Item number: A1211

Year: AD 850-900

Material: Silver

Size: 16.5 x 16.5 mm

Weight: 3.5 g

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2024

This is a silver jital coin issued by the Shahis of India, circulated in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India. On the obverse, it depicts a reclining zebu (humped bull), with an inscription in Sanskrit reading “Sri Spalapati Deva,” which translates as “Respected Commander-in-Chief.” While the reverse design is not fully clear, the visible limbs of a horse suggest, based on similar artifacts, that it likely portrays a mounted knight.

The Shahi dynasty was originally established by the Turks. In AD 815, the Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma’mun defeated the Turkic Shahis in the Khorasan region, forcing them to convert to Islam, which destabilised their rule. In AD 843, a Brahmin vizier named Kallar overthrew the original dynasty and founded the Hindu Shahi dynasty.

The jital coins issued during the period of the Hindu Shahi dynasty generally did not feature the names of the rulers. The inscriptions on these coins were in both Sanskrit and Arabic. Although the ruling elite practised Hinduism, numerous Buddhist temples and Islamic mosques have been discovered within their territory, reflecting the ethnic and religious diversity of the region.

物件編號: A1211

年代: 公元 850-900 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 16.5 x 16.5 mm

重量: 3.5 g

來源: 福君錢幣 2024

這是一枚印度沙希王朝發行的銀吉塔爾錢幣，通行於阿富汗、巴基斯坦及印度北部。正面為呈現臥姿的瘤牛，上方銘文以梵文書寫「Sri Spalapati Deva」，翻譯為尊敬的總司令。反面圖案雖尚不清晰，仍可看到馬匹的四肢，參考相似文物推斷應為騎馬的騎士。

沙希王朝原由突厥人所建立，公元815年阿拔斯王朝哈里發馬蒙於呼羅珊地區擊敗突厥沙希，強迫後者改信伊斯蘭教，使其王朝陷入不穩。公元843年婆羅門出身的維齊爾卡拉爾推翻原王朝，成立印度沙希王朝。

印度沙希王朝時期所發行的吉塔爾錢幣，大部分未列有統治者姓名，文字同時包含梵文及阿拉伯文。雖然統治階級為印度教，其境內仍發現不少佛教寺廟及伊斯蘭清真寺遺跡，可見其民族及宗教多元性。