Ancient ; Kaushambi city state (c. 2nd century BC), Copper, Weight : 4.67 Grams ; EXCEEDINGLY RARE IN SUCH GRADE
12
Aug
28
Dec
Indo Greek ; Hippostratos, Extremely Rare Silver tetradrachm ; Weight: 9.27 Grams ; Diameter: 30 mm approx.
Indo Greek ; Hippostratos, Extremely Rare Silver tetradrachm ; Weight: 9.27 Grams ; Diameter: 30 mm approx.
Bare-headed, diademed bust of king right, Greek legend around: BAΣIΛEΩΣ MEΓAΛOY ΣΩTHPOΣ / IΠΠOΣTPATOY(Basileos Megalou Soteros Hippostratou … of King Hippostratos, the great, the saviour)
King mounted on horse walking right, monogram at right, Kharoshthi letters left and below ; Kharoshthi legend around: maharajasa tratarasa mahatasa jayamtasa / hipustratasa
Reference: MIG 445 var, Bop 7 var
Note : Here the horse on the reverse is walking, not prancing. Neither Mitchiner nor Bopearachchi list coins with this particular Kharoshthi letter below the horse.
Hippostratus (Ancient Greek:’ITtóo Tpatoç, romanized: Hippostratos, meaning “army of
horses”) was an Indo-Greek king who ruled central and north- western Punjab and Pushkalavati.Bopearachchi dates Hippostratus
to 65 to 55 BCE whereas R. C.Senior suggests 60 to 50 BCE.
21
Dec
Independent Kingdom ; Nazrana Silver Rupee ; Tripura, Vira Vikrama Kishora Deb Barman (1923-1947 AD), Extremely Rare
Independent Kingdom ; Nazrana Silver Rupee ; Tripura, Vira Vikrama Kishora Deb Barman (1923-1947 AD), Extremely Rare
Obv: Without name of any queen, bust of Mahāraja with legend around: Pancha Śrī Mahārāja Mānikya Vīra Vikrama Kishora Deb Barman Bāhādur;
Rev. lion rampant to left, with trident on back, Tripura Rajya above, date below, all within decorative border, edge, milled (RB. 302; KM. 406) ; Weight : 11.75 Grams
18
Dec
Mughal ; Ex Rare ; Azam Shah ; Silver Rupee Mint : Ahmednagar ; 1118 AH / RY ” Ahad “
Mughal ; Ex Rare ; Azam Shah ; Silver Rupee
Mint : Ahmednagar ; 1118 AH / RY ” Ahad “
Weight : 11.53 Grams
Note : Muhammad Azam Shah was the eldest son of the sixth Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. He was born in the year 1653 CE in the city of Burhanpur. He was appointed as ‘Heir-apparent’ in the year 1681 CE to his father. He seized the throne of the Mughal Empire in the year 1707 CE after the death of his father Aurangzeb. But in the same year, he was defeated by his stepbrother Muhammad Mu’azzam in the battle of Jajau, who later sat on the Mughal throne by the title ‘Bahadur Shah I’.
This silver rupee was issued by Azam Shah during the first year of his reign in the Hijri year 1118. On the obverse, the side coin bears the legend as ‘Sikka zad dar jahan ba daulat-wa-jah badshah mumalik Azam Shah, AH 1118’. On the reverse side, the coin bears the legend as ‘julus-e-ashraf, sanah ahad, zarb Ahmednagar’.
Mint : Ahmednagar ; 1118 AH / RY ” Ahad “
18
Dec
IPS ; Gwalior, Shahjahanpur Mint, Silver Rupee, 15 RY, In the name of Shah Alam II,Extremely Rare
IPS ; Gwalior, Shahjahanpur Mint, Silver Rupee, 15 RY,
In the name of Shah Alam II,
Obv: Sikka Mubarak Badshah Ghazi Shah Alam,
Rev: Sana 15 julus, Trishul mint mark & Zarb Shahjahanpur at the bottom, Weight : 11.10 Grams
(Unlisted in major catalogs) Extremely Fine, Extremely Rare.
Note : This coin was struck in 1775 AD when it was under the control of Rohillas Sardar Dundey Khan Shahjahanpuri. After the battle of Miranpur Katra, the territory was annexed by Shuja’a ud-Daula, the Nawab of Awadh. The coin could have been issued by anyone of these two contenders. But this specimen bears a Trisul as a mint-mark, it is more likely to have been an issue of Awadh. There is also a possibility of Shahjahanpur is presently known as “Shajapur” and is located in central Madhya Pradesh. Shajapur named after the honor of Shahjahan the Mughal Emperor who halted here in 1640. It is said that the original name was Shahjahanpur, which subsequently reduces to Shajapur. This town was under the control of Gwalior and it is likely that a mint was operated here is 1775 under the aegis of Gwalior.
