Item number: A3542／A3585

Reference number: MACW#1527

Year: circa AD 592-650

Material: Copper

Size: 22.4 x 21.5 x 1.3 mm (A3542)／24.3 x 21.9 x 0.9 mm (A3585)

Weight: 3.75 g (A3542)／2.5 g (A3585)

Manufactured by: Ghazni Mint

Provenance: Stephen Album Rare Coins 2025

This coin, possibly struck between the late 6th century AD and the first half of the 7th century AD by a Hunnic polity south of the Hindu Kush, is a copper issue in a form resembling the drachma.

The obverse depicts the right-facing bust of an unidentified ruler in the Nezak style. He wears a crown surmounted by three ornaments shaped like tridents, though some scholars suggest these may represent crescent symbols embellished with floral motifs. The elongated skull may be connected with the Hunnic custom of artificial cranial deformation. To the left of the portrait appears the tamga (Old Turkic: 𐱃𐰢𐰍𐰀, tamga), or tribal emblem, of the Alchon Huns. Its form consists of an upward-facing crescent joined by a straight line to a lower symbol resembling either the Chinese radical “丌” or the Greek letter “Π.” On the right of the portrait are two characters, believed to imitate the use of Bactrian written in Aramaic script found on earlier Nezak Hunnic coinage, though these remain undeciphered. Below the bust, on the lower right, is a conch shell. The design is enclosed within a double concentric toothed border, possibly derived from Sasanian coin designs introduced around AD 592.

The reverse features the tamga of the Alchon Huns at the centre, likewise enclosed within a double concentric toothed border. Around the outer field, four crescent-and-star motifs are thought to have been placed, with the crescent openings facing outward; due to mis-striking, only two of these are clearly identifiable.

The origins of the Huns are the subject of divergent theories, with hypotheses proposing Mongolic, Turkic, Iranian, or Tungusic roots. One probable origin is the Hephthalites, an Iranian or Turkic tribal confederation, who rose during the Hunnic migrations of the 4th to 6th centuries AD, establishing control over the former Greco-Bactrian territories. The name “Hephthalite” first came to the knowledge of Chinese dynastic courts in the Northern Wei period, while Byzantine sources referred to them as the “White Huns.” The Alchon Huns, expanding south of the Hindu Kush and also known as the “Red Huns,” together with the Nezak Huns, who emerged locally after the defeat of the Sasanian Empire, have long been regarded either as branches of the Hephthalite Empire or as groups heavily influenced by it. In the early 6th century AD, the Alchon Huns expanded into central India, defeating the Gupta dynasty and ultimately contributing to its collapse, though they were later defeated by the Malwa Kingdom. Around AD 520, they waged further campaigns against Malwa and the Later Guptas without decisive outcome, retreating with plunder. By approximately AD 530, they had withdrawn to Gandhāra and Kashmir. In the latter half of the 6th century, under the leadership of Toramana II, they retreated further into the Kabul region, where they came into contact with the Nezak Huns. Although the details remain unclear, it is probable that some form of coexistence was achieved. Thereafter, they repelled Sasanian attacks on several occasions, established themselves locally, and, according to historical records, dispatched embassies to the Tang dynasty more than once.

The drachma originated in ancient Greece and, following the eastward expansion of Alexander the Great, was disseminated throughout the Hellenistic successor kingdoms. Initially issued as a silver coin, it was later adapted into copper coinage by polities in Central Asia and India.

物件編號: A3542／A3585

參考書目編號: MACW#1527

年代: 約公元 484-550 年

材料: 銅

尺寸: 22.4 x 21.5 x 1.3 mm (A3542)／24.3 x 21.9 x 0.9 mm (A3585)

重量: 3.75 g (A3542)／2.5 g (A3585)

製造地: 加茲尼造幣廠

來源: 史蒂芬稀有錢幣專輯 2025

這是一枚可能於公元六世紀末到七世紀前半，由興都庫什山脈南部的匈人政權所鑄的銅幣，形制類似德拉克馬。

錢幣正面為未知領導者的右側半身像，呈納札克風格，頭戴帽冠，王冠上方有三支形似三叉戟的配飾，據稱也可能為新月符號中間加上花飾。頭骨較長，可能與人工進行顱骨變形的匈人習俗有關。肖像左側為艾肯匈人的塔木加(古突厥語：𐱃𐰢𐰍𐰀, tamga)，即族徽。塔木加形狀為由上端有一新月，缺口朝上，已依直線連接下端一形似「丌」或「Π」之符號。肖像右側有兩個符號，據稱為模仿先前納札克匈人錢幣上，以亞蘭字母拼寫的缽羅婆文，但無法釋讀。肖像右下有一螺殼。幣圖由雙層同心棘輪環繞，可能是借鑒約公元592年起薩珊王朝發行的錢幣設計。

錢幣背面中央為艾肯匈人的塔木加，以雙層同心棘輪環繞。棘輪外四方應各有一新月孕星圖案，缺口朝外。

匈人的起源中說紛紜，有蒙古、突厥、伊朗、通古斯等說的分歧。而起源可能為伊朗或突厥部落的嚈噠人，也在公元4-6世紀的匈人大遷徙中興起，據有希臘-巴克特里亞王國一帶。嚈噠之名在北魏時首次為中原政權所知，並在拜占廷文獻中被稱為「白匈人」。興都庫什山脈以南開始擴張的艾肯匈人，也被稱為「紅匈人」，與薩珊王朝被擊敗後本地崛起的納札克匈人，長期以來被認為是嚈噠帝國的分支，或至少是受了強烈的影響。艾肯匈人於公元六世紀初往印度中部擴張，擊敗笈多王朝，並最終導致笈多王朝崩潰，但最終被摩臘婆王國擊敗。約公元520年，與摩臘婆和後笈多王朝再戰，無果，沿途劫掠而還。約公元530年，艾肯匈人撤至犍陀羅與喀什米爾地區，約公元六世紀後半，在頭羅曼二世領導下，又撤至喀布爾地區，與在當地立國的納札克匈人接觸，過程不明，但應該是達成某種形式的共存。此後多次擊退薩珊王朝，立足當地，並從紀錄來看，多次遣使唐朝。

德拉克馬源自古希臘，經亞歷山大大帝的向東擴張，由希臘化時代的諸繼業者王國傳播各地。初為銀幣，後於中亞、印度等政權衍生銅幣。