Item number: A2849

Year: AD 850-900

Material: Silver

Size: 16.4 x 16.1 x 1.9 mm

Weight: 2.9 g

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2020

This is a silver jital coin issued by the Shahis of India, circulated in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India.

The obverse of the coin features the hind portion of a recumbent zebu (humped bull) facing left. The design is framed by two concentric beaded circles. Above the bull is an inscription in Sharada script reading “श्री सामन्त देव” (Śrī Sāmanta Deva), which translates to “Radiant Samanta (Governor).” The reverse depicts a stylised equestrian figure, showing a horseman riding to the right, rendered in geometric lines.

The Shahi dynasty was originally established by the Turks. In AD 815, the Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma’mun defeated the Turkic Shahis in the Khorasan region, forcing them to convert to Islam, which destabilised their rule. In AD 843, a Brahmin vizier named Kallar overthrew the original dynasty and founded the Hindu Shahi dynasty.

The jital coins issued during the period of the Hindu Shahi dynasty generally did not feature the names of the rulers. The inscriptions on these coins were in both Sanskrit and Arabic. Although the ruling elite practised Hinduism, numerous Buddhist temples and Islamic mosques have been discovered within their territory, reflecting the ethnic and religious diversity of the region.

物件編號: A2849

年代: 公元 850-900 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 16.4 x 16.1 x 1.9 mm

重量: 2.9 g

來源: 福君錢幣 2020

這是一枚印度沙希王朝發行的銀吉塔爾錢幣，通行於阿富汗、巴基斯坦及印度北部。

錢幣正面是一隻面朝左側，僅有打印出後半身的臥姿瘤牛圖案，錢幣周圍以兩道珠圈作為裝飾。瘤牛上緣是夏拉達文標示的頭銜「श्री सामन्त देव」意思是「光輝的總督」。錢幣背面則是以幾何線條勾勒而成，騎著駿馬面朝右側的騎士像。

沙希王朝原由突厥人所建立，公元815年阿拔斯王朝哈里發馬蒙於呼羅珊地區擊敗突厥沙希，強迫後者改信伊斯蘭教，使其王朝陷入不穩。公元843年婆羅門出身的維齊爾卡拉爾推翻原王朝，成立印度沙希王朝。

印度沙希王朝時期所發行的吉塔爾錢幣，大部分未列有統治者姓名，文字同時包含梵文及阿拉伯文。雖然統治階級為印度教，其境內仍發現不少佛教寺廟及伊斯蘭清真寺遺跡，可見其民族及宗教多元性。