Nagas of Padmavati and Coins

 

A story of a mighty kingdom that has totally been forgotten. Nagas were a group of people who migrated to a number of places in North India around 1000 BC. Some coins dating back to the 2nd and 3rd century BC have been found in the ruins of Padmavati.  It seems that some of them settled as far as Nagaland in northeast and Andhra in the south, though their main settlement remained in central India. After being almost completely destroyed by Janamejaya of the Kuru dynasty (1200-500 BC), the Naga dynasty rose to rule parts of north-central India during the 3rd and the 4th centuries AD, after the decline of the Kushan Empire and before the rise of the Gupta Empire.

Its capital was located at Padmavati, which is identified with modern Pawaya (in Gwalior District), in Madhya Pradesh.

                         

Nagas of Padmavati, Ganapati Naga, 350 AD,  

 

According to the Puranic texts as well as numismatic evidence, the Nagas also ruled at Videsha, Kantipuri and Mathura. They may have been different branches of a single family or may have been a single family that ruled from different capitals at different times. In Madhya Pradesh, Naga coins have been discovered at Pawaya, Narwar, Gohad, Vidisha, Kutwar and Ujjain. In Uttar Pradesh they have been discovered in Mathura and Jhansi districts. 

                       

    Map of Naga Territory.

                         

    Location in Madhya Pradesh

 

The oldest inscriptional history is seen on the carvings of the pedestal of Yaksha. The inscription is in Brahmi. 

                       

Yaksha Manibhadra found at Padmavati, now at Archeology Museum, Gwalior

                        

Inscription at the base of the Statue of Yaksha Manibhadra. It says it was installed in the fourth regnal year of King Sivanandi, early king of Nagas

 

The Naga dynasty is known mainly from the coins issued by its rulers, and from brief mentions in literary texts and inscriptions. According to the Vayu and the Brahmnada Puranas, nine Naga kings ruled Padmavati and seven Naga kings ruled Mathura before the Guptas. According to the Vishnu Purana, nine Naga kings ruled at Padmavati, Kantipuri and Mathura. However, coins of twelve kings have been discovered, of eleven rulers at Padmavati (modern Pawaya) and of one ruler at Narwar. The Naga people worshipped the Cobra (Nag).

                       

View of the Pawaya Brick Temple

                       

Wall and a platform 400 AD, the verticals are Cobras (Nagas) in symbolic form

                         

Close up of the symbolic representation of Cobra (Nag)

 

The inscriptions of the Vakataka dynasty, state the mother of Vakataka King Rudrasena was a daughter of King Bhavanaga. Bhavanaga's coins have been found at Padmavati. Rudrasena's reign is dated to 335-355 AD, therefore his maternal grandfather Bhavanaga can be dated to early 4th century AD. The Allahabad Pillar inscriptions of Samudragupta mentions Ganapati Naga as one of the kings defeated by him. A chronological list of Naga rulers, based on numismatic and paleographic evidence exists today. 

Ganapati was the last Naga king. The Naga dynasty came to an end about the middle of the 4th century AD and their kingdom became part of the Gupta Empire. However, Padmavati was still the capital of a kingdom and a place of cultural and religious importance in the 8th century AD. It had perhaps a university that attracted students from distant provinces like Vidarbha (modern Berar). Buddhists lived here with followers of the Saivite sect of the Kapalikas.  

Coins. The Padmavati region started yielding coins in the 1800s when heavy rains started to erode the high level of mud. Villagers started finding coins each year after the rains and still find them till date. One hoard of coins discovered in Padmavati contained as many as 100,000 coins in an earthen pot. Naga coins are mostly copper and circular, about one cm in diameter. Humped bull was a common theme. One can also see wheel, Linga, horse, triangular banner, peacock on the coins. The various kings of the Nagas minted coins in denominations of 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 and 1 Kakini..   