In the name of Shah Alam II,Extremely Rare
17
Dec
Mughal ; Ex Rare ; Kam Baksh (1707-1708 AD), Ahsanabad, Silver Rupee, 1120 AH/ 2 RY, “deen-e-panah” couplet
Mughal ; Ex Rare ; Kam Baksh (1707-1708 AD), Ahsanabad, Silver Rupee, 1120 AH/ 2 RY, Obv: “deen-e-panah” couplet, Rev: sana julus zarb at bottom, (KM # 336.1), Extremely fine, Beautifully struck, well centered ; Exceedingly rare..!! ; Weight : 11.54 Grams
Ahsanabad later known as ‘Gulbarga’ (presently in Karnataka) was founded by the Bahamani Sultans in the 14th century as their captital. Aurangzeb effectually occupied the city in 1098 AH and it was annexed in the Mughal Empire. Aurangzeb issued coins under the mint name Gulbarga and in his last ruling years the name was changed to Ahsanabad. Aurangzeb during his last years had appointed his son Kam Baksh as the subahdar (subaidar) of Bijapur on 16th February 1707.
Kam Bakhsh’s coin are known to be issued under both the mint names although he ruled short but Ahsanabad is very rare. Another remarkable feature on this coin is the mint mark which is only found on coins of Aurangzeb issud from Bijapur.
17
Dec
Mughal ; Akbar, Qila Bandhu (Bandhogarh) Mint, Silver Rupee, ‘Qila-e-Bandhu’ Couplet,Extremely Rare.
Mughal ; Akbar, Qila Bandhu (Bandhogarh) Mint, Silver Rupee, ‘Qila-e-Bandhu’ Couplet, Obv: Persian legend “riwaj sikka-e-allahu Akbar”, Rev: Persian legend “Buwad ba qila-e-Bandhu barabar”, 11.28 Grams (KM # 96.1), Extremely Rare.
Note: The fortress of Bandhu, in modern-day Bandhavgarh (Bandhogarh) in Umaria district in Madhya Pradesh, is thought to be at least 2000 years old. This issue must have been struck when the fortress was occupied by Akbar’s army. It is the only issue with this mint’s name. The couplet reads: “May the current coin of Akbar, the Divine Be equal to (the name of) the fort of Bandhu”. Bandhogarh is today home to a popular tiger reserve.
17
Dec
Mughal ; Muhammad Akbar II, 1st reign, 1788, AR rupee Saharanpur, AH1203 year one (ahad), KM-760, RRR, Exceedingly Rare
Mughal ; Muhammad Akbar II, 1st reign, 1788, AR rupee Saharanpur, AH1203 year one (ahad), KM-760, RRR, Exceedingly Rare
Note : After the Maratha occupation of Delhi, Shah Alam II was expelled, replaced first by Bedar Bakht. Very soon thereafter, under the domination of the Rohilla Chieftain Ghulam Qadir, Bedar Bakht was replaced by Muhammad Akbar, then about 28 years old. However, very shortly afterwards, Ghulam Qadir was captured by Mahadaji Sindhia, who reinstated Shah Alam II to the Mughal throne in Delhi.
Obv : Muhammad Akbar II and date (KM 760; only a couple of specimens are known, see The New York Sale XXV, January 2011, lot 381 and Baldwin’s Auction 45, 2006, lot 1341).
Note : The Hijra year 1203 was a period of turmoil and change for the Indian Emperors. It saw the rule of Delhi changing from the hands of Shah Alam II to Bedar Bakht, from Bedar Bakht to Muhammad Akbar II and from Muhammad Akbar II to Shah Alam II again. The young Prince Akbar II was enthroned by the Rohilla chief Ghulam Qadir. Mirza Akbar Shah wrote to Nawab Faizullah Khan: “ …on 14 th Muharram (15 th October) the imperial throne was illuminated by our august accession and the sound of the kettle-drum of felicitations reached the ears of the inhabitants of earth and the world above … the face of Gold and Silver coins shone brighter than the sun and the moon by the effluence of the impression, of our name on them ”. This reign was very short lived when Ghulam Qadir ran away and Mahadaji Scindhia captured Delhi to reinstate the blind emperor Shah Alam II to the throne on 17 October 1788. It is very interesting to note that the emperor has left us a written record of the fact that Khutba was read and coins were struck in both gold and silver for such a short reign and that both such coins have been discovered. For detailed discussion of the event and coinage of the puppets see the article by Dr Shailendra Bhandare “ Muhammad Akbar: A pawn in politics: the first reign ”
