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1 Pitis - Muhammad Bahauddin
| Issuer | Palembang, Sultanate of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1788 |
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| Currency | Keping |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Cast tin pitis with a central circular perforation. A multi-word Arabic legend radiates around the central hole and is read clockwise, occupying the entire field. The inscription names the Sultan of Palembang and records the Hijri date AH 1202. The lettering is rendered in a bold, slightly irregular script characteristic of Palembang cast coinage, with the characters arranged in segmented panels encircling the void. The outer rim is plain and undecorated. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Palembang's tin pitis coinage occupied a peculiar economic niche in late 18th-century Sumatra — too low in value for major trade, yet essential for small-scale bazaar transactions in a sultanate whose real wealth flowed from pepper and river commerce controlled along the Musi. Muhammad Bahauddin ruled Palembang from 1776 to 1803, navigating Dutch VOC pressure while maintaining nominal independence, and his tin issues represent the sultanate minting on its own authority during that window before Dutch intervention tightened considerably after 1811.
Tin was locally abundant in the region, making it the logical material for fractional coinage, though its softness means surviving examples with full, uncorroded surfaces are genuinely difficult to find.