Catalog
Drachm - Madasena
| Issuer | Maitraka dynasty |
|---|---|
| Year | 400-500 |
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| Value | 1 Drachm |
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| Obverse description | Bare-headed bust of King Madasena in right-facing profile, rendered in a schematized late-antique style derived from Sasanian prototypes. The facial features — including a prominent nose, defined chin, and ear — are boldly modelled in high relief against a plain field. A stylized Brahmi legend or symbol appears behind the head, partially integrated into the design. The flan is irregular and slightly scyphate, consistent with hammered production of the early Maitraka period. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Central field features a trident (trishula), the emblem of Shaivite authority, rendered in stylized relief on a plain ground. The device is flanked by attendant symbols and encircled by a continuous Brahmi legend occupying the full periphery of the flan. The inscription runs clockwise and is executed in the characteristic cursive Brahmi script of the western Indian early medieval tradition. The overall composition reflects the Maitraka dynastic convention of pairing royal imagery with Shaivite religious symbolism. |
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| Additional information |
The Maitraka dynasty emerged after Bhatarka, a former Gupta military governor, established independent control over the Saurashtra region following the Gupta empire's gradual fragmentation in the late 5th century. Madasena is among the lesser-documented rulers of the line, and attributions within early Maitraka coinage remain contested — die studies have not resolved the full sequence of rulers with certainty. These small silver drachms derive their module and weight standard directly from the late Western Kshatrapa tradition they inherited.