1/4 Rupee - Shah Alam II

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.