                      

1/8 Kakani, Ganapati Naga, 200-300 AD, copper, weight 0.45 gm, Obverse: Humped bull standing left, Reverse: Legend in Brahmi, lettering ''Maharaja Sri Ganendra''

                       

1/4 Kakini, Naga, Narwar, 200-300 AD, copper, weight 1.1 gm, Dia 9,8 mm, Thickness 2.4 mm                    

                        

Narwar, One Kakini, 200-340 AD, Bronze, weight 1.9 gm, Dia 10 mm, Thickness 3.6 mm.

                          

1/2 Kakini, Ganpati Naga, 300-400 AD, Bronze, weight 1.4 gm Obverse: Nandi with dotted border, Reverse: Inscription in Brahmi, '' Maha Raja Shri Ganendra''

                       

1/2 Kakini, Ganpati Naga, 200-340 AD, copper, weight 1.1 gm, Dia 10 mm, Thickness 2.9 gm

                         

1/8 Kakini, Ganpati Naga, 340 AD, weight 0.55 gm, Dia 9 mm, Obverse: Bull advancing left, Reverse: Brahmi legend, Maharaja Sri Ganapati written clockwise.

                          

Ganapati, 345 AD, copper, weight 0.5 gm, Dia 9.2 mm

                       

Ganapati, 350 AD, copper, weight 0.9 gm, Obverse: Humped bull facing left, Reverse: Brahmi legend, ''Maharaja Sri Gane raja'' written clockwise

                           

Deva Naga, One Kakini, late 200 AD, copper, weight 2.4 gm, Dia 11 mm, Obverse: Wheel, Reverse: Maharaja Sri Deva in a circle in Brahmi.

Nagas of Padmavati

Coins of Nagas of Padmavati

 

Ancient Gold Coin Proves Fictional Roman Emperor Sponsian Was Real: Study

 

A hoard of coins excavated in the eighteenth century, once thought to be fakes have been authenticated by researchers who say the coins reveal a long-lost Roman Emperor. Sponsianus, also known as Sponsian, may have been a Roman usurper during the third century. Although there is no mention of Sponsian in present day Roman history, he might have been active during the Crisis of the Third Century, most likely in the province of Dacia. He could have proclaimed himself emperor in the 260's AD, after Darcia was cut off the rest of the Empire during the reign of Gallienus, or during the reign of Philip the Arab or his son, Philip II. 

                       

Gold Aureus with the legend Sponsiani

    

Sponsianus's name was reportedly uncovered in a coin hoard in Transylvania in 1713 AD. The coins were dispersed among several collections. One coin was kept in the Hunterian Museum at Glasgow University, which also had three other coins from the original hoard. The hoard included other coins of Philip the Arab and Gordian III, among others. The coin was locked away in a cupboard at the Hunterian Museum because it was thought to be a fake.

                        

Gold aureus with the legend ''IMP(ERATORS) SPONSIANI

The traditional opinion has been to regard the coins as fakes. In 1868, the French numismatist Henry Cohen dismissed them as ''very poor-quality modern forgeries''. After a study in 2022, led by Paul Pearson of the University College London, an earth scientist, Cardiff University, who learned about the coins and the ''fake emperor'' while researching a book on Roman history as a lockdown project. He began corresponding with Jesper Ericsson, the numismatics curator at the museum and the pair decided to perform a full-scale scientific analysis on the coin. The group of scientists stated that the marks on the coin bearing Sponsianus's name and image, visible under an electron microscope, proved that it circulated in antiquity and had been used.

A chemical analysis of the earth deposits found in the coin recesses showed that the coin had been buried in soil for hundreds of years. Moreover, simply based on their weight in gold, the coins are around $20,000 in modern value, which would have been a big outlay to start a forgery. However, there has been several researchers who have criticized the study and its conclusions and stated that unless further studies can provide more answers these coins be treated as fakes.

