'It's unique': Gold Mohur medieval coin from Mughal era auctions for Rs 56 lakh

A rare gold coin belonging to the fifth son of Mughal emperor Aurangazeb has sold for a whopping 56 lakh, a leading coin auction center Marudhar Arts informed in a release, as cited by PTI. Once owned by Kam Bakhsh, the 10.9-gram gold coin with a gold 'Mohur' of Bijapur Dar-uz-Zafar mint was expected to fetch an amount between 45 to 50 lakh. However, according to the CEO of Marudhar Arts, Rajendra Maru, an identified buyer purchased the coin after it went under the hammer for an exorbitant price. "The coin, weighing 10.90 gram, is almost uncirculated. So it's unique," Maru, who is organizing the auction, Maru told PTI. He added, that the unique coin that has Persian inscription holds a historical significance from the Mughal dynasty era. 

Maru, also an organizer of the auction, told PTI that Kam Bakhsh’s coins are extremely significant for its mints in Bijapur, Ahsanabad, Nusratabad, Haidarabad, Torgal, Gokak, and Imtiyazgarh, but the combination on the auctioned coin is unusual and important as it is singularly recorded. "We do not know when Kam Bakhsh declared himself the emperor but it must have been sometime in March 1707, soon after the fort of Bijapur came under his control, but we don't know the exact date for this event,” the auction center’s update read. Furthermore, the Marudhar Arts portal informed that Kam Bakhsh had gained control across Deccan including Gulbarga (now Kalaburagi), Shahpur and Wakinkhera, and Hyderabad in 1707 but was captured and succumbed to wounds post a fierce battle in January 1709. 

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[India mohur coin from mughal empire. Credit: Marudhar Arts auction center]

Babur's coin sold for $120,000 USD 

The medieval gold mohur coins of Kam Bakhsh from the Mughal era were largely preserved by Aurangzeb’s elder brother Shah Alam Bahadur after his death. The Mughal rulers had abundant coinages in gold, silver, and copper which were the costliest and were excavated centuries later. Babur’s coins dug out in Afghanistan composed of mithqal or Ashrafi (a gold piece of 4.7 grams) dated to AH 930 (about 1523 CE) were similarly sold for $120,000 USD in a Swiss auction. Humayun meanwhile, acquired a coinage with gold mohair from the Suri Empire made out of gold, silver, and copper with Agra as it major mint. 

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