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Sumatra Aceh
Sultanate Sultan Alauddin Kahar
1 Gold Kupang
蘇門答臘 亞齊蘇丹國
蘇丹阿勞丁·卡哈爾
1古邦金幣
Item number: A320
Year: AD 1537-1571
Material: Gold
Size: 10.3 x 10.3 mm
Provenance: Heritage Auctions 2024
This object is a gold coin minted and issued during the reign of Sultan Alauddin Kahar, the third Sultan of the Sultanate of AcehDarussalam in Sumatra, Indonesia, from AD 1537 to AD 1571. It carries the weight of 1 Kupang.
The obverse of this coin features three lines of Arabic inscription which read “الطاهير ابن علي مالک علاوالدین “, translating to “Alauddin, son of Ali Malik the pious.” The perimeter of the coin is adorned with decorative beads. On the reverse side, there are two lines of Arabic inscription reading “السلطان العادل”, meaning “The Just Sultan.” The outer rim of the coin is similarly embellished with small beads.
Kupang: The “Kupang” was an ancient unit of measurement for gold, approximately equivalent to 0.6 grams. The use of this weight unit can be traced back to the 11th centuries in port areas along the Southeast Asian coast, indicating its connection to international trade. It was commonly employed during the Portuguese and Dutch colonial periods for transactions involving spices and other valuable commodities. With the Dutch colonial period and the influence of European trade on local currencies, this unit gradually became supplanted by Western currencies.
Alauddin Ri’ayat Syah al-Kahar, the third Sultan of the Aceh Sultanate, reigned from AD 1537 to AD 1571. He was the second son of Sultan Ali Mughayat, the founder of the Aceh Sultanate, and the younger brother of the second Sultan, Salahuddin. Due to his brother’s ineffective rule, Alauddin Ri’ayat Syah al-Kahar deposed him and assumed the throne as the third Sultan. During his reign, he actively engaged in military campaigns against the Aru Kingdom in Sumatra, and he dispatched envoys to the Ottoman Empire to establish strategic relations. Additionally, he frequently clashed with the Portuguese in Malacca in an attempt to seize this crucial trading hub. These actions laid a solid foundation for the expansion of Aceh’s power and influence.
The Sultanate of Aceh was an Islamic powerhouse that ruled over the Aceh region of Sumatra, Indonesia, from the 15th to the 19th centuries. Its capital was Kutaraja (present-day Banda Aceh). Situated at the northern tip of the island of Sumatra in Indonesia, the kingdom was one of the most influential sultanates in Southeast Asia. It was renowned for its strategic location along major trade routes and its influence in spreading Islam throughout the region.
The Sultanate of Aceh reached its zenith in the 16th and 17th centuries, becoming a significant maritime and commercial power that controlled the trade routes between the Indian Ocean and the Strait of Malacca.
One of the most notable aspects of the Sultanate of Aceh was its steadfast resistance against European expansion. Aceh successfully repelled attempts by Portugal and the Netherlands to conquer the region, gaining renown for its formidable military prowess.
The decline of the Sultanate of Aceh began in the late 17th centuries, attributed to factors such as internal conflicts, external pressure from the Dutch East India Company, and competition with other regional powers. In AD 1873, the Netherlands initiated the Aceh War with the aim of conquering Aceh and establishing colonial rule in the region. The war lasted for several decades, culminating in Aceh’s conquest by the Dutch in AD 1903.
Leyten, J. (2004). A Catalogue of the Gold Coins of Samudra Pasai and Acheh; their origin, name, and weight, in a historical context.
Michael Mitchiner (1977): Oriental Coins and their Values: The World of Islam. London, Hawkins Publications.
Khan, Sher Banu A. L. (2017). Sovereign Women in a Muslim Kingdom – The Sultanahs of Aceh, 1641−1699. Cornell University. p. 28
Robert S. Wicks (1986): « Monetary Developments in Java between the Ninth and Sixteenth Centuries: A Numismatic Perspective ». Indonesia, No. 42, p44-59.