The most likely theory or explanation states that he was a military commander who crowned himself as an emperor when Dacia was cut off from the rest of the empire around 260 AD, as with the ongoing pandemic and civil war the empire was fragmented. Darcia was abandoned by Emperor Aurelian of the Roman Empire in the 260's as it was deemed too difficult to defend. Sponsianus may have taken the title of emperor as an attempt to maintain order. However, the Romans eventually evacuated Darcia between 271 and 275 AD. 

The Sponsian coins are ''extremely rare'' with only four known to exist and were probably minted in the isolated province of Dacia, perhaps in the city of Apulum, by jewellery artisans as the area did not have a regular coin mint. The research is in public domain, including more than 100 pages of technical reports from the scientific team. 

The debate about the coins being fake or genuine is likely to continue before reaching a consensus and a conclusion 

Emperor Sponsian

Coin of Sponsian

 

Jesus and ''The Tribute Penny'' 14-37 AD.

 

Biblical coins are a popular segment in the ancient coin lobby. For many it proves to be a gateway into the wider world of ancient numismatics, but most find just owning a coin mentioned in the Bible, an end in itself as a way to connect with that distant but meaningful past.

                       

Tiberius, Denarius, 14-37 AD, 'Tribute Penny'

Tiberius was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. During Tiberius's reign, Jesus of Nazareth preached and was spreading the words of the Almighty to the masses. Tiberius is mentioned by name in Luke 3:1, which states that that John the Baptist began his public ministry in the fifteenth year of Tiberius's reign. Most New Testament references to Caesar, refer to Tiberius.

The reign of Tiberius saw many social and political changes. This was the era of Roman Empire when the subjects of the Roman emperor were giving tribute and other taxes to the Empire. This policy of taxation was questioned by many, and a revolt was rising against it. It was during these collections, Jesus was questioned '' Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar or not?''. He replied, ''bring me a penny, that I may see it''. The money is also known as ''Render unto Caesar'' and gave his speech when the tribute penny was shown to him. Jesus asked ''Whose is the image and superscription?''. When answered that the likeness was Caesar, he replied, ''Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's (Mathew 22:20-21)

                       

The Tribute Money, by Titan, 1516 AD, depicts Jesus being shown the tribute penny

                        

The Tribute Money, by Joachim Wtewael,1616 AD 
 

Tiberius's Denarius, about dime-sized silver coin, was the usual daily wage of a day labourer during Christ's time on earth. The word ''peny'' seems first to appear in the handwritten Wycliffe's Bible translation of the New Testament, texts in the 1480's followed thereafter by Tyndale's 1526 New Testament. The spelling changed to ''penny'' in the later translations. Since Tiberius was Caesar during Christ's time on earth, the denarius of Tiberius is most often identified as ''The Tribute Penny''.

                       

Tiberius, Denarius, 14-37 AD, Lugdunum mint, 15- 18 AD, silver, weight 3.8 gm, Obverse: Laureate head right, CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVSTS, Reverse: PONTIF MAXIM: Livia (as Pax) seated right on a chair with ornamented legs, holding a long-inverted spear with her right hand and an olive branch in her left, feet on a footstool
 

Coins were regularly used as a media of propaganda, and so the coin types were changed very frequently and tended to reflect the current news of the time to the subjects. Emperors who were in power for a short time issued several varieties. However, Tiberius who was Emperor for 23 years is represented by two denarii. After 15 AD, all his denarii were the same type. A large number of these coins were minted, and many thousands still exist and are in demand.

The Tribute Penny

Tiberius

Larissa, Thessaly and Arethusa, Syracuse Coins

 

Larissa is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region of Greece. According to Greek mythology it is said to be founded by Acrisius, who was killed accidentally by his grandson, Perseus. In mythology, the nymph Larissa was a daughter of the primordial man Pelasgus for whom the town was named. The area around Larissa was extremely fruitful, agriculturally important and in antiquity was known for its horses. The name Larissa is in origin a Pelasgian word for ''fortress''. It was a city-state during the Classical Era. 

