  30,  31 
Najibabad,  104 
Nana,  36 
Nandi,  47,  48 
Narasinhagupta,  45 
Narwar,  49,  53,  54 
Nasir  Shah  of  Malwa,  86 
Nasiru-d-dm,  (1)    Isma'il,  83  ; 

(2)  Mahmud  I  of  Bengal,  80  ; 

(3)  Mahmud  of  Dehll,  70,  72 
Nasratabad ,  80 
Navanagar,  88 

Nayakas,  63,  64,  65 
Nepal,  38,  lOOff 
Nepali  Samvat,  102n 
Nike,  29 
Nisar,  92 

Nizam  Shahl  dynasty,  84 
Nizams  of  Haidarabad,  104 
Nftr  Jahan,  95,  101 

36 

Odumbara,  31 
Ohind,  53 
Ooscotta,  65 
Orissa,  60,  80,  104 
Orthagnes,  29 

T5ADMA-TAMKA,  57,  59 
r     Pagoda,  57,  64,  65, 103,  104, 

105 

Pahlava,  23,  24,  27ff,  51,  67 
Pakores,  29,  33 
Pallas,  28,  29 
Pallava,  58,  61,  62 
Panchala,  19,  20 
Pandya,  56,  58,  61,  62,  63 


118 


THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 


Pampat,  battle  of,  77,  89 

Pantaleon,  19,  24,  26 

Paravani,  44 

Patalipiitra,  41,  43 

Pat  an,  102 

Patiala,  108 

Patna,  94,  95 

Pattan  (Seringapatan),  105 

Persia,  51 

Persian,  66,  101,  105,  106,  107 

Persian  couplets,  88,  95,   106, 

107 

Persian  months,  94 
Peshawar,  106 
Peshwa,  104 
Philoxenos,  26 
Pind  Dadan  Khan,  107 
Polyxenos,  27 
Poseidon,  28 
Potin,  21n 

PramatheSvari  of  Assam,  101 
Pramatta  Simha,  101 
Pratapa  Malla,  102 
Prithviraj,  69 
PulakeSin  I,  59  ;  II,  59 
Pulumavi,  Vasishthlputra  Sri, 

21 

Puna  (Poona), 104 
"  Punch-marked  "  coins,  14,  15, 

58 

Puragupta,  45,  48 
Purbandar,  88 
Pushkalavati,  24 
Puttan,  66 


QADIR  SHAH,  86 
Qolar  (Kolar),  65 
Qutbabad, 72 
Qutb  Shahi  dynasty,  84 
Qutbu-d-dm,    (1)    Aibak,  69; 
(2)  Mubarak,  71,  72,  81 


D  AJ ARA J A ,  ( 1 )  Chaluky  a ,  59  ; 
1A     (2)  the  Great,  Choi  a,  62 
Rajendra  Kulottunga,  63 
RajeSvara  Simha,  101 
Rajputana,  49,  52 
Rajput  states,  104 


Rajuvula,  30 
Rama,_64,  95 
Ramaraya,  64 
Ranjit  Singh,  107,  108 
Rashtrakutas,  59 
Rathor,  53 
Roman  coins,  58 
Roman  influence,  34,  44 
Rohillas,  104,  109 
Rudra  Simha,  100 
Ruknu-d-din  Barbak,  80 
Rupee,  69,   90ff,   99,    103,    104, 
105,  108 

C'ADAT  KHAN  of  Awadh,  108 

^    Safavl,  100 

Safd_ar  'All,  65 

Saharanpur,  104 

^aka  era,  31n,  33,  47,  101 

Sakala  (Sialkot),  51 

^akas,  23,  24,  26,  27ff ,  43 

Saktivarman,  59 

Salem,  60 

Samanta-deva,  53 

Samudragupta,  41ff 

Samvat  era,  107n 

Sangrama  Simha,  87 

Sankara  Varma  of  Kashmir,  54 

Sanskrit,  40,  66,  69, 100,  101,  104 

Saptakotisa  (Siva),  61 

gaSanka",  48 

Sasas,  24 

Sassanian  type,  coins  of,  49,  51, 

52 

Satakarm,  Sri  Yajna,  21 
Satgaon,  74,  80 
Satrap,  30,  31 
Scindia,  104 

Seated  goddess  type,  37,  41,  44 
Selene,  36 

Seleucos  of  Syria,  23 
Setupatis  of  Ramnad,  64 
Shadiabad  (Mandu)',  86 
Shah  'Alam  II,  93,  97,  98,  103n 
Shah  'Alam  Bahadur,  92,  93,  97 
Shahi  Tigin,  51 
Shah  Jahan  I,  87,  91ff 
Shahjahanabad  (Dehli),  98,  99 


