In one of the highest bids received for a gold coin in the post-pandemic times, a 10.9 gm gold mohur minted at Dar-uz-Zafar mint, Bijapur, by Kam Baksh, went for a whopping ₹58 lakh in Bengaluru.
In another high-priced auction, a Khurram rebellion silver rupee coin has been sold for ₹22 lakh, the highest for a silver coin in recent years. Weighing 11.20 gm, the rebellion silver coin was minted in Kabul in 1627 C.E. (Hijri year 1037) in the name of Khurram, the pre-accession name of Shah Jahan.
By Kam Baksh
The gold coin by Kam Baksh is classified as unique minted in the Hijri year 1119 (from March 25, 1707, to March 12, 1708). It came after Kam Baksh, the fifth son of Aurangzeb, declared himself the king after seizing control of Bijapur soon after his father’s death. He had been appointed as in charge of the Deccani province of the Mughal Empire just before Aurangzeb’s death.
“This is the highest bid that a gold coin has received since a Jehangir-era commemorative coin went for ₹1.16 crore in 2019. We are seeing a trend of more interest being evinced for high-value coins by collectors who are making their own sets,” said Rajendra Maru of Bengaluru-based Marduhar Arts, an auction house recognised by the Archaeological Survey of India. “This coin is unusual and of extreme rarity,” he said.
The obverse of the coin has “struck coin in the Dakkan, on the sun and moon. The Emperor Kam Baksh, refugee of the faith.”
The Kam Baksh’s Gold Mohur became important since initially Shah Alam Bahadur, the oldest son of Aurangzeb, who had ascended the throne had not taken Kam Baksh as a serious contender. However, when Kam Baksh struck coins in his name at mints in Bijapur, Ahsanabad, Nusratabad, Haidarabad, Torgal, Gokak, and Imtiyazgarh, Shah Alam took it as a direct indictment of insubordination. In a pitched battle that ensued between the two armies on January 13, 1709, on the outskirts of Haidarabad, Kam Baksh was injured and died of wounds sustained in the battle, on January 14.
Silver coin
The silver coin minted by Khurram has Arabic legend on the obverse and in the reverse has Persian legend. The reverse has Zarb Kabul (mint name) at the bottom. This coin is classified as of great rarity and unique.
This coin was minted by Khurrram during the succession battle that broke out soon after the death of Jehangir.
According to Mr. Maru, the rebellion issue has only 1037 Hijri year mentioned and does not have a Regnal year, and it was a common practice under the Moghul Empire to issue coins with Regnal year and Hijri year on it.
How it survived
“Probably, Shah Jahan knew that the coin he was striking was not an official issue and that is why Regnal year is not mentioned. There is also a probability that Dawar Baksh, who had ascended the throne at Lahore got to know and passed orders to collect all these coins from circulation and destroy them. Fortunately, this coin may have been carried by a traveller or a merchant and taken to a different province,” he said. An untold historical episode was thus saved for posterity.