                                      

Thessaly, Larissa, 395-344 BC, Stater

                                     

Location of Larissa, marked in blue in Greece

When Larissa ceased minting the federal coins, it shared with other Thessalian towns and adopted its own coinage in the late fifth century BC. It chose local types for its coins. Larissa, sometimes written Larisa on ancient coins and inscriptions, is near the site of the Homeric Argissa.  Despite its long history, Larissa only minted coins as an independent city-state for around 300 years. Larissa lost its independence around 344 BC, when Philip II (ruled 359-336 BC), King of Macedon and father of Alexander III ''the Great'' annexed the city. Thereafter, the area was taken over by kings of the Seleucid Empire. Despite that, it minted coins till the 3rd century BC. In 196 BC, Larissa became an ally of Rome and was one of the main cities in the Thessalian League, until it was disbanded in 146 BC.

A strong feature strongly reflected on its coinage is the head of the local nymph Larissa and a horse. Larissa, daughter of primordial king who drowned in the river Peneios was reborn as a water nymph.  

                                        

Larissa, Thessaly, Drachm, 365 BC, weight 6.0 gm, Obverse: Head of the nymph Larissa facing slightly left, Reverse: Mare standing right, Foal standing right in the background

This style of coins was copied from the head of Arethusa Syracusan tetradrachms, depicted on by Cimon. Arethusa, as in Greek mythology was a nymph who fled from her home in Arcadia beneath the sea and came up as a freshwater fountain on the island of Ortygia in Syracuse, Sicily. On coins, as a patron figure of Syracuse, the head of Arethusa is surrounded by dolphins. these are regarded as among the most famous and beautiful Ancient Greek coins.

                                          

Location of Syracuse in Italy

                                       

Location of Syracuse, in Sicily

 

Among the master engraver towards the end of the fifth century BC who were allowed to sign their dies, none surpassed Kimon. His Syracusan tetradrachms bearing the almost facing head of Arethusa is widely recognized as the peak of his artistry. The goddess-nymph is shown beneath the water, her hair in elegant suspension amidst playful dolphins. Her gaze attracts the observer. The eyes are expressive. The overall impression created is of a superior being. Kimon's tetradrachms with the signed facing busts are very rare and prized. An example in extremely fine condition sold for a hammer price of $ 575000.                                        

Syracuse, Arethusa, Sicily, 405-400 BC, Tetradrachm, silver, weight 16.9 gm, Obverse: Arethusa facing slightly inclined to the left, wearing two necklaces, her hair flows on soft waves around her head, on the ampyx over the forehead, signature KIMON, on the right two dolphins swimming and a third emerging from the hair to the left, Reverse: Quadriga galloping to the left, the charioteer, holding reigns and Kentron, looks back at his pursuers, above Nike presenting a wreath to the charioteer, ear of barley in exergue

Thessaly, Larissa

Arethusa

Thessaly Larissa coin

Kohinoor, its Travelogue and Coins

 

The Koh-i-Noor (from Persian KOH-in-OOR, for ''Mountain of Light''), also spelled Kohinoor is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, weighing 105.6 carats (21.12 gm). However, the earliest well-attested weight is 186 carats or 38.2 gm. Although the origin of the Kohinoor has many theories, that include claims of it appearing in Sanskrit and even Mesopotamian texts as early as 3200 BC or it being in the possession of the Rajas of Malwa for generations prior to 1304 AD. However, it is widely accepted that the stone is a Golconda diamond, possibly mined in the Kollur Mine in India, during the period of the Kakatiya dynasty (1163-1323 AD). Let us trace its documented travel of more than seven centuries (about 718 years)                                

Kakatiyas of Warangal, 900-1000 AD, gold, punch marked coin

Alauddin Khilji. Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire wrote that it was Alauddin Khilji who acquired the diamond, not yet called the Kohinoor, when he invaded southern India in 1303-1304 AD and looted it from the Kakatias. He was an emperor of the Khilji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate from 1296 to 1316 AD.                                       

