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1 Tanka - Ala al Din Husain Shah
| Issuer | Bengal Sultanate |
|---|---|
| Year | 1493-1518 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Central field occupied by a multi-line Arabic inscription reading 'Al-Sultan al-Adil' (The Just Sultan), rendered in bold, somewhat crude Naskh script characteristic of Bengal Sultanate coinage. The legends fill the flan in the typical fashion of medieval Indo-Islamic hammered silver tankās, with inscriptions arranged in horizontal registers across the face. The irregular flan edges are a hallmark of the hand-struck production technique employed at the Bengal mint during this period. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Arabic |
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| Additional information |
Ala al-Din Husain Shah ruled Bengal for nearly three decades — an unusually long and stable reign by sultanate standards — and his prolific silver coinage reflects it. More types and variants are attributed to him than to any other Bengal sultan, making GG#B760 one entry in a remarkably dense series. His reign saw Bengal extend its territorial reach significantly, including campaigns into Kamata and Orissa, and the mint output tracked that ambition.
Collectors should note that weight variation across his tankas is well documented and not indicative of debasement — the Bengal mints of this period worked within loose tolerances that were consistent practice rather than crisis response.