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1 Rupee - Siva Singha and Akari Gabhuru
| Issuer | Ahom Kingdom of Assam |
|---|---|
| Year | 1739-1744 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 11.35 g |
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| Obverse description | Octagonal flan with a beaded border along each of the eight edges. The central field is entirely occupied by a multi-line inscription in Assamese script arranged in five horizontal lines, recording the Śaka era date (SE 1665) and citing Queen Sarvveśvarī and the devotional formula Śrī Śrī Hara Gaurī Pada Parāyanānam. No figurative design is present; the lettering fills the field boldly in the characteristic hammered style of Ahom coinage. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Siva Singha died in 1744 after a reign in which real power was increasingly exercised by his chief queen, Phuleswari — known by the title Bar Raja — who imposed Shakta religious practices on the Ahom court and compelled Vaishnava priests to participate in tantric rituals, provoking significant sectarian conflict. The co-inscription of Akari Gabhuru, a lesser queen, on this coinage reflects the unusual degree to which royal women held formal authority within the late Ahom state.
The Ahom kingdom had by this period already repelled the Mughal Empire's repeated attempts to annex Assam, a fact that makes the distinctly non-Mughal character of its silver coinage a deliberate political statement.