INDEX 


119 


Shah  Mirza,  81 

Shahrukhi,  89 

Shah  Shu ja',  96,  97 

Shamsu-d-dm  Kaiyumars,  71 

Sharql  dynasty,  85 

Sher  Shah  Sun,  68,  79,  80,  90 

Shihabu-d-dm  'Umar,  71 

Shuja'  Khan,  86 

Shuja'u-d-daula,  108,  109 

Siddhi  Narasimha,  102 

Sikandar,  (1)  bin  Ilyas  Shah  of 
Bengal,  80;  (2)  Lodi,  77;  (3) 
Shah  of  Kashmir,  81;  (4) 
Suri,  91 

Sikhs,  106,  107,  108 

giladitya,  49 

Silver,  55,  68 

Sind  (Sakadvipa),  24 

Slta,  64,  95 

giva,  29,  36,  37,  42,  47,  48 

^ivaji,  65 

Siva  Simha,  101 

Skandagupta,  44,  45,  47 ff 

Solar  era,  Jahangir's,  96n,  98 

Sophy tes  (Saubhuti),  23 

Soter  Megas,  30n,  35 

Spalaga dames,  29 

Spalahores,  24,  29 

Spalapati-deva,  53 

Spalirises,  24,  29 

Square  coins,  16,  71,  86,  94,  95 

Standards  of  weight,  25n 

Stater,  13,  26 

Stratol,  24,  27;  II,  30 

Sugandha,  54 

Suklenming,  100,  101 

Sulaiman  Durrani,  106 

Sultanpur ,  72 ;( Warangal ) ,  74 

Surashtra,  47n 

Surat,  95,  98,  104 

Surendra  Vikrama,  102 

Surya  Narayana,  101 

Suvarna,  13,  45 

TAILAPA,  59 

1      Talikota,  battle  of,  63 
Tamil,  58,  61,  62,  64,  66 
Tanda,  80 

Tang-ka,  102 


Tanjore,  64 

Tankah,  69n,  70S  ,  93,  97 

Tankl,  93,  97 

Tara,  100 

Tare,  58,  66 

Tatta,  96,  97 

Taxila,  16,  17,  19,  24,  33 

Telugu,  58,  59,  61,  64,  106 

Telugu-Chola  dynasty,  60 

Tetradrachm,  Attic,  55 

Thanesar,  49  ;  battle  of,  69 

Theophilos,  27 

Tibet,  102 

Tlmur,  76,  97 

Tinnevelly,  61,  63,  64 

Tipperah,  101 

TIpu  Sultan,  105 

Tirhut  (Tughlaqpur),  74,  85 

Tirumalaraya,  64 

Tomara  dynasty,  53 

Toramana,  49,  50,  51,  54 

Trailokyamalla,  59 

Travancore,  61,  66,  109 

Tughra,  80 

Type,  25;    Horseman,  28,  43ff 

Types,  various  Gupta,  41ff 

UJJAIN    (Avanti),  20;    city 
of,  87,  104 
Upagiti  metre,  45 
Urdu  mint,  89,  96 


,  41 

Valabhi,  47,  49 
Varaha,  57 

Vasudeva,  33,  36,  37,  51 
Velli,  64 
Vengi,  63,  59 
VenkateSvara,  64 
Vigrahapala,  52 
Vijayanagar,  57,  62,  63ff,  82 
Vikrama  era,  24,  53,  107n 
Vima  Kadphises,  33,  35,  38 
Virasena,  49 
Vishnu,  42,  52,  64  ;  Chittadeva, 

61 

Vishnugupta,  45 
Vishnuvardhana,  59 
Vondnes,  24,  29 


120  THE   COINS   OF   INDIA 

Yusuf  Shah  of  Kashmir,  81 
Wodyar  dynasty,  105 


\X/AJID  'ALT  SHAH,  108 
Wa  ran  gal,  60 


VADAVAS  of  Devagiri,  60 

Yama,  45 
Yasodharman,  51 
Yaudheyas,  37 
Yueh-chi,  24,  33  ;  Little,  37,  54 


7 AFAR  £han,  87 

~    Zainu-1-abidm  of  Kashmir, 

81,82 

Zeionises,  30 
Zeus,  28 
Zodiac  coins,  95 
Zoilos,  24,  27 


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