Item number: A3548／A3549／A3550／A3551

Year: ca. AD 500-900

Material: Silver (A3548、A3549、A3550)／Brass (A3551)

Size: 27.5 x 27.8 x 0.9 mm (A3548)／25.4 x 24.4 x 1.6 mm (A3549)／26.0 x 26.1 x 0.7 mm (A3550)／23.9 x 24.0 x 1.0 mm (A3551)

Weight: 4.0 g (A3548)／3.05 g (A3549)／3.75 g (A3550)／3.15 g (A3551)

Provenance: Stephen Album Rare Coins 2025

This coin is believed to have been minted by the city-state of Śrīkshetra, founded by the Pyu people.

The obverse depicts a throne (bhadrapīṭha), its design composed of parallel inner and outer lines forming an hourglass shape, symmetrical above and below, or with a narrower upper and shorter lower section. At the centre lies a four-petalled motif formed by five pellets. On either side are two perpendicular straight lines, apparently representing armrests, which are at times simplified into three dots. Above the throne is a row of five pellets, while below is a row of five short strokes serving as decoration. The entire motif is enclosed within a ring and a beaded border.

The reverse bears a śrīvatsa, a symbol which in Hindu and Buddhist iconography constitutes one of the aṣṭamaṅgala, the Eight Auspicious Symbols, representing fortune and abundance through the image of an endless knot. Originally associated with the goddess Lakṣmī, in Southeast Asia it developed into a motif resembling a temple gate, arch, or throne, yet retaining its symbolic reference to prosperity. To the left of the śrīvatsa appear four horizontal lines, beneath which a set of converging oblique lines ascend; according to regional tradition and parallels in other artefacts, this is likely an abstraction of the conch, the vajra, or the trident. On the right is a solar motif. Within the “gateway” of the śrīvatsa is an inverted V-shaped arch at the top and a reversed U-shaped element below, flanked by two pellets on each side and surmounted by a further two pellets, with occasional additional sun and moon motifs above. A wavy design is placed beneath.

From about the fifth century AD, coinage adopting the conch–śrīvatsa prototype became widespread across Southeast Asia, including present-day Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and southern Vietnam. These coins were predominantly of silver and typically bore no inscriptions. They were frequently perforated for secondary use as amulets. The earliest silver coins were excavated at the ancient city of Pegu, earlier examples being known only from chance finds or surviving specimens. Pegu is identified with the Śrīkshetra mentioned in both indigenous and foreign historical records, one of the Pyu city-states, named after the Pyu people. The Pyu polity first rose to prominence in the second century with Hanlin as its centre, but by the seventh to eighth centuries AD Śrīkshetra had become the leading city. In the eighth century the Pyu reached their apogee: their territory extended north to Nanzhao, south to the coast, east to Chenla, and west to India, encompassing virtually the entire Irrawaddy basin, while maintaining close relations with the Tang court. In AD 832, the Pyu suffered defeat at the hands of Nanzhao, after which their power declined, and they were eventually supplanted by the Pagan kingdom dominated by the Burmans.

物件編號: A3548／A3549／A3550／A3551

年代: 約公元 500-900 年

材料: 銀(A3548、A3549、A3550)／黃銅 (A3551)

尺寸: 27.5 x 27.8 x 0.9 mm (A3548)／25.4 x 24.4 x 1.6 mm (A3549)／26.0 x 26.1 x 0.7 mm (A3550)／23.9 x 24.0 x 1.0 mm (A3551)

重量: 4.0 g (A3548)／3.05 g (A3549)／3.75 g (A3550)／3.15 g (A3551)

來源: 史蒂芬稀有錢幣專輯 2025

這是一枚應由驃人所建之室利差呾羅城邦所鑄錢幣。

錢幣正面為寶座(bhadrapīṭha)，幣圖呈內外側平行線條組成的沙漏狀，呈上下對稱或上窄下短。中央為由五個珠點所組成的四瓣花，兩側為一對互呈直角的兩段直線，應為扶手之示意，有時簡略成三點。寶座上方有一列五個珠點，下方有一列五道線段作為裝飾。外側再以環及珠點圍繞。

錢幣背面為室利靺蹉(śrīvatsa)，該詞在印度教、佛教符號學系統中為八寶之一的「吉祥結」，以無始無終的繩團喻指吉祥與豐饒。原為吉祥天女的符號，但在東南亞發展為類似廟門、拱門或寶座的符號，同樣喻指吉祥與豐饒。室利靺蹉左側為四道橫線下方再豎著往上收斂的斜線，依當地傳統及出其他文物，可能為海螺、金剛杵或三叉戟圖樣的抽象化。右側為太陽圖樣。室利靺蹉的「門」內上有「人」字形「拱頂」，下有「个」字形紋飾，並有左右各二及上方二點珠點為飾，有時上方有日月紋飾。下方有波浪狀紋飾。

大約自五世紀起，東南亞今緬甸、泰國、柬埔寨和越南南部地區，開始廣泛流行一種由海螺—室利靺蹉幣圖為原型的錢幣，以銀質為主，通常不具銘文。經常作為護身符二次使用而有穿孔。銀幣最早自卑謬古城出土，此前均來自傳世或地表拾獲。卑謬古城被認為是中外史籍中所載的「室利差呾羅」(Śrīkshetra)的遺址，為「驃國」城邦之一，因驃族而得名。 驃國最早於二世紀興起時以罕林(Hanlin)城邦為首，約公元七至八世紀時，以更下游的室利差呾羅城邦為首。公元八世紀時驃國達致極盛，北抵南紹，南至海岸，東至真臘，西接天竺，基本囊括了伊洛瓦底江流域，並與唐廷來往密切。公元832年，驃國敗於南紹，其勢轉弱，後為緬人為主的蒲甘王國所取代。