           Alauddin Khilji, 1296-1316 AD

                                          

Alauddin Khilji, Tanka, 1296-1316, silver, weight 10.8 gm, Obverse: legend in Persian, '' Alsultan al- azam/ ala al-dunya waldin/ abu'l muzaffar muhammad shah/al-sultan, Reverse: Zarb Hazihi Al-Fizzat Bi-Hazrat Dehli Fi Sanat (date), legend in Persian ''Sikandar al-thani/ yamin al-khilafa/ nasir/ amir al- mu minin, date 698 AH 

Babur. In 1526, Babur received it as a tribute for his conquest of Delhi and Agra at the Battle of Panipat. Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodhi, Sultan of Delhi in 1526 AD, and founded the Mughal Empire.                                       

              Babur, 1483-1530 AD
 

                                         

Babur, Shahrukhi, AH 935, AD 1538, silver, weight 4.69 gm, Obverse: mint name (Agra) and date, AH 935, Reverse: Kalma within circle

Shah Jahan. (1628 to 1635 AD). He was the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire. He decided to use many of the jewels in his treasury to make the ornate Peacock Throne in 1635 AD, which had the Kohinoor.

                                       

               Shah Jahan, 1592-1666 AD

                                          

Shah Jahan, AH 1038-1042, AD 1629-1633, silver, weight 11.4 gm, Obverse: Shah Jahan Shahab ul din badshah ghazi around saheb-e-qiran sani, Reverse; Kalima shahada, at bottom elahi month, regnal year and zarb Ahmadabad 

Nader Shah. In 1738 he invaded India. He was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran. With nearly 10,000 wagons of loot, valued over millions of rupees, Nader Shah carried away the Peacock Throne. It is here on the head of one of the peacocks on the throne that Nader Shah's biographer Muhammad Maharvi first records seeing the Koh-I-Noor in 1740 AD. It is alleged that Nader Shah exclaimed Koh-i-Noor or ''Mountain of light'' in Persian when he saw the stone. After Nader Shah was killed and his empire collapsed in 1747, his grandson became the owner of the Kohinoor.  

                                         

Nader Shah, 1688-1747 AD, founder of Afsharid dynasty of Iran                                       

Nader Shah, Iran, AH 1154, AD 1741, Rupee (10 Shahi), silver, weight 11.5 gm, Obverse: ''hast sultan bar salatin jehan, shah-e-shanhan nadir sahib qiran, Reverse: Zarb 1154 or AD 1741

  

Ahmad Shah Durrani. In 1751 AD, Nader Shah's grandson gave the Kohinoor to Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of the Afghan Empire, in return for his support. 

                                           

Ahmad Shah Durrani, founder of modern Afghanistan, reign 1747-1772 AD

                                      

Ahmad Shah, AH 1173-1174, AD 1760-1761, silver, Rupee, weight 11.3 gm, Obverse: Durrani couplet ''Mahi Ta Bamah'', Reverse: Julus memanat  manus sana zarb

One of Ahmad Shah's grandson, Shuja Shah Durrani, wore a bracelet containing the diamond on the occasion of Mountstuart Elphinstone's visit to Peshawar in 1808. Shah Shuja was overthrown, and he fled with the diamond to Lahore, where Ranjit Singh, founder of the Sikh Empire, in return for his hospitality took possession of it in 1813.

Ranjit Singh. He used to wear the diamond in the front of his turban and paraded it on an elephant to enable his subjects to see the diamond. He would exhibit it to prominent visitors, including the British officers.                                        

Maharaja Ranjit Singh, 1780-1839 AD, known as Lion of Punjab 

                                         

Ranjit Singh, 1885-1895 VS, 1828-1838 AD, Rupee, silver, weight 11.1 gm, Obverse: Fixed/ Frozen date VS 1884, leaf and Mint name (Amritsar), Reverse: last two digits of actual date in VS Era (18) 85

Gulab Singh. After several years of turmoil following Ranjit Singh's death in 1839, Gulab Singh, Raja of Jammu, who was Prime Minister Dhian Singh's brother became the owner of the diamond, and held on to the stone until January 1841, when he presented it to Emperor Sher Singh in order to win his favour. The diamond changed hands several times and finally, the five-year-old Duleep Singh became the Sikh Emperor, after three of the older sons of Ranjit Singh were killed in quick succession and thus Duleep Singh became the new owner of the diamond.

