Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1/4 Rupee - Shah Alam II
| Issuer | Bombay Presidency |
|---|---|
| Year | 1832 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1/4 Rupee |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Three horizontal bands of Persian Naskh script fill the coin's field, divided by two parallel raised lines. The regnal date 1215 (AH) appears prominently at the top of the uppermost band. The legend reads 'Sikka Mubarak Badshah Ghazi Shah Alam,' identifying the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II as the sovereign authority. The script is bold and deeply struck, occupying nearly the entire flan within a plain raised rim. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | ١٢١٥ شاه عالم بادشاه غازي سكه مبارك (Translation: The auspicious coin of the victorious Emperor Shah Alam) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Shah Alam II died in 1806, yet the Bombay Presidency continued striking coins in his name for decades afterward — a deliberate fiction maintained to ease acceptance among populations accustomed to Mughal-style currency. By 1832, the practice was purely administrative convenience; the East India Company had no political reason to invoke a blind, powerless emperor who had spent his final years as a British pensioner in Delhi.
The dual Pridmore references suggest this date spans two distinct varieties, likely differing in regnal year rendering or mint mark placement on the frozen Hijri date.