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1/4 Tanka - Ghiyath al-Din Mahmud
| Issuer | Sultanate of Bengal |
|---|---|
| Year | 1533 |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Arabic |
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| Reverse description | Reverse of hammered silver flan struck with the Islamic profession of faith (Kalima) in Arabic script. A central circular cartouche encloses the Shahada in two lines: 'La ilaha illa Allah / Muhammad rasul Allah'. The surrounding marginal legend carries the regnal year in Arabic numerals, reading 'Sana 939' (AH 939, corresponding to AD 1533). The lettering is boldly struck in raised relief, with characteristic die wear and flan irregularity consistent with Bengal Sultanate hand-hammered production. |
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| Additional information |
Ghiyath al-Din Mahmud was the last sultan of the Husain Shahi dynasty, deposed in 1538 when Sher Shah Suri swept through Bengal during his campaign to dismantle Mughal authority under Humayun. Coins from his brief reign are among the scarcer Husain Shahi issues, as the political instability of the 1530s — with Afghan and Mughal factions contesting Bengal simultaneously — disrupted mint operations at Husainabad and elsewhere.
The fractional tanka denominations from this reign survive in notably smaller numbers than the full tanka series.