                                          

Gulab Singh, 1792-1857 AD, first Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir   

                                      

Gulab Singh, 1846-1849 AD, One Rupee, silver, weight 10.8 gm, Obverse: Ruler's name in Persian, Reverse: Leaf and VS date, VS 1903, without initials ''JHS'', Zarb Srinagar

 

Duleep Singh. Was the youngest son of Ranjit Singh and the last ruler of the Sikh Empire. The Kohinoor was fastened to the arm of the child emperor in court at Lahore. He and his mother Jind Kaur had till then resided in Jammu, the kingdom governed by Gulab Singh. After the Second Anglo-Sikh War, at the age of 15, he was exiled to Britain where he was befriended by Queen Victoria. He died at 55, living most of his years in the United Kingdom. 

                                         

Maharaja Duleep Singh, 1838-1893, last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.

                                         

Duleep Singh, VS 1902-1903, AD 1845-1846, Rupee, silver, weight 11.1 gm, Obverse: Leaf and frozen date VS 1885, Reverse: Banner upwards VS 1903, lettering 193.

                                        

An illustration of the Koh-i-Noor diamond as it was worn before it was in possession of Queen Victoria

 

Queen Victoria. The Kohinoor was formally presented to the queen on 03 July 1850 at Buckingham Palace. The date coincided with the Company's 250th anniversary. 

                                         

Queen Victoria wears the Koh-i-Noor diamond as a brooch in 1887

                                          

Victoria, 1849, Rupee, silver, weight 11.6 gm, Obverse: Bust of Queen Victoria facing left dividing a legend on both sides, lettering Victoria Queen, Reverse: Denomination within a wreath, date below

 

In 1852 re-cutting of the diamond was carried out. Originally, it had 169 facets and was 4.1 centimeters (1.6 in) long, 3.26 centimeters (1.28 in) wide and 1.62 centimeters (0.64 in) deep. After spending 8,000 Pounds, and about 450 hours, the weight was reduced from 186 old carats (191 modern carats or 38.2 gm) to its current 105.6 carats (21.12 gm). The stone measures 3.6 cm (1.4 in) long, 3.2 cm (1.3 in) wide and 1.3 cm (0.5 in) deep and has 66 facets.

Queen Alexandra. After Queen Victoria's death, the Kohinoor was set in the crown of Queen Alexandra, wife of Edward VII, at their coronation in 1902. The diamond was transferred to Queen Mary's Crown in 1911, and finally to Queen Elizabeth's Crown in 1937. The crown, which has a platinum frame set with 2,800 diamonds, has a front cross holding the Kohinoor in a detachable platinum mount. The Crown Jewels are valued between 10 and 12 billion dollars.

                                             

       Queen Alexandra, 1844-1925 AD, 

                                           

Queen Alexandra and King Edwards, coronation medal, Hong Kong, bronze, diameter 37 mm, Obverse: Cojoined crowned busts facing right with lettering, Reverse: Coastal scene with ships at sea  

It was set on Queen Elizabeth's coffin in April 2002, marking the crown's last public appearance. It now lies in the Jewel House at the Tower of London. 

                                         

               Kohinoor in the Crown

In May next year, during King Charles III's coronation, Queen Consort Camilla may or may not adorn the controversial Kohinoor, as many debates taken place regarding its ownership.

The Kohinoor has long been a subject of diplomatic controversy with India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran claiming ownership and its return from the UK. 

Kohinoor