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1/4 Rupee - Shah Alam II Pattern
| Issuer | Bengal Presidency |
|---|---|
| Year | 1793 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Obverse description | The obverse bears a four-line Persian legend arranged in the characteristic Mughal jali script style, divided by a horizontal cartouche band across the field. The upper portion displays the regnal date AH 1204, while the inscription reads 'Shah Alam Sikka Badshah,' identifying the coin as struck in the name of the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. The bold, deeply incuse lettering fills the coin's field entirely, with no border ornamentation other than the coin's edge, reflecting the traditional Mughal coinage format adapted for East India Company pattern production. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | ١٢٠۴ شاه عالم سكه بادشاه (Translation: Coin of Emperor Shah Alam, (AH) 1204) |
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| Additional information |
Shah Alam II was the Mughal emperor under whose nominal authority the East India Company operated in Bengal — a legal fiction both sides found convenient. The 1793 Permanent Settlement gave the Company effectively unchecked revenue control over Bengal, and coinage reform followed as part of that consolidation. This pattern was struck at Calcutta as the Company tested designs for a standardized silver rupee series, working through multiple struck trials before settling on the Sicca rupee format that would dominate Bengal coinage into the 1830s.
Pn12a is distinguished from the related Pn12 by silver composition rather than copper, making it the rarer struck metal for this trial.