Item number: A1304

Year: AD 1458-1511

Material: Copper

Size: 18.0 x 17.7 x 6.4 mm

Weight: 6.4 g

Provenance: Teutoburger Münzauktion GmbH 2023

This is a copper coin of ½ Falus, issued between AD 1458 and AD 1511 under the rule of Sultan Mahmud Begada of the Gujarat Sultanate. This coin differs from another 1½ Falus copper coin in the museum’s collection solely in weight.

The obverse of the coin features an inscribed rectangular frame, with faint Arabic text around the border that is no longer legible. Within the frame, the inscription reads from bottom to top: “محمود” (Mahmud) and “السلطان” (Sultan), indicating the ruler’s name and title. The reverse of the coin bears the title of Muhammad Beg, “ناصر” (The Helper).

The Gujarat Sultanate was originally a territory of the Delhi Sultanate. During Timur’s invasion of the Delhi Sultanate from Central Asia, the local governor declared independence in AD 1394. Mahmud Begada, the sixth ruler of the Gujarat Sultanate, undertook currency reforms during his reign. In AD 1508, he engaged in a naval battle against the Portuguese, who had started intervening in Indian Ocean trade. The battle, fought in alliance with Egypt’s Mamluk Sultanate, ended in victory for Gujarat and its allies. The Gujarat Sultanate is also documented in Chinese records, noted as a significant transshipment hub on the Indian subcontinent during the Song and Yuan dynasties.

物件編號: A1304

年代: 公元 1458-1511 年

材質: 銅

尺寸: 18.0 x 17.7 x 6.4 mm

重量: 6.4 g

來源: 條頓堡錢幣拍賣 2023

這是一枚公元1458至1511年間，古吉拉特蘇丹國的統治者穆罕默德·伯克發行之面額 ½ 菲勒斯銅幣。這枚錢幣跟本館收藏的另一枚面額1 ½ 菲勒斯的銅幣，僅有在重量上有所差異。

錢幣正面打印一個矩形方框，方框外圍依稀為阿拉伯文，但是內容已經難以判讀。方框內部的銘文從下而上，分別為「محمود」(穆罕默德) 和「السلطان」(蘇丹)，即統治者的名字和頭銜稱謂。錢幣背面為穆罕默德伯克的頭銜「ناصر」(救助者) 。

古吉拉特蘇丹國原先為徳里蘇丹國的疆域，當地的行政長官趁著帖木兒從中亞南下入侵德里蘇丹國之際，於公元1394年宣布獨立。穆罕默德·伯克為古吉拉特蘇丹國的第六任統治者，其任內對於貨幣進行過改革。並且在公元1508年與插手印度洋貿易的葡萄牙進行海戰，以古吉拉特和盟友埃及的馬木路克蘇丹國勝利告終。古吉拉特蘇丹國亦出現在中國的文獻紀載，為宋元兩代在南亞次大陸重要的國際轉運站。