2020-02-26 Wed

Yadavas of Devagiri ruled a kingdom of Deccan during 9th to 12th Centuries AD. The Yadavas initially ruled as feudatories of the Western Chalukyas. Around the middle of the 12th century, as the Chalukya power waned, the Yadava king Bhillama V declared independence. Krishna also is known as Kannara, was a ruler of the Yadava dynasty of the Deccan region in India.

The coins issued by the Yadavas are Deogiri are similar to those of the Chalukyas in execution. They are punch-marked coins with a concave curve having a one important punch in the centre with other punches around. These types of coins are known as Padmatankas. They are normally uniface but sometimes have reverse depiction. This particular coin is an exceptional one.

Known as gold die-struck gadyana, it mimics the design on 'Padma Tanka' punch-marked coins but incorporated within a single die. The obverse of the coin depicts a design composed of a lotus in the center, a Sankha below it, two Kannada characters 'Sri' on either side and a Devanagari legend (with a spear-like object) “Sri Kanhara” above it. The reverse depicts an archer pursuing and striking a man in his head with an arrow, Devanagari inscription Weesalamari below.

The specimen was sold for Rs. 12,50,000 by Classical Numismatics Gallery in the year 2018.

Image Courtesy: classicalnumismaticgallery