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1 Fanam - District of Malabar, Zamorin of Calicut
| Issuer | Zamorin of Calicut |
|---|---|
| Year | 1750-1783 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | KM#10 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Highly stylized and abstract design featuring a broad horizontal arc or bow-like element in the upper field, below which appears a rectangular grid of pellets arranged in rows, suggestive of a simplified representation associated with Kali or a symbolic device. A vertical line or stroke appears to the right of the pellet field. The overall design is deeply incuse in style, typical of the schematic reverse treatment found on Malabar gold fanams of the mid- to late eighteenth century. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The Zamorins of Calicut were among the first Indian rulers to engage directly with European maritime trade, their port city serving as the landing point for Vasco da Gama in 1498. By the mid-eighteenth century, their authority had been severely compressed — first by Portuguese pressure, then by Mysore. Hyder Ali seized Calicut in 1766, and his son Tipu Sultan held it until the Third Anglo-Mysore War. The British formalized control of the Malabar District in 1792 under the Treaty of Seringapatam, which effectively ended independent Zamorin coinage.
Fanams of this type continued circulating well into the colonial period alongside East India Company issues.