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Debased Dinar - Tarapira
| Issuer | Kidarite Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 650-700 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Highly abstracted representation of the goddess Ardoksho (Lakshmi-Ardochsho) seated frontally, arms extended in a schematised pose derived from earlier Kushano-Sasanian prototypes. The figure is rendered with bold, simplified forms typical of late debased Kidarite coinage, with the body reduced to geometric volumes. Brahmi legends surrounding the central deity record the name of the issuing ruler, Tarapira (Sri TaRaPiRa), arranged around the field. The execution is characteristic of the progressive stylistic degeneration seen in this terminal phase of Kidarite coinage. |
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| Reverse lettering | (Translation: Sri TaRaPiRa) |
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| Additional information |
The Kidarites were themselves displaced by the Hephthalites in the latter half of the 5th century, which makes a coin attributed to a Kidarite-derived authority in the 650–700 range a survival phenomenon — a rump coinage issued by remnant or successor power still invoking Kidarite dynastic imagery long after the kingdom's political collapse. The "debased" designation in the name is somewhat misleading for a gold piece; debasement here likely reflects alloy inconsistency rather than a systematic reduction, a product of decentralized minting under pressure.
Mitchiner's AC#3637 places this within a sequence of late issues where the Tarapira type shows progressive degradation of the prototype Kushan protodinar forms.