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Lot No.60
AUC50
Hindu Coins of Medieval India
Auction Date: 04-01-2026
Gold
Vijayanagar Empire, gold Dodda Honnu or 'Double Pagoda' of Krishnadeva Raya (1509-1530 AD), MCSI-I 1088, 18.20mm, 7.79g. Obv: Four-armed Lord Venkateshwara of Tirupati standing under an ornamental archway, wearing tapering crown (Shikhara-mukuta), ear-ornaments (Karna-kundalas) and other jewelled attributes shown by a flowing array of dots and lines. He holds Shankha and Chakra in his upper hands, and makes the gesture of 'boon-giving' (Varada-mudra) with one of his lower. The archway or Torana, has Makara-shaped keystones and a Keertimukha above the deity's head. Rev: Devanagari legend in three lines Sri/Krishna Ra/ya within a double circular border.
A superbly preserved and perfectly centred example of this exceptionally rare type - surely one of the finest surviving specimens and a coin of considerable historical importance.
With original soil, Uncirculated, struck in high relief with brilliant details, Exceedingly rare.
This exceedingly rare and important coin was specially struck by Krishnadevaraya in 1516 AD, to perform a Kanakabhishekam (“Shower of Gold”) ceremony at the Tirupati temple, to thank the Lord for his victory over the Kondavidu and Gajapati dynasties of neighboring Andhra-Orissa country. It shows a truly splendorous depiction of Venkateshwara, in all its jewelled glory on obverse. As compared with it the simplicity of the reverse stands out as a testimony to the King's devotion and subservience to the Lord.
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Estimated Price :
Rs. 15,00,000-20,00,000
Sold For :
Rs. 36,00,000
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