Lot No.455
AUC52
Mughals
Auction Date: 15-08-2026
Silver
Muhammad Shah (1719-1748 AD), silver rupee, Zafarabad mint, AH 1140/RY 13, unpublished in KM, Zeno #134663 (same coin), 11.34g. Obv: Persian legend Sikka Mubarak Badshah Ghazi Muhammad Shah with AH date. Rev: Mint name, RY and Jalus formula.
A highly appealing specimen, superbly preserved and struck in high relief, with excellent eye appeal.
Extremely fine, Extremely rare.
The best known specimen.
Notably, only two other examples of this extremely rare mint are known to date.
Zafarabad is usually identified with Bidar in Karnataka - however, by the time this coin was struck the name of Bidar had reverted to 'Muhammadabad' from 'Zafarabad' which was a relic from the reign of Aurangzeb Alamgir. The location of 'Zafarabad' of this coin is therefore more likely to be the fortified town of Taimurni in Akola district of Maharashtra, which was previously known as 'Zafarnagar' and 'Zafarpur'. Currently the town is known as 'Jafarabad', the distinction between 'Jafar' and 'Zafar' being phonetically interchangeable in Marathi language. The coin must have been issued under the rule of the Nizam of Hyderabad. For more details, refer article by Dr. Shailendra Bhandare published in JONS 210 (2012), pp. 26-38.
Provenance: Classical Numismatic Gallery Auction 15 (2014), Lot no. 242 sold at hammer Rs. 49,000.
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