Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
AV 21/2 Mas - Muhammad Sa`id
| Issuer | Sultanate of Gowa (Indonesian States) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1638-1653 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Round (irregular) |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Crudely hammered irregular flan bearing a three-line Arabic inscription arranged horizontally across the field, reading 'al-Sultan / Muhammad / al-Sa'id'. The lettering is rendered in a bold, somewhat archaic hand typical of Southeast Asian Islamic coinage of the mid-seventeenth century, with the text occupying the full extent of the coin's face. No border or decorative devices are present; the entire composition is devoted to the royal titulature of Sultan Muhammad Sa'id of Gowa. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | السلطان محمد السعيد |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Muhammad Sa'id ruled Gowa at the peak of its commercial power, when the port of Makassar was the dominant entrepôt of eastern Indonesia and a deliberate refuge for traders seeking to avoid the Dutch VOC's tightening monopoly over spice routes. The sultanate's gold coinage circulated within a trade network that stretched from Maluku to Siam, and its fractional denominations like this piece were practical instruments of that commerce rather than ceremonial issues.
The VOC blockaded and ultimately sacked Makassar in 1667 under Cornelis Speelman, effectively ending Gowa's independent monetary tradition. Surviving coinage from Muhammad Sa'id's reign predates that rupture entirely.