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Drachm - Napki Malka - Hephthalite Hunnic Tribes Kabul mint
| Issuer | Hephthalite Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 475-576 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Central fire altar with stepped base and flaming crown, flanked by two attendants standing in profile facing inward, each holding a staff or spear. Solar wheels or roundels appear above each attendant in the upper field, a motif derived from Sasanian and Kushano-Sasanian prototype coinage. The composition is rendered in a stylized, somewhat schematic manner characteristic of the Hephthalite imitative series, with beaded borders framing the entire design. The overall arrangement closely follows the Kushano-Sasanian fire-altar reverse type. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The Hephthalites — called "White Huns" by Byzantine chroniclers — controlled the Kabul region after dismembering the Kidarite kingdom in the late fifth century, and their Napki Malka coinage draws directly from Kushano-Sasanian prototypes they inherited through conquest rather than through any monetary tradition of their own. The series spans roughly a century of fragmented authority, and individual pieces can be difficult to assign to specific rulers with confidence — "Napki Malka" itself translates roughly as "king of Napki," a title rather than a personal name.
Göbl's classification work remains the primary reference for distinguishing die groups within this series.